A new show celebrating the North East's music is coming to Hexham.

Songs of the North East will be performed at Queen's Hall in Hexham on Friday, April 11.

The show, featuring UK concert and opera stars Graeme Danby and Valerie Reid, will highlight the region's heritage through songs and ballads from the 1800s to the present day.

Mr Danby said: "We realised during the tour of The Donkey, the Whippet and the Giant Leek there’s an enormous appetite for songs rooted in North East England.

"And we’re delighted this new show allows us to perform beautiful ballads such as Waters of Tyne as well as comic songs like The Ghost of St Mary’s and The Geordie Love Song."

Ms Reid added: "We can’t wait to take this show on the road.

"It’s an absolute labour of love.

"We have songs that will tear at your heartstrings and others to leave you helpless with merriment."

Tom Kelly and Graeme Thompson are writing the show.

Mr Kelly, whose plays and musicals include I Left My Heart in Roker Park, said: "It’s been a joy to tell the story of this part of the world through words and music.

"There are so many wonderful songs which capture a particular time, event or character in the life of the North East."

The show will feature songs about fishing, shipbuilding and mining along the east coast, as well as songs about the countryside and love.

Mr Thompson added: "It is such a treat to hear this music interpreted by world class voices.

"Graeme and Valerie’s vocals are extraordinary.

"And although some of the songs date back to the days of mining, shipbuilding and heavy industry, they still resonate today with their themes of courtship, ambition and extolling the beauty of our distinctive landscape."

Mr Danby and Ms Reid show will be joined on stage by accompanist Andrew Richardson.

Alongside the Hexham performance, Songs of the North East will be taken to several other towns and cities across the region, from Blyth and Berwick to North and South Shields.