Leading lights in the musical theatre world are pulling out all the stops to help a friend in need.

A host of stars are travelling up from London to take part in the In the Spotlight show at the Holmfirth Picturedrome on Sunday, October 13.

And among them is zany comedian and actor Su Pollard – who says she can’t wait to return to Huddersfield.

The event is in aid of The Brain Tumour Charity and has been organised by musical actor Ben Turner, 25, from Honley, who is undergoing treatment for a tumour.

Ben Turner
Ben Turner

Former Hi-de-Hi star Su toured the UK and the Far East with Ben in the musical Annie and is looking forward to compering the evening, which will feature a number of stars from the London stage as well as local talent.

The line-up includes Ashley Knight, who has just finished appearing in West End musical Ghost and is about to start work on the X Factor musical I Can’t Dance, stand-up comedian Lee Brace and the BBC’s Paul Ogden

Local acts include Laura Crowther and the Strickland Cook Theatre School. Local band Bisley will round off the evening.

Su said: “Ben is such a great chap. When you are on the road together, you become like a family.

“I absolutely love the area, have many connections here and am really looking forward to coming up from London. I will be arriving on the Friday and visiting friends over the weekend.

“It will be a lovely evening, we have a fantastic line-up. Ben is a popular lad and it is a testament to him that everybody wants to help as much as possible.”

Tickets are already selling well and Ben, an accomplished singer, dancer and actor, is over half way to his £5,000 target.

As well as raising funds, he is keen to raise awareness of the illness. Last year he was suddenly hit with dizzy spells, nausea, headaches and black-outs. Eventually Ben sought medical advice and was diagnosed with astrocytoma. In February he had a brain tumour removed and is now taking chemotherapy tablets until November.

Ben, who hopes to be well enough to sing at the end of the Picturedrome event, said: “There is a lot of awareness of breast, testicular and other cancers, but we never hear anything about brain tumours.

“I wish I had acted sooner, I was busy and tried to ignore the symptoms, I never dreamt that they could be linked to a brain tumour. I want to raise awareness that it is important to get checked out and to take action quickly.”

Doors open at 6.45pm for the concert. Tickets cost £10 and are available from www.picturedrome.net . Donations can be made at www.justgiving.com/benjamin-james-turner