A BFP reporter was turned head over heels after being roped into taking part in one of High Wycombe's weirdest traditions.

The Beating of the Bounds ceremony - which features youngsters being turned upside down and lowered onto boundary stones that mark out the traditional Borough of High Wycombe - took place in the town on Sunday.

Many young children lined up to take part in the ceremony, led by High Wycombe Mayor Trevor Snaith - but at one of the boundary stones Bucks Free Press reporter Andy Carswell was 'persuaded' to take part.

He was turned upside down by town crier John Taylor and High Wycombe's clerk Bill Reid at the stone outside the railway station.

Andy said: "I'm blaming my colleague Simon Farr for putting the idea into Trevor's head. He'd mentioned it as we were walking round but I didn't think they would go ahead and do it.

"At least I can say I'm part of Wycombe's history, and at 28 I'm probably the oldest person to get turned upside down."

Among the younger faces to take part in Sunday's ceremony was the three-year-old son of Wycombe's Deputy Mayor Paula Lee, Dylan.

Cllr Lee said: "He absolutely loved it. I thought he might be a bit nervous with the crowd of people but he loved it.

"He'll take a picture of it into nursery and explain what went on."

She added: "It's quite an honour to be part of the traditions of High Wycombe. It's really important to get them to live on, otherwise the history of the town dies.

Members of the Charter Trustees led the re-enaction of the ancient ceremony of marking the former boundaries of the Borough by turning youngsters upside down and gently lowering their head onto each boundary stone three times.

The Beating of the Bounds died out in the 1920s but was brought back in 1999.