And then there were two......the number of stall holders turning up at the mid week market in March

It was once a highlight of the week for many but alas no longer.

The mid-week market in March is but a pale shadow of what it once was.

Efforts to brighten it up, to attract more stalls and to inject some vibrancy into it have fallen by the wayside.

Today, a typical Wednesday, only two stall holders traipsed into the town to set up for a day's trading.

Fish and fruit and veg have long held sway on the market but the mobility scooters, the knitwear and hardware stalls and all other supplies of Fen food were absent. Venison burgers became popular for a time but today, sadly, they too were absent.

Fenland Council on their website promotes a vision, if not the reality, of our town markets.

"There is nothing quite like the atmosphere of shopping at a busy market - colourful stalls offering all sorts of goods and services and the satisfaction on finding a bargain," it says.

"All of Fenland's market towns benefit from a least one weekly market, details of which can be viewed below. Speciality markets and fayres are also held throughout the year and will be listed on the Visit Cambridgeshire Fens website."

All is not lost, however, since March, Whittlesey and Chatteris have new masterplans that could, amongst other things, stimulate trade back to our markets,

The plans have been created through the Growing Fenland project and are some of the first to come forward under the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority's county-wide Masterplan for Growth initiative.

And for those looking to trial their own stall, FDC has some special offers. Their website advertises deals that include first week free to three weeks at half price.