CROWDS packed into a tiny Oxford street this weekend for a traditional street fair.

Yesterday afternoon, bright sunshine drew hundreds of Jericho residents out of their homes to Canal Street, where live music, dancing, market stalls, food stalls and rickshaw rides were the order of the day.

Local bands, including Braindogs and The Yellow Crayons, performed on stage until sunset and Morris and Irish dancers and even sumo wrestlers showcased their talents in the street.

Christopher Beswick, eight, of St Barnabas Street, and James McColl, five, asked people to donate unwanted coins to fill a chalk outline of Jericho’s St Barnabas Church they had drawn on the pavement.

Christopher said: “We were trying to raise about £100 for the church.

“It was fun speaking to people and asking them to donate money.”

Gary Krucina, 56, was visiting friends in Jericho from Indiana, America, and enjoyed a massage with Rachel Corlett, of the Jericho Complementary Health Practice.

He said: ”It was wonderful. I recommend the massage to anyone.

“The event was lots of fun, we have similar events back home.”

Wendy Bell, 70, of Richmond Road, said: “It was enchanting.

“It had a lovely community feel and I’ve seen lots of people I know who I haven’t seen for a bit.”

Ten-year-old Theodora Lonsdale had her portrait drawn by an artist.

She said: “We come every year and we support it completely and utterly.

“There were people who were counting the number of people they knew, and when they saw us they had reached 25.

“It’s very rare that you step out of you’re house and know 25 people.”

Organiser Charlotte Christie said the turnout was fantastic.

Miss Christie, chairman of the Jericho Community Association, said: “We are trying to raise a bit of money for our plans for a new community centre, but mainly it’s about having an opportunity to get the community out on the street. It’s getting bigger every year, we had about 40 stalls this year.

“People like to come for different reasons. Some of the stallholders are residents selling off different pieces, some of them make cards and jewellery to sell and some of them are professional businesses.

“The little ones like the bouncy castle and the sumo wrestling.

“People like the mixture of things and they like to come out and spend time in the street and see each other.”

eallen@oxfordmail.co.uk