A BED and a Batmobile being driven down the high street at high speed is perhaps not a sight visitors to a Suffolk village would have expected to see, but yesterday was no ordinary day in Botesdale’s life.

For the August Bank Holiday is traditionally Soap Box Race day in the north Suffolk village when would-be racing drivers take to the wheel of some crazy looking karts to race each other down the sloping Mill Road and also raise money for charity, which this year was East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices (EACH).

The races, which went on for nearly three hours, were divided into children’s and adult sections and featured 30 karts, including organiser Chris Burnard taking part as a cowboy with his wagon and a team dressed up as characters from American TV series The Dukes of Hazzard with their own kart converted into the Dodge Charger stock car driven by Bo Duke in the show.

The children’s final featured a race-off between Elizabeth Paine, nine, and her brother George, 12, from Wortham in their Angry Bird karts - a race won by Elizabeth.

Mr Burnard’s wife Morag, who also helped organise the race, in its eighth year, believed there were more spectators on Monday than the 2,500 that watched last year’s race.

She said: “It has been absolutely brilliant. We have had a record turnout of people and a number of new entries.”