Hundreds of people packed two major carol concerts in York at the weekend.

York Minster hosted its annual family carol concert on Saturday with music sung by the York Minster Choir and the St William's Singers.

Dame Thora Hird and Ian Carmichael also graced the Minster with their presence to do readings as did Frances Marshal, who played the Virgin Mary in the York Millennium Mystery Plays.

And yesterday York Barbican Centre was packed to the rafters with Christmas revellers young and old, who took part in the 43rd York Annual Community Carol Concert.

The performance was recorded and will be aired on Radio York on Christmas Day.

As well as an enthusiastic audience, those taking part included Manor CE School's jazz group Manjazz, St Mary's Parish Church Choir, from Haxby, St George's RC Primary School choir and York Light Opera Society.

John Warburton, the musical director of the event, was recently featured in the Evening Press with his daughter, Angelina, after their joint triumph at the Blackpool Musical Festival, 50 years on from his first success there.

He was wielding the baton for the 22nd time.

He said: "It went very well.

"The great thing about it is getting the audience on your side and that's easy on these occasions because the audience is on your side when it gets here.

"I asked them at the beginning to wave their programmes if they had been here last year and it was like a flock of doves.

"I'm quite strict. They (the performers) are a disciplined bunch and they know they've got to get it right.

The concert raised more than £2,000 towards the Lord Mayor and Sheriff of York's Christmas Cheer Fund and the Evening Press St Leonard's Hospice Millennium appeal.

The Dean of York, the Very Rev Raymond Furnell, said the Minster carol concert was a great success.

"It was a full house and standing at the back which was splendid," he said.

"It's a good concert and it's a family concert. It's our second year in presenting it and I think it will now go from strength to strength. It was a joy to have Dame Thora Hird with us and most generous of her to come up from London. Ian Carmichael was with us last year and presented admirably and Frances Marshall did two readings and also did brilliantly. All in all it was a great occasion."