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In Pictures: Leaping sheep and lightning bolts

Getty Images A sheep is jumping as it is led through a gate by a man wearing a white robe. Getty Images
Thousands of people headed to the Bath and West Show this week

Baking sunshine, a duck race and Martin Clunes at the Royal Bath and West Show... this week in the West had it all.

The heatwave may have left us sweltering but it did not stop us from keeping busy.

An empty building is soon to be reopened after being turned into a bowls club and community hub and a paddle steamer started its season touring the Bristol Channel.

From sheep competitions to people throwing themselves down a steep hill for a wheel of Double Gloucester, here is a round-up of pictures from across the region.

Bristol

PA Media A group of Bristol Bears rugby players gather together to celebrate their matchwinning try against Bath at Ashton Gate. The Bristol players are wearing dark blue shirts and tops. There is a Bath player in an all-white kit in the foregroundPA Media

Derby delight for Bears: Bristol edged a tight contest against Bath 21-19 in front of more than 21,000 fans at Ashton Gate on Friday night.

Waverley Excursions A large old-fashioned paddle steamer is moored at the end of a pretty green pier in a wide channel of water.Waverley Excursions

She's majestic: The world's last seagoing paddle steamer, Waverley, started its Bristol Channel season earlier this week. It will call at Clevedon, Minehead, Portishead, Weston-super-Mare, Ilfracombe and Bideford.

UPFEST A large artwork filling a two-storey building reads "bready or not here I crumb" in stylised, curly capital letters. A carton image of a woman with flowing green hair is next to the writing. Another part of the building is a bakery shopfront with a sign saying "Parsons". UPFEST

A slice of talent: One of the finished artworks in North Street, south Bristol, created as part the annual Upfest street art festival.

St George's Bowls Club A young woman lunges forward having thrown a bowls ball on grass, with three men behind her looking in its direction.St George's Bowls Club

Ready to play: Earlier this week it was announced that St George Bowls & Social Club in east Bristol will reopen on 3 June as a local hub after a community-led project transformed the site. It was founded in 1936 but closed several years ago.

Getty Images Five England women cricketers, in their red and blue one-day international kit, walk over the boundary onto the pitch ahead of their international against India in BristolGetty Images

Nice day for it: A packed crowd saw England's women enjoy a 26-run victory over India at the County Ground in Bristol on Saturday afternoon.

Yorktillyer A man is standing behind several electric guitars laid out on a table, in a large studio building with many electronics desks behind him.Yorktillyer

Pioneering project: Music artists from the West, including Portishead guitarist Adrian Utley, are working on a 360-degree, immersive composition called Flow. It has been recorded at the world-renowned Real World Studios in Wiltshire and will be livestreamed at SXSW London festival.

Weca A bridge crosses two train platforms, as seen from the centre of two rail tracks. The bridge is an outline, with the sun and orange-grey skies behind.Weca

Next chapter: Works on the new Bristol Brabazon railway station moved forward this week. A 750-tonne crane lifted into place the nine pieces that make up the staircases and bridge deck, the West of England Combined Authority said. The station is due to open in autumn, and will serve the 20,000-capacity Aviva Arena.

Madeline Jeffs Two men and two women are wearing coats, some also high visibility vests, and are standing in front of the sea on a beach.Madeline Jeffs

Roll out the red carpet: A film made by students at the University of the West of England will be released in June. What I Meant to Say explores themes around people who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Les Williams A steam train is going past seen from a railway bridge. Les Williams

Full steam ahead: The locomotive Earl Of Mount Edgcumbe came through Bristol on Saturday morning on its "Whistling Ghost" tour from Birmingham to Minehead, in Somerset.

Gloucestershire

Getty Images A young woman lifts a wheel of Double Gloucester cheese with blue and red bands around it in a cross. She is wearing a grubby grey hoodie with mouse ears and a snout on the hood and her hands are dirty too. She is smiling widely and has dark hair.Getty Images

Beaten by a whisker: It was a surprise the wheels of Double Gloucester did not melt on Monday at the annual cheese-rolling on Cooper's Hill in Brockworth.

The women's race down the 1:2 gradient slope was won by Alis Heugas from France, who wore a mouse onesie.

Getty Images A group of men run and tumble down a very steep hill with some of them suspended in mid-air as they fall down. The grassy hill is illuminated by sunlight and dust is being released from the dry ground as they race. Some are in fancy dress, with one dressed as the dog Gromit and another dressed as Superman.Getty Images

Modern day heroes: In the second men's race at Cooper's Hill event, many wore fancy dress outfits for a stylish descent – one came as Superman.

Andrew Whitton A group of ten friends smile and have their arms linked as they pose for a group shot at the Wychwood Festival. In the background a large crowd is visible. It is a sunny day and many of the people are wearing sunglassesAndrew Whitton

Party time: Thousands of music fans headed to the Wychwood Festival at Cheltenham Racecourse, where headliners included Sophie Ellis-Bextor and the Kaiser Chiefs.

