Organised by the Earle Arms public house, the market was held in the courtyards behind the pub and attracted more than a dozen local artisans, regional sellers and other festive treat on a wide range of stalls, including Reepham-based microbrewery Panther.
 
The pub offered up delicious seasonal treats with sausage rolls, mince pies and mulled wine, while the award-winning tea rooms were packed to capacity.
 
And existing Heydon business brands, interior designers Moochi Modo and floral designers Wallflower and Wallace opened up their retail units to the festive revellers.
 
Also joining in the fun were the new businesses in the freshly-converted barns that opened this autumn – Unit 7 Hair, Beauty Barn, Avocet Antiques and Crompton & Wallace.
 
The Heydon Estate has converted these old barns in recent years as part of a diversification plan, making use of local authority grant money. All the businesses are now open and doing good trade, it is reported.
 
A spokesperson for the event said: “It’s great to see so many local craftspeople and visitors in Heydon making good use of the superb range of rural businesses now on offer to visitors to this beautiful village.
 
“With great places to eat and drink and an eclectic range of interesting service and retail businesses now a part of the Heydon experience, it’s a really good day out any day of the week, but especially at seasonal events like this, bringing the community together en masse.”
 
Following the success of the event, plans are already under way for the 2020 Christmas market, which will add to the village’s annual calendar of popular community events such as the open gardens, tug of war, vintage fair and bonfire night.