OF all the events staged in aid of the South East Asian tsunami appeal, few can have been as artistically diverse as the one at St Martin’s Church in Gospel Oak on Thursday.
The Reverend John Hayward, vicar of St Martin’s called on performers “to create spontaneous performance” in aid of the British Red Cross appeal, and they did not let him down.
Michael Palin, one of the show’s star turns, arrived during a suitably raucous rendition of a piece by Seattle grunge kings Nirvana, by the sound crew. If he was bemused by the choice of material for a concert in the magnificent Victorian church, he was too professional to show it.
Mr Palin read from passages from his best-selling travel writing and from the work of Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore, who suffered first-hand experience of catastrophic flooding on the Indian sub-continent.
Operatic diva Lesley Garrett was supported by her vocal coach of 25 years, Joy Mammen, who lives in Gospel Oak.
Despite facing an early start for a singing lesson the following day, the English National Opera star launched into Puccini’s O Mio Babbino Caro with her customary vigour, undeterred by a couple of toddlers, clearly no fans of bel canto, who skipped up and down the aisle throughout.
More contemporary material followed with When I Fall In Love and To Dream The Impossible Dream before Ms Garrett gave up the stage for another of Ms Mammen’s pupils, the baritone Paul Putnins.
His indecently lusty toreador may have sat a little oddly with the surroundings, but he brought the house down nonetheless.
Poets, impressionists, rock bands, angelic choirs of children and an unforgettably eccentric belly dancer were among the 42 acts who performed on the evening, the final one not leaving the stage until 11.15pm.
Sales of food and wine and the auctioning of a bicycle brought the total raised for the appeal to £3,878.