Coldplay announce Christmas charity gigs for Crisis

Coldplay will play two charity concerts in Liverpool and Newcastle

Coldplay will play two Christmas concerts to raise money for homeless charity Crisis.

The 'Hidden Gigs' will take place in Liverpool on 19 December and Newcastle on 20 December.

Each venue, which won't be announced until the day before the concerts, has a 1,000 capacity.

General sale tickets will cost £50 and go on sale at 2pm on Friday (12th November) with other tickets available to people in Liverpool and Newcastle.

There will also be an auction of 200 tickets plus 30 meet & greet tickets for each gig.

Those will include early entry, a champagne reception, the best seats in the house, meeting Coldplay, a photo opportunity and access to a VIP bar.

Ant & Dec will be compèring the Newcastle night and Coldplay will be supported on both dates by the Choir with No Name, a vocal choir made up of homeless people and others helped by Crisis.

All proceeds from ticket sales will go to the charity.

Coldplay and The Killers played a one-off charity gig for the War Child organisation last January and the band sold off their gear for the charity Kids Company in December.

The band's last major concerts were held at Wembley Stadium last September with support from Jay-Z and Girls Aloud.

Coldplay are now working on their fifth studio album, the follow-up to 2008's Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends.