The winners of the photography contest in this year’s Isle of Man Flower Festival have been presented with their prizes.

Ruth Black, of Peel, Alex Day, of Port St Mary, and Peter Tucker, of Ramsey, each received a ?50 voucher for Greeba Plant Centre after being selected as joint winners in this year’s competition.

Economic Development Minister Laurence Skelly was on hand to present the prizes to the winners at the garden centre.

Mr Skelly said: ‘The Flower Festival has been going for many years and it is wonderful to see it expanding.

‘I want to congratulate the winners and the festival committee for organising a very popular event.’

The festival took place in July and the photography competition saw entrants asked to submit photographs of displays from the festival in July to illustrate this year’s theme, of Our Community.

The judges were so impressed with the standard of entries that they awarded three top prizes equally.

Ruth Black’s photograph was of the RNLI display at St Matthew’s Church in Douglas, while Alex Day’s close-up of a rural display in St Patrick’s Church, Jurby, and Peter Tucker’s picture of the Young Farmers’ display in St Mary de Ballaugh were the other two winners.

Flower Festival committee chairman Judy Matthews thanked Mr Skelly for presenting the prizes and also all those who took part in the photography competition.

‘It was very difficult to choose a winner and in the end we opted to have three joint winners rather than listing them in first, second and third,’ she said.

She thanked Connect2Charity and Culture Vannin for their support of the festival, as well as competition sponsors Greeba Plant Centre and Friends Provident International Limited.

Annette Bratt, Finance Operations Manager at Friends Provident International Limited, said: ‘The Isle of Man Flower Festival is a wonderful community activity and we are very happy to be involved through our sponsorship with the photography competition.
‘Well done to everyone who took part.’

Photo - left to right, are Alex Day, Annette Bratt of Friends Provident International, John Crebbin of Greeba Plant Centre, Ruth Brown, Peter Tucker, Juan Brown of Greeba Plant Centre and Economic Development Minister Laurence Skelly.