HOME-grown talent takes centre stage at Darwen Library Theatre next week when a trio of tenors provides an evening of top entertainment.

Darwen-born James Fitzgerald forms one-third of the concert trio Tenorissimo -- who sing in the style of the Three Tenors Jose Carreras, Placido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti -- who have together been delighting audiences up and down the country for the past four years.

James, 58, and his two singing partners had their own solo careers before Blackburn entrepreneur Alfred Wright and the 1998 World Cup brought them together. Mr Wright had booked James, Geoffrey Coles and Morgan Lee James separately on previous occasions but asked them to put on a show together as a grand finale to the town's World Cup celebrations.

James said the trio was sceptical at first about the idea. "We all sang the same stuff and thought there would be a lot of falling out about who sang what. We did the show with half an hour's rehearsal, having just met each other, and for some peculiar reason it worked.

"We still work separately quite a lot, but over the years we are working more and more together," he said.

Although Carreras, Domingo and Pavarotti are quite heavily biased towards opera, Tenorissimo -- the name was taken from the title of an album owned by James which features 16 different tenor voices -- include classical music, West End shows and humour. Their concert includes favourites such as Girls Were Made To Love And Kiss, The Barber Of Seville, The Drinking Song, Music Of The Night and O Sole Mio. "And they won't go home until they've heard Nessun Dorma," said James, who retains his day job as a financial adviser.

Part of the evening's entertainment consists of the trio sitting on stools and telling the audience a little about themselves. "One of the things I say is that my musical influence came from my mother's side of the family -- she was one of 10, nine girls and a boy -- and they were all beautiful singers," James said.

As a child he was often singled out to sing in front of the rest of the school and after joining St Joseph's church choir his first public solo performance was Ave Maria. As a teenager he made his tenor debut at Darwen Central Working Men's Club and he became a professional singer at the age of 16.

Geoffrey Coles, who lives in Bacup, has broadcast frequently for the BBC and has recorded six albums. He was a guest on The Barrymore Show with the Three British Tenors, with whom he has toured extensively.

Morgan Lee James, who lives in Bradford, has made countless appearances in London's West End and appeared in A Royal Gala Show in the presence of The Princess Royal. He has also appeared on the Des O'Connor Show and Bob Monkhouse Tonight.

Tenorissimo are currently touring city and seaside theatres across the country, from Scarborough to Southport, and have also been entertaining holidaymakers on the Oriana cruise liner.

Tenorissimo are at Darwen Library Theatre, Knott Street, next Friday, 7.30pm. Tickets are £8 (£7 concessions), from the box office (01254 706006).