There were good crowds at St Johns for this year's Tynwald ceremony and national day celebrations - despite less than ideal conditions.

Whilst the rain held off, the ground was somewhat soggy due to the recent heavy rain and some car parking facilities in nearby fields were closed.

A total of twenty acts of Tynwald were promulgated on the Hill, when the titles of the new laws were read aloud in Manx and English.

There were just three petitions for redress of grievance this year.

One comes from Chris Thomas who is asking for a Tynwald Committee to look at the fairness involved in Isle of Man redundancies.

Stephen Homes wants the Island to be provided with a 'Children's Commissioner' .. . whilst Graham Nash is petitioning for property sellers to have sole responsibility for providing surveys, rather than the onus being on the buyer.

Arriving before today's ceremony, Speaker of the House of Keys Steve Rodan explained why it's such a big day for the Island

It was the 28th Tynwald for Allan Bell but his first as Chief Minister and just before the ceremony got underway he admitted to feeling a little nervous.