Reverend Martin Anderson, who organised the festival at St Mary the Virgin church in Stockton-on-Tees in north-east England, said most people “have been respectful of the space”.

“We didn’t want people to use tombstones as tables and our security firm was working to make sure everything was kept calm in the churchyard and the building itself,” he added.

However, locals took to social media to suggest the event would have been better suited for the village green, according to The Times.

The festival was organised to raise funds for repairs to the church’s clockface and upgrades to its pendulum.