BARBERSHOP group Cottontown Chorus missed out on being named the country’s best choir when it sang at the Royal Festival Hall in London tonight.

The 50-strong choir from Bolton was one of seven taking part in the national finals of BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year 2008, after it took first place at the inaugural Manchester Amateur Choral Competition.

In front of a packed house, they sang You Don’t Know Me and South Rampart Street Parade.

Member Don Fairclough said: “We are pretty gutted at not winning, but it has been a fantastic experience performing at such a venue, and we have all enjoyed it.

“It has been a great year for us. We were given Radio 3’s Adult Choir of the Year which is brilliant and to get this far is fabulous. That in itself is an achievement. The comments we received were very positive but, unfortunately, we did not get the title.”

He added: “We’ll be back in two years when it is next on, and hopefully walk away with the title.”

The winners were Scunthorpe Junior Choir.

*Cottontown Chorus’s performance in the finals can be heard tomorrow on Radio 3 at 7pm and seen on BBC 4 on Friday at 7.30pm.