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Inverness event Stars in Their Eyes raises £36,000 for charity





SNAP Choir. Picture: James Mackenzie
SNAP Choir. Picture: James Mackenzie

An Inverness event hit ‘the perfect note’ over the weekend, raising £36,000 for Special Needs Action Project (SNAP).

SNAP choir. Picture: James Mackenzie
SNAP choir. Picture: James Mackenzie

Stars in Their Eyes 2025 was hosted at the Kingsmills Hotel on March 15 in aid of the charity, which supports over 160 people in the local community.

Contestants took to the stage and were transformed into famous musicians and performed a melody of hits.

Laura Thomson was crowned as the winner after her performance as Tina Turner singing Proud Mary.

Laura was the winner of the night. Picture: James Mackenzie
Laura was the winner of the night. Picture: James Mackenzie

A spokesperson for SNAP said: “The event raised an incredible £36,000 for SNAP, this means the event has raised over £100,000 across the last three years to support our services.

“Our event partner The Kingsmills Hotel is an incredible support to SNAP, and we cannot thank them enough for all they have done over the years.

SNAP Choir. Picture: James Mackenzie
SNAP Choir. Picture: James Mackenzie

“We want to extend a huge thanks to our sponsors, volunteers, vendors, staff but most importantly our Stars of the night for their time and fundraising efforts.

Andrew. Picture: James Mackenzie
Andrew. Picture: James Mackenzie

“We had some incredible auction prizes donated, and we had a record-breaking year for our auction this year. This was solely reliant on the kindness of Highland businesses and the brilliant bidders.

Leah. Picture: James Mackenzie
Leah. Picture: James Mackenzie

“Thanks to the dancers from Performers UK for their time and effort. They really boosted our acts and the event.

Jonathan. Picture: James Mackenzie
Jonathan. Picture: James Mackenzie

“Most importantly, we are so proud of our SNAP Choir, who absolutely stole the show again this year. Singing the poignant 'Firework' by Katy Perry, they had the room in the palm of their hands with their talent, passion, and heart.

Picture: James Mackenzie
Picture: James Mackenzie

“The incredible Nicola McAlley hosted the event flawlessly, our judges Steve Walsh, Morven Reid, and James Cook had a hard job the 2025 stars talent was nothing short of incredible. They did a brilliant job of keeping their critiques fun and engaging.”

Paul. Picture: James Mackenzie
Paul. Picture: James Mackenzie

The full list of performers and their acts:

Darryl Geegan - Freddie Mercury - Somebody to Love

Emily MacDonald - Christina Aguilera - Burlesque

Darryl. Picture: James Mackenzie
Darryl. Picture: James Mackenzie

Jonathan Nkuli - Michael Jackson - Rock With You

Paul Leslie - Bob Dylan - Don't think twice, it's alright

Laura Thomson - Tina Turner - Proud Mary

Andy Gill - Cher - Turn Back Time, Believe mash up (HIGHEST FUNDRAISER)

Emily. Picture: James Mackenzie
Emily. Picture: James Mackenzie

Leah Roehling - Keala Settle - This is Me

Aimee Davidson was due to perform but she became unwell and lost her voice.

Laura. Picture: James Mackenzie
Laura. Picture: James Mackenzie

She will be performing at the 2026 event so her star will remain a secret, until then.


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