Lady GaGa gig rewards volunteers

Lady GaGa delighted thousands of young charity workers in concert and vowed to make volunteering fashionable.

The New York pop star topped the bill at the Orange RockCorps gig at Manchester Apollo in front of 3,000 people who each secured a ticket by performing four hours of voluntary work.

The concert-goers took part in the music-led programme which addressed issues as diverse as social deprivation, urban regeneration and support for people affected by HIV.

Last month, Lady GaGa dropped into one of the community-based projects in Manchester at the Body Positive North West Centre - a meeting place for people affected by HIV - where she met volunteers and helped them paint a mural of herself.

She delivered a rousing show which lived up to the flamboyant performances she delivered at Glastonbury and T In The Park this summer.

In between songs she took several opportunities to thank the "beautiful kids" in attendance for taking part in Orange RockCorps.

Before the show, she said: "I am known for music and fashion, and I want to make volunteering fashionable through my music. I was asked to do this because I inspire people. That is a massive compliment but it is the volunteers who are inspiring me. It's a mutual inspiration between me and the crowd, I love them."

When asked who she thought was the most fashionable person to come out of Manchester, she earned local brownie points by answering "Morrissey".

Supporting acts The Enemy, N-Dubz, Tinchy Stryder and VV Brown also helped whip the crowd into a frenzy in a show hosted by TV presenter Alex Zane.