Three familiar faces will help judge an international town crier competition coming to Chester next month.

From 22 to 26 September, 25 town criers from across the UK, Europe, Australia, Canada and the USA will compete for the title of the world's best.

Regional TV news presenter Lucy Meacock, Coronation Street actor Ian Puleston-Davies and local MP Samantha Dixon have been named as celebrity judges for the week-long free public event.

Lucy Meacock stepped down as ITV Granada Reports' main news presenter in 2024 after 36 years.

She said: "As someone who has spent more than 30 years news-reading for ITV and BBC, I feel I owe a great debt to the newsreaders from yesteryear who started this tradition more than 500 years ago.

"I'm looking forward to celebrating a fine tradition, although the competition will be tough and the judges will have their work cut out."

The main contest will be judged over three rounds, beginning with Hometown Cries in Town Hall Square on Tuesday 22 September, followed by Retail Cries in Eastgate Square on Thursday 24 September.

The final round, Accommodation Proclamations, will take place in Exchange Square on Saturday 26 September.

A panel of published authors, school directors and businesspeople will score competitors on vocal proficiency, confidence, bearing, content and audience engagement. Further celebrity judges may still be announced.

Ian Puleston-Davies lives in Hoole and played builder Owen Armstrong in Coronation Street from 2010 to 2015.

He said: "This is certainly a first for me! I've always been fascinated by this wonderful historical tradition.

"Can't wait to hear that bell ring and that booming voice proclaim: 'Oyez'!"

Samantha Dixon, MP for Chester North and Neston, added: "Chester's town crier tradition stretches all the way back to 1554, making this more than just a competition.

"It's a living, breathing piece of history playing out on the very streets where Roman soldiers once marched.

"With contestants coming from eight different countries, this event is shaping up to be a truly memorable and good-humoured celebration in the heart of Chester."

The town crier has been a fixture in Chester since 1554. Now managed by Marketing Cheshire, the service runs as the only daily town crier proclamation in any UK city during the peak summer season.

This year, Marketing Cheshire secured a grant from Airbnb's Best of British Fund to stage the tournament, the first since 2014.

Jamie Christon, Chair of Marketing Cheshire and CEO of Chester Zoo, said: "We are all set for a show-stopping event that is bound to be great fun for all the family and a chance to shout and showcase the region's world-class tourism offer."

Full details of all confirmed participants, their countries and backgrounds, plus a day-by-day breakdown of the competition, are available here.