Katherine melts our hearts

SINGER Katherine Jenkins helped heal West Cumbria with a heart-warming performance on the harbourside this evening.

Mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins: She will be singing her own special tribute to Whitehaven

I still find it hard to believe that someone of the stature of Katherine Jenkins was performing in a car park at the end of my street but it's been a welcome change to have some positive news in this town after months of bad news. It was a perfect summer's evening: a glorious sky, the harbour full of boats - from tall ships to small yachts - for the festival and Katherine on stage with the National Symphony Orchestra for a two-hour concert. Time To Say Goodbye reduced most people to tears of course, seeming particularly poignant after the recent tragedies. But I found even the occasional empty seat in the thousand-strong arena a particularly poignant symbol of those we have lost. Thanks to Katherine and all involved with the show for a memorable evening.