IT will soon be time to unleash the apples and the amps for a sparkling celebration.

Dorchester Cider Festival will return to the Borough Gardens this Saturday, August 17, from 2pm to 10.30pm.

The event, which is organised by Dorchester Round Table, is a family friendly celebration of the region's finest cider producers and features special guests, great food and live music.

Bands and musicians will perform across two stages, the bandstand and the acoustic stage. Headlining on the day will be Stillyano.

All profits from this event will be distributed to local good causes by the Dorchester Round Table.

Dorchester Cider Festival has grown to become a firm fixture in the Dorset events calendar.

Roughly 15 cider producers typically attend the festival’s cider village. Together they offer more than 80 different types of cider to sample.

READ MORE: 'Thousands pack gardens for music and cider festival'

The ciders range from traditional scrumpy for the purists to raspberry and bubblegum flavours – ensuring there is everything under the sun to choose from.

The food village also offers a wide variety of locally produced dishes to try.

Organisers say the musical line-up is 'pure gold'.

"Feast your senses on the bubbling blend of tunes and tipples!

"Please welcome back the Dorchester Cider Festival, making a splash in summer 2024 with a line-up that’s pure gold.

"We’re ecstatic to announce that our headline act is none other than the chart-topping Stillyano, ready to rock your cider-soaked souls.

"And the party doesn’t stop there—with the extraordinary Chief Lazarus, Mr Tea and the Minions, The Surfin' Birds and Carley Varley Music, your day is set to be an unforgettable tour de force of flavour and sound.

"Let’s make it a day of cheers and cheer!"

Dorchester Cider Festival was first held in 2015. Its origins stem back to a casual conversation between members of Dorchester Round Table suggesting that the county town could do with a Cider Festival where all the great local producers could showcase their drinks. 

Some nine years later the festival is attended by roughly 4,000 people and has so far raised over £35,000 for local causes since the festival began.