Two enterprising teenagers from Keysoe have raised more than £12,000 for charity by organising their own version of ITV's X-Factor.

George Beverley and Jess Brandler, both 18 years old and pupils at Kimbolton School, conceived the idea two years ago as a means of raising funds for the victims of the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami in south-east Asia which killed more than 225,000 people.

George said: "We wanted to do something to help and we knew that the X-Factor idea could raise lots of money.

"It has been a lot of work each year, but it's been a real lesson in how to manage our time properly and we're both very proud of what we've achieved."

The pair had their sights set on more money than just what was to be made in ticket sales.

George, who will be studying history at Durham University next year, explained: "We held auditions, and everyone from the school was allowed to enter. The auditions and the event itself were all taped and we sold DVDs of the footage.

"We also got in touch with parents and local businesses to see if they would be willing to donate prizes to auction at each event, and that raised a lot of money."

The event was so successful that the students repeated the competition two more times, despite the increasing workload of their A-levels.

Last week the final numbers were crunched for this year's competition with £2,500 raised, making the final tally for the three years £12,000.
This year the money went to Voluntary Services Overseas (VSO) projects in Nigeria, a charity which is of particular interest to Jess.

She said: "Both of my parents grew up in Nigeria, and my father still works out there, so it meant a lot to be able to help raise funds for projects out there."

Although both students leave the school this year, they are hoping it will not be the end of the annual competition.

The future Cambridge University student added: "We've had a lot of help over the years from some of the younger students, and George and I are confident they will be able to carry on the work we started."

Chevan Elliott, the school's charities coordinator, said: "They worked tirelessly to ensure that each year's show was not only a success in terms of the funds raised, but also a wonderful night's entertainment. It was a phenomenal achievement and both George and Jess deserve enormous praise for their enterprise and hard work.

"It was a huge undertaking."