Lyme Regis Fossil Festival

The next annual Lyme Regis Fossil Festival will take place on 3-5 May, 2013 (www.fossilfestival.com). Set in the heart of the stunning Jurassic Coast - England's only natural World Heritage Site, Lyme played a key role in the birth of the earth sciences. Mary Anning and her brother Joseph uncovered a huge ichthyosaur in 1811 when she was only 12, and she went on to find the first two plesiosaurs and the first pterosaur outside Germany. Today local fossil collectors continue to unearth spectacular new specimens, and even the casual visitor can trip over vertebrae and ammonites on the beach.

The Fossil Festival encourages visitors of all ages to enjoy the incredible natural history right at their feet. There is a free Grand Marquee on the beach full of hands-on art and science, and well as walks, talks, exhibitions, a Fossil Fair and performances and other extraordinary experiences. We welcome more than 50 scientists from our partners, including the Natural History Museum, Natural England, British Antarctic Survey, Jurassic Coast team, Plymouth University, Dorset Geologists Association, Lyme Regis Museum, Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre, National Oceanography Centre, Southampton, University of Portsmouth, the National Trust, RockWatch, National Museum of Wales, Isle of Wight's Dinosaur Isle, RSPB, MEMO, and many more.

We've a giant Travelling Pliosaur Cinema, and OnBoard - the flight simulator that takes you above, along and below the Jurassic Coast, as well as back to Pangaea.

Don't miss the fun - once you've been you'll always come back!