Damian Conner-Smith A gloomy night sky is lit by a bolt of lightning in the distance. City street lights are dotted all over the land in the foreground. Damian Conner-Smith

Electric flash: The heatwave was broken by thunder and lightning in parts of the West this week.

Sophia Allsopp/BBC A large group of cows, most of them black and white, shelter in the shade of a big tree on Minchinhampton CommonSophia Allsopp/BBC

Don't blame you: These cows were spotted on Minchinhampton Common taking the chance to be in the shade as temperatures soared earlier in the week.

Somerset

Actor Martin Clunes, wearing a grey trilby with a yellow band, and a blue polo shirt, is smiling and standing next to a large brown horse.

Hold your horses: Doc Martin actor Martin Clunes was in his element at the Royal Bath and West Show, which got under way on Thursday. The show is held every year near Shepton Mallet.

Bath and West Show/AGorman Two cows are looking at the camera, one is being held by a smiling man and the other by a woman. They are standing in a hay-filled field after a show.Bath and West Show/AGorman

Well done beef: Blue ribbons were awarded to cattle, horses, pigs and sheep at the show.

Somerset Council A woman uses a film camera wearing a hat and earphones, and next to her is a woman in black holding a boom microphone. They are on a pretty street with houses covered in wisteria. In the middle of the shot are a man and woman standing looking at each other, as if in conversation.Somerset Council

And... action! Axbridge doubled up as Little Kilton for the second series of TV show A Good Girl's Guide To Murder, which has been released on BBC iPlayer. Hollywood star Emma Myers stars as teenage sleuth Pip Fitz-Amobi.

Cheryl Sprinkler A group of women dressed in blue dresses is dancing in the sun.Cheryl Sprinkler

Running up that hill: In Frome, a group of women met dressed like Kate Bush to perform a flash mob dance based on her hit Running Up That Hill on Saturday.

The dark outline of Weston Pier is on the left of the image. A beach and the sea beyond feature several dozen people in the distance, with a headland on the right.

Don't forget the suncream: Weston-super-Mare, like much of the rest of the country, sizzled in the heat this week.

A woman in a black dress and a long red jacket is singing on a stage. Behind is a blue wall and a drum kit.

In the moment: British-Jamaican soul singer Ruby Turner kicked off the BlueTone Festival in Taunton's Vivary Park – a new four-day event showcasing jazz, soul and blues music.

Alfie/Original Wild Two women are standing on paddleboards side by side on the water, posing for the camera and holding each other's hands. Bath's Pulteney Weir and Pulteney Bridge are behind them.Alfie/Original Wild

SUPer activity: A pair of stand-up paddleboarders took to the River Avon in Bath during the peak of the heat.

Freddie Pring Memorial Fund A group of men is wearing orange football kit and is standing arm in arm on grass.Freddie Pring Memorial Fund

Remembering Freddie: The Freddie Pring Memorial Fund hosted its biggest ever event on Saturday, with 16 teams taking part in a five-a-side tournament at Minehead AFC.

Money was raised at the event to pay for sports coaching in memory of 20-year-old Freddie Pring, who died in an accidental fall from a hotel balcony in 2019.

Wiltshire

Tom Godber The outlines of the stones at Stonehenge are seen among low morning mist, lit up by a bright sunrise.Tom Godber

Here it comes: The sun rose over Stonehenge on Monday as the heatwave began to begin in earnest.

James Fisher A very fluffy white peregrine chick, with thick yellow claw, resting on a table. Some of its wing feathers are orange and grey.James Fisher

Ideas please! Submissions are now open for the names of four peregrine chicks at Salisbury Cathedral.

Bradford on Avon Town Council Many yellow rubber ducks have been dropped into a river beneath a bridge. Crowds line the bridge, some using umbrellas as parasols.Bradford on Avon Town Council

Totally quackers: Bank Holiday Monday in Bradford on Avon saw hundreds brave the heat to attend the annual duck race, won by local resident Alison. Volunteers at the town's rowing club made sure no duck got left behind.

BBC Weather Watchers/Tanith A hat-shaped white thundercloud with Chippenham caught in a narrow funnel stretching to the ground.BBC Weather Watchers/Tanith

Wild weather: Seen from the vantage point of Westbury White Horse, an enormous storm cloud settled over Chippenham before subjecting residents to a soaking on Tuesday.

Longleat Three large rhinos walking towards the camera on a muddy patch of land. There is water spray in the air and the ground is slightly wet as they enjoy a cool shower.Longleat

Mud baths: Rhinos at Longleat frolicked in cold showers to cool off and protect their sensitive skin from the sun and high temperatures.

The Hiding Place A man and a woman are behind a bar holding champagne glasses, smiling.The Hiding Place

Free to pee: A new community toilet scheme has been rolled out in Melksham. It means the public can visit any pubs and coffee shops signed up to the scheme – like the Hiding Place.

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