The local park will be host to an incredible variety of music from around the world over Saturday and Sunday (July 19 and 20). The catch is that all of the artists are local or live within a 50 mile radius of Hebden Bridge.

World on Your Doorstep celebrates the wide diversity of cultures and musical traditions to be found in West Yorkshire and the North West.

The festival runs from noon until 8 pm each day, but music will continue in two pubs and the Trades Club until late. It will begin at 11am with the Handmade Parade, a community-based puppet parade organised by the arts group HEADS and Thingumajig Theatre. The parade will arrive in the park after a procession through the town.

The main stage will host a huge number of different musical styles, including reggae, hip hop, indie rock, R n B, blues and soul. Among the artists appearing are Hebden Bridge-based psychedelic rockers Widgykeff, the Gambian (via Leeds) kora maestro Seikou Susso, Manchester blues legend Victor Brox, Don’t Talk to Strangers from Leeds and the alt-country / country punk of the Liverpool-based Mojave Collective. There will also be several local bands including the Moroccan trance band Maghribibeat from Hebden Bridge and new local band, Becks and the Bullets.

Away from the main stage, there will be a chance to listen to a roster of singer-songwriters, bands and other performers in Sunny Jim’s Acoustic Tent. The tent will feature local stars like Paul Weatherhead, Mabel Blue, James Bragg, Nic Chapman and many individual performers and groups from around the region. Visitors on Saturday will be able to experience an authentic Jamaican sound system, courtesy of Axis and Chapter Four Bass Culture.

Fee Sharples, who is organising the organic café, said: “After last year, all of the organisers and volunteers were exhausted, but also delighted with our success. We knew we had to do it again this year.”

There will also be a variety of other food stalls as well as a children and family activities tent, and lots of stalls selling their interesting goods and wares.

Dave Boardman explained that the festival was made possible thanks to the support of both Hebden Royd and Calderdale councils, the Community Foundation for Calderdale and others, as well as the many volunteers who have worked so hard to bring the festival about.

He said “All we need now is some cracking weather, plus lots of people turning up to enjoy themselves and to listen to some great music.”

Entry to the festival is free, but Dave added: “It costs a lot of money to put on an event like this so we will be vigorously waving donation buckets in front to people, and every penny helps.”

Liz Wood at the White Swan and Matt Browne at the Stubbings Wharf are two of the local publicans supporting the two-day festival. They have invited some of the festival musicians to continue the music in their pubs from 9 pm.

Liz said: “I think it’s great that we have a popular music festival.