A band from Northern Ireland has gone viral after wearing green alien costumes at a Twelfth of July parade.
It comes after a video showing family-run Steeple Defenders band from Antrim at the town's parade in the costumes was viewed on social media more than 300,000 times in under 24 hours.
The band, who were first formed in 1973, say they have been dressing up in different costumes on the return route each year for the past 25 years for "a bit of a laugh." The tradition has now become one the crowds wait for each year.
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"It's funny and it's done very well, as there's one guy who picks the costumes out and we never know what it's going to be until you get there on the day. It's just a bit of fun," band member Paul told Belfast Live.
"He spends the year hoking through different costumes to see which one will fit us to be able to wear. After the Twelfth, we then make a charity donation each year.
"It's a family-run band, you can see the amount of kids at the front, it's all a bit of fun for them. There's no edge to what we dress up as, there's no gimmick behind it."
A video shared on social media shows a green alien carrying each band member on their back, as they move up the street playing their instruments, while onlookers record the bizarre antics.
In previous years, the Steeple Defenders have dressed up as bananas, smurfs, and cowboys. Throughout the year on social media, they ask what costumes people think they'll wear at the July festivities.
Paul added: "We always post photos of what we've been in past years and ask what people think we'll be next.
"It's all for a bit of a laugh, it's good to put a smile on people's faces. It really is only about making or putting a bit of fun into the day and giving the crowds a bit of a laugh at the same time. Life doesn’t have to be serious all the time.
"Sometimes some of these things can be very serious, we're serious on the way out to the field, but it's important to be light-hearted, so on the way back we have our own wee thing we do."
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