A GROUP of girls will this week show they are bosom buddies with the launch of a charity calendar.

Twenty ladies from the seaside town of South Shields have stripped for the calendar.

The average age of the girls is 50, their average bra size is 40, and there are 13 months instead of 12, including two Decembers.

Behind the revealing calendar are Liz Dixon-Cave and husband Trevor, who own Crafty Corner, a craft shop and ceramic studio in the town.

The couple has managed to raise more than £5,000 pounds from local business sponsorship to help turn their idea into reality.

The calendar is to be revealed at the Customs House, in South Shields, on Thursday.

Sales of the calendar will raise money for Marie Curie Cancer Care.

Mr Dixon-Cave said: "We all wanted to raise money for a cause that is close to our hearts.

"Everyone connected with the calendar, from the girls to the photographer, have all been affected by cancer.

"I am a bowel cancer survivor, while Liz also had to have a hysterectomy after tests revealed pre-cancerous cells."

Every penny made from the calendars will go directly to Marie Curie Cancer Care.

Freya Moseley, from Marie Curie Cancer Care, said: "I think it is both creative and brave, but I understand that the ladies who came up with the idea all felt strongly about doing all they could for a cancer charity."