AN EXCITED babble of chatter cascading from a school hall packed to overflowing with expectant parents and children subsided only when the first pupils clambered onto the stage and belted out Jingle Bell Rock.

This was the scene for Catshill Middle School's delightful Christmas Cracker - which was exactly what the programme claimed ... 'an explosion of festive music.'

There were one or two tentative notes but with everything delivered with a charming innocence and enthusiasm it didn't matter.

Word had obviously spread from the first night and the following night saw the school car park and playground, in Meadow Road, Bromsgrove, full to the brim - and it was the same in the hall where many parents had to stand or grab a vantage point in the corridor.

No one minded as there was plenty to enjoy from the various singing groups and soloists. Well done to Tom Hollick on the fiddle with his Ceilidh Collection. Not an easy piece to play and daunting on stage alone.

Also to Saffy Bradbury and friends with a quite haunting arrangement of Away in a Manger.

For those who took part and the teaching staff who organised, it was certainly well worth the effort.

AW