A STAND-UP comedy event tonight will help to send a group of adventure-seeking students on a Peruvian pilgrimage later this year.

The Madfoundation comedy night features Jim Jeffries, as seen on TV's Never Mind the Buzzcocks, and fellow comic Paul Foot, plus a special guest compere.

Live hip hop DJs and artists from Wholemeal Beatz will add to the flavour of the event, at the Warehouse, at the rear of the Town Hall, in Durham.

Doors open at 7pm, with the £10 admission charge including one free drink and food at the table. Tickets are available at the door.

Part of the proceeds will go towards an Andean adventure of a lifetime being planned by a group of Durham Sixth Form Centre students this summer.

It is the latest fundraiser staged by the dozen-strong group in their bid to reach the £13,800 target to meet the cost of the two-week expedition.

They have so far topped £10,000, with events including car boot sales and a casino night. Several of the group also took part in the Boxing Day Dip at Sunderland.

While in Peru, the students will help to teach English to local school children in an Andean village as well as helping to build an orphanage.

Matthew Thompson, who raised the idea of the trip, said: "This is not about going on holiday. We want to feel like we have given something to the communities of Peru, as well as being involved in a unique adventure."

* Anyone willing to make a donation, however small, to help the party on their way to Peru is asked to contact law teacher Emma Graham, the only member of staff making the trip, on 0191-384 7505.