SHAKESPEARE was celebrated during a range of midsummer events at Florence Arts Centre.

To mark the 400th anniversary of the poet's death, the centre held a free exhibition, live music and a film screening.

The commemoration saw a visit from Barrow-based textile artists Flax - formerly Trident Textiles - who discussed their inspiration for their display 'Magic in the Web', which runs until Sunday, July 3.

Florence's new wildlife garden - which was funded by a green grant from NuGen and a donation from Whitehaven Rotary Club - was also officially opened to the public.

Building and Marketing Manager Craig Carruthers said: "We were really pleased with the turnout for the Shakespeare celebration and it was great to have so many different things on offer inside the arts centre.

"We did get the chance to officially open the new wildlife garden and it was wonderful to finally unveil the result of such hard work over the last few months."

And Jenni Payne, exhibition organiser at Florence, said: "We were delighted to see so many visitors to our Midsummer Open Day on Sunday.

"The Community Wildlife Garden is now open during our regular hours and is justly described as a transformation - from derelict land to a space where all creatures great and small can thrive. Come along to visit, rest, relax and just listen to the birds and bees!"

During the celebrations live music was provided by Harps North West - a registered charity aiming to promote appreciation of the harp - which played a special set of Shakespeare-inspired tunes.

Baz Luhrmann's 1996 award-winning adaptation of Romeo and Juliet starring Leonardo Di Caprio was also screened.