A CHARITY auction in Chipping Sodbury has raised £10,000 in aid of the Southmead Hospital Prostate Cancer Care Appeal.

Organised by the town's Rotary Club, the event took place at the Town Hall and attracted just under two hundred people.

BBC TV presenter Alex Lovell was just one of the familiar faces attending the event that saw almost sixty lots under the hammer of auctioneer Nick Cragg.

Another of those present was Anthony Koupparis, consultant urological surgeon at Southmead Hospital.

Mr Koupparis, an expert in robotic surgery, said: “This was a fantastic evening.

"Added to the £3,500 the club raised last year, the money raised here tonight will help to take us very close to our intended total of £2million."

One of the key supporters of the event was businessman Richard Williams.

His company, Williams Automobiles, contributed two sports cars – a Morgan and a Caterham – to the list of lots to be auctioned.

“This is a subject very close to my heart,” he said.

“My father died of prostate cancer and I have to have regular checks at Southmead to spot early symptoms.”

The auction lots on offer ranged from jars of award-winning homemade marmalade, to a gym membership, dinner and champagne for four, flying lessons, and even champagne and flutes, courtesy of Prince Charles.

“It was brilliant night that exceeded all our expectations,” said club president John Berridge.

"There was a wonderful atmosphere in the hall and by the end of the evening some very generous people helped the hospital on its way maintaining its position as one of the UK’s leading centres of robotic surgery.”