Champions (UK) Plc's annual charity ball took place at the King Power Stadium, Leicester on Friday 27th January.

The glamorous and glittering affair saw celebrities from the world of sport and television come out in force to help raise money for Rainbows Hospice. The evening was hosted with style and panache by Leicester's favourite snooker legend and TV star, Willie Thorne.

Entertainment during the meal was provided by The Tootsie Rollers, an all-singing, all-dancing troupe of perfect retro pin-ups! The room was completely won over by their perfect harmonies and sassy toe-tapping fun, taken back to an era of classic finger-clicking and leg-kicking tunes!

After the meal, Britain's favourite Soul Superstar Andy Abraham took to the stage with Brian Hill and the fantastic Barison's Swing Band in the first gig from his new tour, History of the Big Bands.

Backed by a magnificent 13-piece big band, Andy dazzled the audience with a set of Big Band classics from all the major Band Leaders including: Harry James, Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Duke Ellington, Glenn Miller, Count Basie, Woody Herman & Buddy Rich.

The auction was led by BBC's exuberant antiques expert, the inimitable Charlie Ross. Charlie put tireless effort into raising as much money as possible for the valuable work of Rainbows.

All our celebrities were incredibly generous in giving up their time and effort to raise money for the event. William Roache MBE made eight people very happy, and a significant amount of money for Rainbows, by offering a behind the scenes tour of the Coronation Street set and a money-can't-buy-it opportunity of appearing as an extra in the famous Rovers Return. Another top prize was the opportunity to see Andy at the Opera House Buxton, Derbyshire, when he takes his Big Band Tour there on the 5th March. The prize included a backstage pass and a dinner with Andy before or after the show.

With a great deal of money raised for Rainbows charity and a fantastic evening had by all, the Champions Annual Big Band Charity Ball was another great success, leaving the King Power swinging to the rhythms of Big Band and Swing long into the early hours of the morning!

The finest of East Midlands sporting talent will be on show in a glamorous ceremony on the 19th January as the prestigious Leicester Mercury Sports Awards take place at the home of Leicester Tigers, Welford Road Stadium. Presented for the first time by Champions (UK) Plc, the awards ceremony will be hosted by Leicester Snooker Legend Willie Thorne and fabulous T.V. weather-presenter Emma Jesson.

Categories include Junior Sportsman and Sportswoman, Young Sportsman and Sportswoman, Team of the Year, Community Award, Lifetime Achievement, and the Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year. Generously supported by a wide range of local and national businesses and with prizes presented by special celebrity guests from the worlds of sport and television, the sports awards are a wonderful celebration of sporting achievement across the region.

The evening's entertainment will be provided by the Soulful Superstar of British Pop, Andy Abraham, who came to prominence when he finished as runner-up in the X-Factor in 2005. With a platinum-selling album to his name and three sell-out tours, Andy was chosen to represent Britain in the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest. Andy is in the middle of a busy schedule preparing for March when his new album Remember When… is released. At the Leicester Mercury Sports Awards, he will be singing some of his classic songs alongside tracks from his forthcoming album and U.K. tour.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a safe and happy festive period. Thank you all for your tremendous support during 2011 and here's to a fantastic 2012!

Snooker legend Willie Thorne, the most capped player of all time, Peter Shilton, former World's Strongest Man, Geoff Capes, former Leicestershire wicket keeper, Paul Nixon and boxer turned film star, Joe Egan, will all take on the Eggheads on tonight's Celebrity Eggheads!

The team of sporting greats will have a challenge on their hands as they challenged the team of seasoned quiz champions, known as the 'Eggheads' in a bid to win the quiz show and gain valuable fundraising for their chosen charity.

Kicking off the fourth series of the popular Celebrity Eggheads show, this will surely be an interesting episode – full of laughs and hopefully, fundraising for the team's chosen charity.

Tune in to BBC Two tonight at 6pm to see the team in action!

During a recent visit to Guernsey, Willie Thorne visited BBC Guernsey to chat to radio presenter Jenny Kendall-Tobias.

Jenny would like to pass on her thanks to Willie for a fabulous interview. She said "He was so generous with his time and gave us so much of himself. He was also adorable! Thank you so much."

You can listen to the interview by clicking here.