The skies above Malmesbury will be full of kites this weekend as the town pays homage to Eilmer the flying monk.

The Benedictine monk was the first recorded person to attempt flight when he launched himself from the roof of the abbey in 1010.

Now 1,000 years later his memory will be honoured at a free kite festival that could attract up to 1,000 visitors.

Former mayor Catherine Doody came up with the idea while in office last year.

She said: “We knew we wanted to do something to commemorate Eilmer. We couldn’t have people flying or planes so we came up with kites.

“We have two very active kite flyers in the town, John and Francesca Caton, and they have helped organise the festival.

“John was the national chairman of the British Kite Flying Association until last year. It will be one of the best events in Malmesbury this year as long as we get good weather.

“And we couldn’t do it without farmer Michael Weaver, who has offered us the use of his field.”

Mrs Caton, who runs Cotswold Stitchcraft in Malmesbury High Street, first fell in love with the sport while mending her children’s kites.

She said: “About 30 years ago we used to live half an hour from Land’s End and so we would go and fly kites on the beach with the kids.

“They would keep crashing them and I’d keep mending them.

“After a while I started making them myself, both for the children and my husband.”

When the family moved to Coventry, Mrs Caton became chairman of the Midland Kite Flying Club, the biggest in the UK.

Both she and her husband are looking forward to the festival. Mrs Caton said: “It is going to be one of the biggest gatherings of UK fliers in many years.

“We’ve really focused on British flyers and designers, which is why it has got so much interest.

“We have absolutely no idea what to expect or how many people will come because we’ve never done anything like this in Malmesbury.

“But if we could get close to 1,000 people that would be exceptional.”

Some of Mrs Caton’s kites are on display in the town hall and also in her Cotswold Stitch shop on the High Street.

The two-day festival starts on Saturday at 10am at The Worthys.