BRIGHT sunshine greeted well-dressers as they began their work decorating 30 of the wells, springs and water features around the Malvern Hills this morning (Friday).

The glorious day was in complete contrast to the leaden skies and sheets of rain that prevailed the previous day and which must have filled the well-dressers' hearts with dread.

And judges from Malvern Spa Association, which holds the competition every year, visited all the sites to decide which ones were worthy of the gold, silver and bronze prizes, as well as the special chairman's award.

The theme for this year’s event, is Darwin’s Earth, to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, who came up with the theory of evolution.

As always, the well-dressers rose to the challenge, creating imaginative designs which celebrated the diversity of life and Darwin's great scientific breakthrough.

Leaves and flowers, fossils and dinosaurs, apes, finches and creatures of every description were all features, along woth representations of the great scientist, who came to Malvern for the water cure, and whose beloved daughter Annie is buried on the Priory churchyard.

The trough at Great Malvern railway station was decorated by the youngsters of Great Malvern Parish Primary School.

Parent Julie Palmer-Price said: "Last year we won a gold and everyone's got great enthusiasm for the well-dressing."

In Malvern Wells, Lois Lawler and Angela Sutton - assisted by Lois's husband Brendan - transformed the Jubilee Fountain into a representation of HMS Beagle, the ship in which Darwin travelled to the far-flung places, such as the Galapagos Islands, where he formulated his theory.

"We've actually used genuine rigging, which an friend of a neighbour found for us on an old ship," said Lois.