A pair of friends who set up a charity to raise awareness of Crohn's dis-ease are hosting a new singing competition for X Factor wannabes.
Natasha Adley, of Leavesdem Road, Stanmore, and Lisa Meleck, of Watford Road, Northwood, are organising SingForCrohns on November 1.
This is the latest venture from the women, who organised a one-off charity walk in 2003 after their mothers became ill with the bowel condition. The 10k walk in Hyde Park, WalkForCrohns, has grown into an annual event that has raised more than £100,000 in five years.
The new event, which takes place at the Royal College of Music in Prince Consort Road, London, is hoping to raise money and awareness about the disease.
Ms Adley, 22, said: "We wanted to run this competition as we have done the walk six times and wanted to do something different.
"This is the first time we have done SingForCrohns and we want to appeal to a new group of people."
Nine finalists will be performing in front of a panel of judges including Gareth Malone, known for BBC2's The Choir and Boys Don't Sing.
After the hopefuls have been whittled down to the final three, audience members will be able to vote via text to choose their favourite.
The money raised goes to The St Mark's Hospital Foundation and Crohn's and Colitis in Childhood (The 3C's) charity. Crohn's disease and Ulcerative Colitis are both forms of Inflammatory Bowel Disease, which cause the intestines to become swollen and inflamed.
For tickets at £15, and more information, visit www.forcrohns.org
