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The Cambridge Science Festival has been cancelled due to concerns it would help spread coronavirus.

The festival, run by the University of Cambridge, attracts thousands of visitors from the local area and nationally.

The cancellation comes half way through the two-week event which started on Monday (March 9).

The organisers had already banned 'hands-on' activities in an effort to keep the festival running despite the rapid spread of the virus in the UK and Europe.

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(Image: Richard Howell)

This weekend coming was supposed to be geared towards families with events put on by Cambridge University's vet school, and a talk on how bat conversation could help reduce pandemic risk.

A spokeswoman said: "Cambridge Science Festival has decided with great reluctance to cancel the remainder of its scheduled programme.

"We came to this extremely difficult decision after thinking long and hard about the welfare of our visitors and our staff. Their health and safety must come above all else and we do not want inadvertently to expose them to the risk of coronavirus.

"We realise the cancellation will be a disappointment to our thousands of loyal supporters, and we sincerely apologise, but we feel it is the right decision in the circumstances."