BRADFORD'S curry lovers are celebrating once again after the city was crowned Curry Capital of Britain for a record-breaking fifth consecutive year.

Having won the prestigious title every year since 2011, this year's Bradford bid included a world-record poppadom carrying relay, a teddy bear’s picnic prepared by users of the of the probation service and Fresh Start 4U, and an edible-style Curry Garden to provide a lasting legacy of the competition for the community to enjoy.

Bradford beat Glasgow and Brighton into second and third place respectively, and Councillor Susan Hinchcliffe, Bradford Council's executive member for employment, skills, and culture, said the city had managed to extend its lead over its nearest rivals with the strength of this year's bid.

"We’re delighted to have won this prestigious competition for the fifth consecutive year," she said.

"No-one has ever won the competition this many times in a row, and so we’re absolutely thrilled.

"The standard of entry this year was extremely high and I know that all the cities that entered the competition devoted a lot of time and effort in creating their bids.

"I’d particularly like to thank our tourism team for arranging a number of successful events over the past couple of months as part of Bradford’s bid, the hard work has certainly paid off."

Patricia Tillotson, tourism manager at Visit Bradford, the team behind the bid, said: "Last year we were delighted to set the new record of winning the competition four times in a row, and this year we’re even happier to have smashed our own record.

"I know that all of the restaurants and sponsors involved with the team have thoroughly enjoyed arranging all of the activities, it’s been great to work with such passionate and talented people.

"Not only that, our entry has created a real sense of community cohesion, which ultimately is what the Curry Capital of Britain competition is all about.

"Of course it’s fantastic to win the title and be record-breakers again, but our bid has also given people living within the Bradford district a lasting legacy to enjoy.

"Our Incredible Edible-style Curry Garden will still be here in years to come, long after the celebrations of winning are a distant memory.

"On the theme of lasting legacies, it’s testament to our team that the organisers of the Curry Capital of Britain competition are using our model as a blueprint for best practice for other cities to use when entering the contest in future years.

"We’ve really made our mark, and I couldn’t be prouder."

The four restaurants involved in this year's winning bid were Akbar’s at Thornbury, Kipling’s at Greengates, Aakash in Cleckheaton, and Shimla Spice in Keighley.

Shabbir Hussain, owner of Akbar's, said: "We believe that Bradford is not just the curry capital of Britain, but of the world.

"The quality and taste of the food that we cook here is better than anywhere else."

Mohammed Rafiq, of Kiplings, added: "The competition is to let people know how to unify through curry, and major restaurants come together and work as one to compete and bring the best out of the city.

"Bradford is renowned throughout Britain and the world, and no matter where you go, the moment you mention curry and say you're from Bradford, it makes people take notice.

"It's been an honour to be involved in winning five years running, and it's an accolade that I can't see being repeated."

Visit Bradford will be presented with the 2015 award at a ceremony next month.