The flags and bunting are out in Bury St Edmunds to help celebrate the saint who bears the town’s name.

There are four days of celebrations being planned over the weekend which culminates in St Edmund’s Day on Monday, November 20.

Among the events taking place are the Mayor’s St Edmund’s Day Dinner at The Athenaeum, a St Edmund Treasure Hunt, supported by shops in the town centre and local retail parks with a £100 voucher prize, and a presentation entitled “How Edmund Became England’s Patron Saint” with Dr Francis Young.

Schoolchildren will be able to take part in a host of Edmund-themed activities at Moyse’s Hall or at Denny Brothers with Crafty Foxes. Musical tributes over the weekend include a guest appearance from former Eurovision Song Contest winner Anne Marie David.

Celebrating St Edmund’s Day is a key focus of the We Love Bury St Edmunds Facebook group and James Sheen, who runs the organisation, said: “St Edmund’s Day falls on a Monday this year, but that is no reason for us not to go for this in a big way over that weekend, and show the town, the county, and what’s more, the country that we are proud to live here. We are proud to be named after the country’s first, and dare I say, true, Patron Saint.

“Never should we hear that someone from Bury St Edmunds does not know what the 20th of November is again.”

The town centre Business Improvement District (BID) organisation Our Bury St Edmunds, together with the town council, is also getting behind the weekend by providing St Edmund flags and bunting for businesses in the town.

Chief executive Mark Cordell said: “It’s only right that we get involved with the initiative to promote St Edmund’s Day as much as we can, as we’ve previously provided bunting to businesses for St George’s Day and of course November 20 is a far more significant occasion for our town.

“The We Love Bury St Edmunds! group has worked incredibly hard to organise events for St Edmund’s Day as have a number of other organisations including the borough council and it’s by working in partnership like this that we can all ensure St Edmund has a big impact not just on Bury but all of Suffolk and further afield this year.”

More information about Edmund, King and Saint, together with a full list of the many activities in the town celebrating St Edmund’s Day can be found at www.welovebse.com

The group can also be found on Facebook.

Detailed below are some of the events taking place between Friday, November 17, and Monday, November 20, to celebrate St Edmund’s Day:

Friday

• Kids In Museums Takeover Day – St Edmund themed activities at Moyses Hall

• The Vikings and Edmund – Children’s activities at the Cathedral, 10am

• St Edmund’s Day Celebratory Dinner hosted by the Mayor of St Edmundsbury councillor Terry Clements at The Athenaeum.

Saturday

• Terrible Tours (with emphasis on heroic Edmund) – Moyses Hall

• Crafts on an Edmund theme – Crafty Foxes at Denny Brothers

Sunday

• Terrible Tours (with emphasis on heroic Edmund) – Moyse’s Hall

• St Edmund’s Day Service – St Edmund’s Church, Westgate Street, 10.30am

• An Afternoon of Live Music to celebrate St Edmunds Day, Oakes Barn 2pm to 6pm, raising money for local charities

• Sea Cadets Parade with music - Abbey Gardens, 3pm

• “How Edmund became England’s Patron Saint” by Dr Francis Young - Moyse’s Hall, 6.30pm to 8.30pm

• St Edmunds Witness, a new one act play by local writer, Ian McCabe, – The Constitutional Club, 7.30pm.

• St Edmund/Bury St Edmunds themed quiz – The Kings Arms, 9pm

Monday

• Celebrating Edmund and the Vikings – Children’s activities at The Cathedral, 10am

• Informal Music from Jean Musy (French film composer) and Anne Marie David (1973 Eurovision winner) - St Mary’s Church, 2pm (the appearance by Jean Musy and Anne Marie David is sponsored by Northgate Hotel and Hawkes Car Centre).