More than 1500 children and their families braved the pouring rain to enjoy a spectacular night of fun and entertainment at Marwell Wildlife on June 17.

Marwell’s annual ‘Dreamnight’ event is a special evening for children from local hospices and hospitals.

Despite it being one of the wettest nights of the year, families made the best of the terrible weather.

From close encounters with stick insects to helping feed the giraffes, the children enjoyed getting up close and personal with the park’s animals.

There were lots of other fun activities too, including performances from theatre groups, exploring a fire engine with Hampshire Fire & Rescue, plus mask making and face painting.

Morris the Keeper, Storm Troopers and R2D2 from Star Wars plus lots of other costume characters were also on hand to say hello.

The Royal Marines Volunteer Cadet Corps Marching Band provided the evening’s music whilst Heart Radio also helped keep children amused all evening long.

Marwell staff stayed late to keep the park open, to ensure that as many children as possible could get close to their favourite animals.

Regan McLeod, of Marwell’s function team said: “I would just like to say a big thank you to everyone who made Dreamnight possible; we could not have done it without your help and support."

Dreamnight at Marwell Wildlife is now in its eighth year.

 

photo credits: Paul Barnes and the Marwell Photographic Group (MPG)