Dartmouth's regatta atmosphere, which saw tens of thousands of people flood into the town to enjoy the annual spectacle, was wrecked after a man died and the event degenerated into a night of violence.

The massive show of rowing, sailing, fireworks, fairground, fun competitions and air displays – which included the Red Arrows – has been hailed a success by organisers.

Virtually all the programmed events went off smoothly despite the torrential downpours at the beginning of the week which threatened to turn some of the overflow park and ride site into a quagmire.

Most people who took part in or attended the event throughout the week enjoyed themselves.

But on Sunday morning, a 38-year-old Dartmouth man was found unconscious on the South Embankment and died despite attempts to resuscitate him

And, as the regatta drew to a close on Saturday night, it was spoiled by a series of ugly incidents which saw the town's police sergeant assaulted on the Town Pontoon bridge and one man suffer a broken jaw in an alleged assault in the town centre.

Six people were arrested on Saturday night and early Sunday morning for incidents involving alleged assault and drink-driving.