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.

afro
Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
sunglasses
Alex Livesey/Getty Images
selfie
Alex Livesey/Getty Images
crackers
Alex Livesey/Getty Images
hats
Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
The eyes are the window to the soul
Alan Crowhurst/Getty Images
hat expression
Alex Livesey/Getty Images
pink bar phone
Alan Crowhurst/Getty Images
pink bar
Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
three women
Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images
women
Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
paddock pink
Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images
paddock
Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images
full length
Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
heels grass
Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

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