Narromine turned on its charm for last weekend’s Dolly Parton Festival, with crowds flocking to enjoy a weekend of sunshine, song, and sequins in true country style.

Narromine Shire Council Mayor Ewen Jones said the event was a great way to bring the community together and showcasing the best of the region.

“From my point of view, it was an amazing success,” Cr Jones said.

“Good entertainment, weather was great, and the town looked terrific thanks to our staff and the community in general.”

The festival, which has now secured funding for three years, drew strong crowds throughout the weekend.

“We’re still waiting on the final wrap-up of actual attendance numbers,” Cr Jones said.

“But now that we’ve got funding for 2026 and 2027, we’ve got to make it last.

"Part of the conditions of the funding was that we don’t charge an entry fee.”

To help offset costs, the event included a bar and market stalls, which proved popular with visitors.

“Apparently it went very well."

"They ordered less stock than last year because they didn’t get through much, but this year they ended up having to go and get more,” Cr Jones said.

Will the real Dolly Parton please stand up?

“That’s always a good sign.”

Entertainment was front and centre, with performances from local and visiting artists, schools, and community groups.

“Saturday morning down the street, all the kids were doing the singing and dancing with the Narromine Line Dancers,” he said.

“Then we had the Indigenous dancers from Trangie who came in and did a little performance, which was a really nice part of the agenda.

"We had the Gospel Choir too.

"We had lots of different acts, and people hung around pretty much to the end.

“It got a bit warm, but people moved along the shops and came back.”

New additions to the program were also a hit.

We had the car club do a little parade - that was different, we've never done that before,” Cr Jones said.

“I got a ride in an LC Torana, which was one of the first little cars to win Bathurst, Peter Brock used to race them.”

Local pride was on display in the shopfront decorating competition, with “Style 33 Espresso" taking out top honours.

“So many shop fronts got involved and really got into the Dolly spirit," which is great,” Cr Jones said.

“The town just looked amazing.”

Council played a major role in coordinating the event, but Mayor Jones emphasised it was a community effort.

“It was driven by the council, but we still incorporated the last committee," he said.

"For example, Rachel, who was on the original committee, now works for council in that space.

"We also involved all the former committee members who wanted to be part of it so they all still had input.”

The Narromine community got "Dolly-fied" for their annual festival.

He also paid tribute to Phil Johnson, Council’s Director of Economic Development.

“He puts in a huge effort," Cr Jones said.

"Phil was up early in the morning and late at night picking up rubbish on the oval on Saturday night.

"He’s not scared to get his hands dirty."

A highlight for many was the free “Dolly Express” buses running between venues.

 “Last time we only had little buses, but this year we had the big ones and that was great,” Cr Jones said.

As for whether the Mayor donned a wig for the occasion?

“Local business were making shirts with the big Dolly star on the front, so I wore that and I had my Dolly hat on too,” he said.

With its growing reputation and fresh three-year funding commitment, the Dolly Parton Festival is now firmly part of Narromine’s events calendar.

“It’s great for the town, for our businesses, and for community spirit,” Cr Jones said.

“Everyone just had a great time, and that’s what it’s all about.”