FOOD fanatics enjoyed a spicy weekend as a chilli festival returned for its 14th year.

The Festival of Fiery Foods brought the heat to Brighton seafront.

Despite taking place in the shade of the i360, the event managed to have guests sweltering with a series of mouth – and eye – watering food options available.

These included a huge variety of specialised stalls selling jams, chutneys, chilli sauces, chilli scotch eggs and more, as well as chilli eating competitions at the end of each day.

Tristan Bradley, who was manning the Mr Vikki’s Chilli Mafia stall with his colleague Owen Williams, hinted that many customers had let their egos get the better of them.

He said: “You get people come up to you and ask for something really hot, the spiciest thing you’ve got so we point at our King Naga.”

He gestured towards a small jar on the front of the stall with an angry red sauce inside.

The Naga chilli is grown in north east India and Bangladesh and is one of the hottest known chilli peppers.

Tristan said: “They say they can handle their heat but then, suddenly, they are desperately asking for water.”

The pair paid tribute to Pete Seymour, also known as Chilli Pepper Pete, who set up the event.

The “Godfather of chillies” died of cancer in 2012 aged just 56.

Now the event carries on each year in his memory.

This Argus reporter, who is known to be not particularly spice savvy, was offered a chilli-filled olive by one stall holder.

Not wanting to be impolite, I took the deceptively deadly oval and swallowed it in one.

Shortly afterwards I made my excuses and left to find a large glass of water.