A NIGHT of casino-style fun delivered a welcome £1,500 boost for The ARK medical facility at Basingstoke hospital.

Cards were turning and the roulette wheel was spinning at the town's Apollo Hotel in an event run with the aid of considerate professional croupiers.

The chips were certainly down as supporters packed into one of the function suites at the Basingstoke venue to help raise funds for the £4.5 million medical education centre being built at the town's hospital.

Phil Simmons, from String UK, which organised the successful event, said: "We couldn't really have got more people in. I think it is a pretty good result and everyone had a good time."

Gamblers paid for chips and there were prizes for those who had the most left at the end of the evening.

Borough mayor Cllr Rose Wellman and her husband Tom were among those who tried their hands at the tables. Top liver surgeon Myrddin Rees - the driving force behind The ARK project - was also there and thanked everyone for their support.

The ARK is being built next to the hospital entirely from charitable donations.

The cash raised at the Apollo will help pay for the final fit-out, for which £150,000 is still needed.