SIMON Rimmer, Nigel Haworth and Andrew Nutter will be cooking up a storm as the North West Food Lovers' Festival returns to Tatton Park.

More than 130 food and drink exhibitors will be tempting the tastebuds of thousands of visitors under one roof from Friday to Sunday.

There will be everything from exotic game to liqueurs and hand-made chocolate truffles in a football pitch sized marquee.

Now in its sixth year, there will be celebrity chef demonstrations from Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch host Simon Rimmer, Michelin starred Nigel Haworth and Andrew Nutter of Nutter’s Restaurant.

Former Coronation Street actor Sean Wilson, who now runs The Saddleworth Cheese Company, will also be on stage along with Dave Mooney who established The New Moon Pub Company, a chain of acclaimed gastro pubs in Cheshire.

The festival will again feature the Taste Cheshire interactive education area, which will showcase the diverse range of food and drink that Cheshire produces and show how you can cut down on your food miles from plough to plate.

The Academy of Culinary Arts will also be running free kids' cooking workshops to help find the chefs of tomorrow.

Up to 40 youngsters can be accommodated at each of the three workshops and all the dishes made can be brought home.

Stephen Wundke, organiser of the North West Food Lovers' Festival, said: “Each year we try to cram even more into the food marquee so that visitors experience something different every time they come.

"The new cookery master classes will be great fun and I suspect hugely popular too.

"The quality of producers that we have booked for this year’s festival are second to none too and will provide visitors with a true taste of the very best the north west region has to offer, we can’t wait to get the festival started.”

Tickets are on sale now at nwfoodloversfestival.co.uk Tickets are £6 in advance and £8 on the day with under 12s free. A car entry fee of £5 is also charged at Tatton Park's gate.

Or if you are looking for something extra special, a £15 VIP ticket has been introduced this year which allows you to queue jump and includes a glass of champagne and a £5 food voucher.

DAVID MORGAN