Sheffield aspiring West End star wins national chorister competition

Natalie Fooks was crowned senior winner of the BBC Young Chorister of the Year competition

A schoolgirl who dreams of singing on a West End stage has been crowned the senior winner of the BBC Young Chorister of the Year competition.

Natalie Fooks, 14 and from Sheffield, sang a rendition of The Virgin's Slumber Song at the event at Manchester Monastery on 3 December.

During the competition, run by Songs of Praise and BBC Radio 2, judges praised the teenager's range of vocal dynamics.

Natalie said to win had felt "amazing" but had been "an utter shock".

She told BBC Radio Sheffield: "It's not sunk in yet. I didn't expect anything at all, everyone was absolutely amazing.

"I didn't even expect to get to the semi finals, it was a complete and utter shock."

According to her proud mother Ann, Natalie developed an interest in music from a young age despite growing up in a "not particularly musical family".

Ms Fooks said: "We noticed from the tiniest age just how much she loved music [but] it was more other people noticing that she had a bit of a gift for it."

Natalie sang The Virgin's Slumber Song in the final

Natalie sang All Things Bright and Beautiful by John Rutter during the semi final and chose The Virgin's Slumber Song by Max Reger for the final, which she described as "very enjoyable to sing".

She added: "I love all music but it's a really nice style of music to show a range of vocal techniques."

When announcing the winner, judges Laura Wright, Ken Burton and Wynne Evans praised the teen for giving the "most polished" overall performance.

In the future, Natalie, who plays the piano, violin, guitar and drums, hopes to pursue a career in music.

She said: "I'd love to be on the West End one day, that would be amazing because I love my musicals.

"Everything to do with music I just absolutely love."

She will now sing on the BBC Radio 4 daily service just before Christmas and perform on Songs of Praise on Christmas Eve with Belinda Gifford-Guy, the junior winner.