Macclesfield is bracing itself for the return of the fantastic Barnaby Festival, which kicks off spectacularly this weekend.

The two week event is a celebration of art, culture and fun in the town, with events and exhibitions from Friday, June 14, until Sunday, June 30, plus a weekend spectacular over the weekend of June 21-23.

More than 100 events and exhibitions have been planned at 40 venues across the town, from exhibitions in shop windows and Charles Roe’s former home, to performances from the town’s first ever opera company Silk Opera and a young people’s music festival Loominus.

The Art Trail 2013, which boasts more than 40 venues bursting with contemporary art, will run for two weeks either side of the ‘Big Weekend’, when the town centre will be brought to life with street entertainment, carnivals, activites and workshops, all based around this year's theme, Metamorphosis.

Fiona Bailey, a trustee at Barnaby, said: “The Barnaby team is working at full-pelt to get this year’s festival ready and we look forward to welcoming everyone into Macclesfield town centre for a fabulous fortnight of art, culture and fun.

Don’t forget to bring family and friends into Macclesfield over the Big Weekend to enjoy everything this wonderful town has to offer.”

Now in its fourth year, the festival has become an anticipated fixture in the Macclesfield calendar, reinventing the town’s centuries old tradition of marking St Barnabas feast day.