A RUBY slippered flashmob will be at a family fun festival in City Park this Saturday proving there really is no place like Bradford.

The '75 Dorothys' will be putting in a guest appearance with their own take of ruby slippers - red glitter biker boots, cowboy boots, trainers and heels - to celebrate the diversity of women and girls living in the city.

The flashmobsters' stunt is the brainchild of Bradford arts company Irregular (Arts), inspired by the 75th anniversary of the iconic film 'The Wizard of Oz' starring Judy Garland and it is just part of a weekend lined-up of sights and sounds and hands-on activities organised to be part of the Born In Bradford Family Festival.

The youngest of the '75 Dorothys' will be only ten-weeks-old wearing a pair of ruby bootees knitted by a member of Saltaire WI, the group will include pupils, staff and parents at Eastwood Primary School in Keighley, a small group of deaf participants, and dancers from Dance United Yorkshire - the oldest Dorthy will be 70-years-old.

Bradford Big Screen will also be showing a short documentary film about the making of the '75 Dorothys' project, followed by a free screening of the original 1939 Wizard of Oz film - the Oz fun and mob will happen between 3pm and 4pm on the Saturday.

A giant digger, a real tooth fairy, magical monsters, teddy bear trails and explorer packs will all play a part in the free weekend which continues into Sunday, from 9am to 5pm, at the National Media Museum as well as in City Park.

The Born in Bradford festival is set to build on the success of an annual Teddy Bear Picnic at Lister Park organised by the Born in Bradford project which started in 2007 to track the lives of 13,500 babies and their families from different cultures and backgrounds - information gathered from those families helps national and worldwide studies looking at what causes childhood illnesses.

Now those youngsters are getting older, the BiB Project came up with the idea of putting on a festival instead and with the help of partners including, Better Start Bradford, the University of Bradford and Diggerland, have put together a packed programme that will bring science, technology, stories, all sorts of characters and of course teddy bears to the city centre.

Ann Barratt, family liaison officer at Born in Bradford, said: “Whether you are part of the research project or interested in finding out more, the festival celebrates being Born in Bradford and is open to all families.

"With 75 Dorothys also making a guest appearance fresh from Oz, we promise that for this October weekend, there really will be no place like Bradford.”