AS the credits rolled on the last episode of The Choir: Unsung Town on Tuesday evening, a packed auditorium in Oxhey Wood School burst into applause.

The biggest cheer was saved for choirmaster Gareth Malone but it was also a case of congratulating the South Oxhey Community Choir on a job well done.

Not only has the more than 250-strong choir shown the nation how a community can come together against the odds, they’ve made friends for life and created something the whole of South Oxhey can be proud of.

Watching themselves on TV, choir members hid their faces in their hands, pointed to each other across the room, slung an arm around a shoulder and patted each other on the back.

The final programme saw the culmination of Gareth Malone’s nine-month project but the story is far from over and it was smiles all round as the warmth, character and spirit of the choir members shone through.

We saw their reaction to hearing they were going to record a Beatles track at the world-famous Abbey Road Studios and the determination in all the different choir groups to come together and put on a festival the community would never forget.

The series may be over but that’s not it by any means. Gareth is continuing with rehearsals next Tuesday and they’ve a Christmas concert to prepare for which sees them back at Watford Colosseum in December.