Sunshine, live music and wakeboarding were all the ingredients needed to make Oxfordshire's newest festival a hit.

Thousands of people from across the country travelled to Blenheim Palace tat the weekend to enjoy Wakestock, a three-day celebration of live music and adrenaline sport.

The palace lake - usually peaceful and serene - played host to a wakeboarding championship with hundreds watching on as professionals and amateurs alike performed impressive moves for the crowds.

The sport, which is similar to waterskiing, sees participants surf behind a boat at speeds of more than 20mph.

Among those soaking up the sun and watching the competition was Australian Sam Carrier, 33, who now lives in the south of France. He was at the festival as part of his job, working for surf company Billabong.

He said: "It's the first time I have been to Blenheim Palace and it's just an amazing setting. There's a big group of us here and we're having a fantastic time."

Paul Buckland, 32, had travelled to Woodstock's World Heritage site with a group of friends from North Devon for the three-day event.

He said: "We are loving this - the sun is shining, Blenheim is a beautiful spot and the standard of competition here is high. There are people from all over the world competing and they're world class."

The heart of the festival was away from the lake, however, where the music took centre stage and the tents of weekend campers had been spread over the nearby grass.

Natalie Dennett, 18, and friends Peter White and Luke Metters, both 19, from Abingdon, were among those camping for the weekend.

Natalie said: "The atmosphere here is great - there's a really laid back, fun vibe and it's nice to have something like this on our doorstep.

"We've not seen any wakeboarding before, so it has been good to watch. The music line-up is awesome."

Among the bands which took to the stage were local stars Supergrass and Young Knives, Groove Armada, The Streets and the Happy Mondays. They were joined by rockers Funeral for a Friend and Pendulum, as well as DJs Norman Jay and Pete Tong.

But one of the biggest crowds of the weekend swamped the Xfm stage to catch producer-turned-pop star Mark Ronson roll out the hits.

Richard Holmes, 31, an amateur wakeboarder who competed on Saturday, said: "I don't think anyone expected the line-up to be as great as it has been.

"The music has been fantastic and, combined with a top weekend of wakeboarding, it's definitely been one to remember."

For the past eight years the festival has been held in Abersoch, in North Wales, but now looks likely to become a popular annual event in Oxfordshire.