AS I dash into Carnival Hall in Council Road on a Monday evening to seek out the members of the Basingstoke Ladies Choir, I'm surprised to see several men dotted around the place, who I then spot escorting said ladies to the door, giving them a peck on the cheek and then quietly disappearing off.

These are the supportive husbands of the aforementioned ladies, some of them members of the Basingstoke Male Voice Choir, who have played their own part in sustaining this wonderful group for 40 years.

Now the ladies are 50-strong, conducted by former member Margaret Brackenborough and accompanied for the past 22 years by Jonathan Hedgecock, who even found himself a fiance among the ranks of the choir!

Their amazing milestone will be celebrated with a concert in the Haymarket theatre on August 7.

These are busy ladies, as I find out from chairman Val Nicholls.

"We do charity concerts, we've sung at Milestones and now we're booking up for next year as well. We sing in all sorts of languages: German, French and Latin.

"We have fundraisers and dinners which even past members attend to see everyone. Sometimes we just have to turn people away who want us to sing because our calendar is so full."

The choir was born back in late 1964 as The Oakridge Singers with around 20 members. Their first concert happened early the following year - and present-day member Barbara Gough was there singing along.

She said "I joined in March 1965 and I sang in that first concert at the National Savings Group dinner. I had come to Basingstoke in 1964 from Bracknell with my husband and I didn't know a soul.

"So I joined a children's club and there were two ladies there who sang in the choir. They said 'come along' and nagged me - and thank goodness they did. It introduced me to this hobby, which is the best in the world.

"You spend a lovely evening with friends, we raise money to give to charity and get a lot of pleasure out of it".

The BLC (pictured above) has completed overseas tours to Basingstoke's twinned towns Euskirchen and Alencon, as well as a very memorable trip to Canada in 1996.

"It was absolutely fantastic," said Barbara. "When we arrived there was a huge illuminated sign saying 'Basingstoke Ladies Choir' and they took us to lunch at police headquarters. It was still winter when we were there so there was more than five feet of snow. They showed us how maple syrup is made and we stayed at a place called Cambridge, believe it or not.

"It was absolutely beautiful. And we all had our picture taken with a Mountie!"

It proved to be a worthwhile trip for another reason, as one of the choirs the ladies met will be coming to Basingstoke to perform with them at their Haymarket concert, the York Regional Police Male Chorus.

"They're using Basingstoke as a base, and then they're going on to sing in Wales and Kent. They looked after us so well, we're just returning the favour.

"These relationships are things we have built up by meeting people and there's a wonderful camaraderie with singing. Sometimes at festivals we get chatting to another group and there's a great sharing of ideas."

Barbara once left the choir to join a mixed group, but returned happily to the BLC fold 12 years ago. What does she think is the secret to the success of the choir, keeping her and the other 49 or so present members in the fold?

"Once you commit to something, you're honour-bound not to let other people down. There's such enjoyment working together as we've always got a concert or something lined up to do. It never stops and we're always learning something new."

If you're interested in singing and meeting wonderful new friends, why not join the ladies choir, who are always looking for keen new recruits. Simply give secretary Trisha Kinchington a call on 01256 781644.

The Basingstoke Ladies Choir will perform at their 40th anniversary concert in the Haymarket theatre on Saturday, August 7, at 7.30pm, featuring special guests the York Regional Police Male Chorus from Canada.

Tickets, priced £10, with concessions available, can be purchased on 01256 465566.