Park feels the heat at annual Chilli & BBQ Festival

Onchan Park was transformed into a celebration of all things chilli on Sunday as the Fire Island Chilli & BBQ Festival took place.

Running from 12pm to 7pm, the free event featured food, live music, fire cooking, chillies and ‘a load of controlled chaos’.

The festival was organised by Fire Island Chillies, the island’s first commercial chilli farm, based at Red Mie Farm in Ballaugh. The business produces a range of hot sauces and hot honey, alongside fresh and dried chillies.

Visitors could browse a wide range of products and stalls throughout the day, with plenty to see, taste and enjoy. Adding a political twist to proceedings, three prospective MHKs also took part in a ‘Hot Wings Hustings’.

Stuart and Ruth Meade, from Red Mie farm who organised the festival, commented: ‘We’re absolutely thrilled with how the third Fire Island Chilli & BBQ Festival went on Sunday.

‘The atmosphere was brilliant from start to finish, and it was fantastic to see so many people coming along, enjoying the food, music and entertainment and getting stuck into some of the more ridiculous challenges.

‘A huge thank you to everyone who came along and supported us, as well as all of the food traders, producers, musicians, performers, contestants and the ELS team behind the scenes who helped make the day happen.

‘We’re also incredibly grateful to our sponsors and supporters, particularly Ellan Vannin Fuels, FlurtIOM and ELS. Events like this simply wouldn’t be possible without that support.

‘We started with the idea of creating a free, fun food festival with a bit of a Fire Island twist, and seeing how much it has grown has been fantastic. We’re already thinking about what we can do to make year five even bigger, better and hotter!’