North Walsham choir seeks new members

Boys are being offered a rare chance to join a 1,000-year-old tradition – updated to include burgers and computer games.

North Walsham Parish Church is looking for six to 11-year-olds to join its boys' choir, one of only two in Norfolk.

Boys of any faith, or none, are invited along to St Nicholas Church's 'Treble Chance' recruiting day on Saturday from 10am to 2pm where the emphasis will be on the social side of joining the choir.

Would-be choristers will get a chance to play games including football, snooker and Scalextrics and tuck into a burger and chips.

Choirmaster Roger Buck said parish church boys' choirs used to be widespread but changes, including the huge growth in other Sunday activities for children, meant there were now only 42 left in the British Isles, including one in Litcham and two in Suffolk.

'This is a rare opportunity for local boys,' said Mr Buck. 'They are virtually getting free music lessons. Boys' choirs are the oldest youth movement in the country and, unlike most, they don't have to pay to join – in fact we pay them and there's an extra payment for weddings!'

Rehearsal and club nights are held on Tuesdays, from 5pm to 7.30pm, and new choristers also take part in one service on Sundays.