Four cathedrals battle in Twitter world cup final

Cathedrals in the final - clockwise from top left - Lincoln, Durham, York and Bristol

Four of England's Anglican cathedrals are battling it out online to be crowned the winner of a light-hearted poll - the Cathedral World Cup.

Thousands of people have voted for their favourite on Twitter over the past few weeks, as the cathedrals were whittled down to the final four.

Bristol, Durham and Lincoln cathedrals are up for the gong along with York Minster.

The poll was set up by architecture lover Ben B (@cinemashoebox).

The contest, which sees users using the hashtag #CathedralWorldCup to vote for their favourite, has garnered support from each cathedral with them boasting about everything from stained glass windows to architecture and community involvement.

Cathedral cat

Durham says it is the only finalist that has a cat with its own Twitter account.

Cathedrals were reported to be "close" in the voting on Friday afternoon, with York and Lincoln in the lead.

Voting closes at 10:30 GMT on Saturday.

Feet dried by otters

York Minster tweeted: "It's currently a draw in the #cathedralworldcup - amazing battle so far but we need YOU to keep us above the rest! #VoteYork now."

While Lincoln Cathedral also encouraged people to keep voting via social media saying: "We are currently neck and neck with @York_Minster - Come on Lincoln, let's show Yorkshire how it's done!"

Aside from using Badger the cat to gain votes, Durham Cathedral has received endorsement from BBC broadcaster Jeremy Vine, who tweeted his support.

The cathedral also said it had other claims to fame, such as the legend of St Cuthbert arriving there to have his feet being dried by otters.

Bristol Cathedral simply urged people to: "VOTE VOTE VOTE!!!"