A community choir inspired by a Bafta-winning BBC2 documentary is going from strength to strength.

Lancaster Community Choir now has more than 150 members, ranging in age from nine to 77.

It was set up in 2009 by Simon Lubkowski and Katie Randon, who both work at Lancaster Boys School, in Knighton Road East, Leicester.

The school featured in the programme The Choir: Boys Don't Sing, in which professional choirmaster Gareth Malone set up a school choir.

The programme won a Bafta in the Best Feature category.

Katie said: "The choir is firmly linked with the school but there are a lot of friends and family involved so members are not just from Knighton."

She said when she and Simon thought of setting up the choir there was a certain amount of trepidation.

"It was quite scary. We had no idea of what would happen but, on the first night, we were thrilled. People were queuing up outside the door," she said.

"One of the nicest things about it is that so many people have stayed with us throughout."

One of those who went along on the first night, Lisa Newcombe, of Blaby, took her two sisters and their husbands, Bev and Brian Pearson and Karen and Nick Hudson along.

They are all still there.

She said: "We really enjoy it – there is a genuine community spirit.

"There is a sense of achievement when we perform and the sound is brilliant."

Lisa said her seven-year-old granddaughter, Millie, was eager to join the junior choir.

She said: "We watched the Gareth Malone series on television and would like him to come back some time to see what he thinks of the community choir.

"I think it changed the mind of a lot of people, especially boys, about singing."

Simon said the choir's repertoire was wide.

It includes Eric Clapton's Tears in Heaven, a Ugandan piece, Pearl of Africa, and Vivaldi's Gloria.

He said: "When the TV programme was shown a lot of parents who watched it said they wished they were able to sing like that at school.

"So I thought it's never too late, widened it out and now it is not just boys who are being given the opportunity to sing."