THE seaside has arrived in landlocked Swindon this week with the appearance of a larger than life mermaid - sculpted entirely out of sand.

Sculptor Ray Wirick visited the Brunel Shopping Centre on Wednesday where he transformed five tonnes of sand into the mythical create before shoppers' very eyes.

She is expected to remain at the centre for another week and a half as part of the Brunel's summer season of fun activities.

Jane Stewart, deputy manager at The Brunel said that bringing the vision of the mermaid to life had been a mission in itself, with the five tonnes of sand delivered outside the Tented Market, before being transferred inside.

"Not only did we have to make sure that we had the correct colour, but also the right consistency of sand," she said. "Our maintenance team built the plinth which she is sitting on, with Ray working right through the day to create our rather sassy mermaid.

"She is going to be here for as long as she lasts, which we hope will be a couple of weeks."

She added that visitors to the centre had really enjoyed watching the mermaid take shape, and she was proving popular as the week went on.

The summer of fun will continue on Wednesday with a Shed of Seaside Stories, which will be in The Brunel Plaza, upstairs between Boots and Marks & Spencer where storytellers will entertain children. This will be followed by seaside craft activity on August 16 and a Pirate Puppet Show on August 23. All activities will be located on the upper level of The Brunel Plaza, between M&S and Boots.

On August 30 The Last Resort will take up residence on the ground floor of Brunel Plaza between 11am and 4pm. The Last Resort is a quirky mix of characters in an eccentric beach front. This includes a caricaturist, fortune teller, beach shop, tattoo parlor, photographer and monkey and an elusive chip shop.

Every week of the Festival there will be the chance to win a £50 gift card. Children will be challenged to find the six seagulls hidden around the shopping centre. Each seagull will hold a letter of the alphabet and when all six letters have been discovered the secret code can be cracked. Those submitting the correct code will be entered into a draw to win the £50 gift card.

To enter visit Bonkers Play (first floor, Brunel Arcade) to collect an entry form.