A CHARITY concert in York, supporting the battle against cancer, will be headlined by some top local bands to raise money for vital research.

York Rocks Against Cancer returns on Saturday July 23 at York Barbican. This is the fifth instalment of 'York Rocks' since its inception in 2013, with almost £70,000 raised for the York Against Cancer charity.

Ian Surgenor developed the concept after being affected by cancer in his family and more recently overcoming his own battle with the condition.

This is the team's "third time lucky" after having to rearrange the concert following two cancellations due to Covid restrictions - and Ian is finalising the final details of this years event.

He said: “We have just had our final confirmation with the line up for this year. I’m absolutely delighted to announce that York-based band Skylights will be our headline act following their hugely successful sell out gig at Leeds O2 Academy.

"They will be performing five of their tracks, which we are really excited about.

"We also have the Emmerdale cast band again this year, who have been involved in all five York Rocks events”.

Ian confirmed the cast members in the Emmerdale band involved this year are Bradley Johnson who plays Vinnie Dingle, Dean Andrews who plays Will Taylor, Lawrence Robb who plays Mackenzie Boyd and Jessie Elland who plays Chloe Harris, all orchestrated by Emmerdale head of production, Nader Mabadi.

There are other music acts also performing on the evening, including The YAC Collective, a collaboration of local music artists who recently recorded and released a charity single for York Against Cancer, which they will perform, called - 'You Lined Up All The Stars'.

Every penny from record sales will go to the York Against Cancer charity and the tune is available on all streaming platforms, as well as being available to buy in CD form at York Barbican on the evening of the charity concert.

Julie Russell, general manager of York Against Cancer, said: “We are so grateful to all our sponsors and supporters, so all costs for the event are covered, which means that every penny from ticket sales goes directly to York Against Cancer.

"It's so good to have a big event to look forward to again after the last two years, we want everyone to have a party and enjoy themselves on the night.

"We have given free tickets to the NHS as an appreciation of the great work they did through the pandemic and continue to do today, especially with cancer patients who we also support."

If you are looking to get tickets for York Rocks Against Cancer, you can do so via the York Barbican website. They are priced at £14.20 each.