A RUSSIAN choir will perform at a 600-year-old Weymouth church to help secure vital funding.

The Lyra Vocal Ensemble from St Petersburg will sing at St Laurence Church, Upwey, to help the church on its way to raising £80,000 to add a toilet and much-needed facilities to the listed building.

The four singers, an alto, bass, soprano and tenor, will perform a mixture of Russian Orthodox music alongside traditional folk songs.

Honorary project manager Sally Pinhey said: “The acoustics of the church are absolutely second-to-none, people love performing there because it amplifies their work without any artificial enhancement, and listening to it gives you real tingle down your spine.”

For the past two years parishioners have been fundraising to build a toilet and other visitor amenities at the church- an expensive task which requires expert equipment because of the proximity of graves.

Sally said: “What we would really love to see is the whole village enjoying the church.

“Really, for the survival or the church, we need to be using the church for secular events and concerts, and to do that we need to provide amenities so the church can be used as a community building.”

The concert will take place on Tuesday, May 30.

Tickets cost £12 in advance by calling 01305 812834 or £15 on the door including wine.

Visitors should arrive at 7pm for a 7.30pm start.