ST HELENS Concert Band delighted crowds with a special performance as the wraps came off a new bandstand that is a feature of the beautifully restored Victoria Park.

They were the first band to play at the venue, which forms a key part of the £4m heritage lottery funded masterplan to return the park to its former glories.

St Helens Star:

  • IN HARMONY: musicians from St helens Conert Band (pictures by Robbob)

The concert drew healthy crowds, with many visitors bringing picnics and sitting on the park lawns listening to the band’s musical arrangements.

John Henderson, the band’s chairman, said: “It was a great turnout and a cracking concert with more than 100 people there. Everybody was pleased and we got a standing ovation at the end.

“The acoustics were fantastic. It’s a cracker.

“It was really good to perform in St Helens which we don’t get to do as often as we used to and we had people coming to us saying it was great.”

St Helens Star:

  • VENUE: it was the first concert played at the park's new bandstand

St Helens Star:

  • CROWDS: even the doggies were standing to attention for the band

St Helens Star:

  • SOAKING UP THE ATMOSPHERE: parkgoers enjoying their day out

St Helens Star:

  • PERFORMANCE: the band received a standing ovation