MUSIC lovers who attended a gig at a Ledbury pub helped raise almost £1,500 for a charity in support of the band's lead singer who is battling cancer.

Front Runner, whose members – Matt Williams on lead vocals, Andrew Crokey on rhythm guitar and vocals, Jon Thomas on keyboards, bongos and harmonica, Leon Bateman on bass and vocals and Simon Richards on drums – hail from Ledbury, Leominster and Hereford.

They played at a packed out Brewery Inn last Saturday to raise money for Bowel Cancer UK as lead singer Matt, 36, was diagnosed with bowel cancer in October 2016 and has been undergoing treatment.

Leon Bateman, the band's bassist/vocalist, said: "The gig on this night was one of two small gigs for the band to blow off the cobwebs of a six-month recovery period.

"In another sad twist, it's also the last for a few months due to further treatment and surgery. All of this makes the events of this night even more amazing. Combining the night with a fundraising event for bowel cancer, the band filled the venue to bursting and performed as energetic a gig as you'll see."

Punters danced and sang along with songs by The Killers, Kings of Leon, Bryan Adams, Elbow and more.

When asked whether they'd gig with other musicians during Matt's recovery, Leon said: "It was discussed and we all agreed there is no way we could. Not only would we feel we'd be betraying Matt but we felt we'd be taking away the urgency to get back to gigging and indirectly slow his recovery. Everybody needs something to fight for."