PRESTON will be making a huge song and dance next month, for the BBC's most ambitious music broadcast ever.

BBC Music Live is a five-day festival offering a thousand hours of live music programming, staging world class performances across every musical genre in leading venues across the whole of the UK.

The event will be a unique opportunity for the entire population to take part in the celebration of live music ending with a 24-hour schedule of continuous live programming on BBC 1 and BBC 2.

And Preston is not going to be left behind. Jim 'Bullseye' Bowen and Sally Naden from BBC Radio Lancashire will be comperes at Preston's Charter Theatre on Thursday May 25, with ten bands performing from the pick of acts from the Give It A Go show. As part of Young Music Makers Day on Thursday May 25, more than 1,500 children from 40 Preston schools will provide entertainment at the Guild Hall.

At the Central Methodist Church an exhausting 12-hour music marathon will take place on Monday May 29 to raise funds for the restoration of the church.

On that day, the streets of Preston will come alive with the annual Caribbean Carnival 2000, a procession involving decorated floats and masquerade bands. Electric and acoustic live music will fill the air.

Colin Philpott, head of regional and local programmes for the North, said: "The BBC has long been this country's patron of creative arts but it hasn't always been as accessible to community groups and street musicians.

"Music Live will uniquely offer everyone a chance to take part in an amazing national celebration."

If you want to take part in the BBC's Music Live event, call 08700 100 125.