AT the very moment the band launched into Fantasia on British Sea Songs- Henry Woods musical gem commemorating the battle of Trafalgar-came news that English had secured another victory, this time at rugby. The news was greeted with wild acclaim by the a

AT the very moment the band launched into Fantasia on British Sea Songs- Henry Woods' musical gem commemorating the battle of Trafalgar-came news that English had secured another victory, this time at rugby.

The news was greeted with wild acclaim by the audience in Queen Mary Centre, Wisbech, enjoying a 'last night of the proms' finale to the annual charity concert organised by Macmillan Cancer supporters.

Chatteris Town Band had opened Saturday's programme with an enthusiastic and accomplished rendition of music from the movies, with a varied selection ranging from Rocky and Zulu, to Pirates of the Caribbean and the haunting music of Vangelis 'Conquest of Paradise'.

But it was in the second half that the foot stamping and flag waving got under way as the band's tour de force included everything from Rule Britannia and Jerusalem to Pomp and Circumstance and concluded with the Rodgers and Hammerstein classic 'You'll Never Walk Alone.'

Compere for the evening was John Elworthy, news editor of the Wisbech Standard, who conducted an interval auction that included the opportunity to conduct the band for its second half opening number.

The lucky bidder was Trevor Wright, treasurer of the Wisbech Macmillan Supporters, who will also receive a set of photographs taken by the Wisbech Standard of his idiosyncratic performance.

The concert organisers, John Lawrence and Jackie Read, were delighted with the turn out and praised all the helpers who contributed to making the evening a success. By the time final receipts have been counted they hope to hand over £1,400 to Macmillan.

"We're well happy with how the evening went," said Jackie. "Although the amount raised was not quite as much as last year, it's still an enormous sum and will do a lot of good.