It's Ladies' Day at Aintree race course, and the annual parade of feathered fascinators, impressive tans and unsuitable heels has begun.

IBTimesUK presents a gallery of the fashions on show.

Ladies' Day is one of the highlights of the Grand National Festival at Aintree, which peaks with the running of the Grand National Steeplechase on Saturday.

A sell-out crowd of 71,000 fans will be at Aintree for the 167th running of the National, the highlight of a three-day festival that began on Thursday. The race will be screened to a worldwide TV audience of about 600 million and bookmakers estimate about 350 million pounds ($580 million) will be bet on it in Britain alone