IT was the night when stars as diverse as Alanis Morrisette and Blink 182 rubbed shoulders with Tina Turner and Cher.

It all happened in Bolton at Smithills School -- but it was not the real pop stars.

Eighteen youngsters took to the stage to imitate their favourite performers.

Even Hannah Morris -- the 16-year-old who a couple of years ago dazzled viewers of BBC1's A Star for a Night -- performed a few numbers.

There were a few technical hiccups along the way but the children, aged from 11 to 16, were not going to let a microphone or a fuzzy TV screen spoil their night.

And the show was expertly presented by youngsters Amy Oldham and Cara Connolly.

The real stand-out performer was Sarah Rushton, a petite 13-year-old with a big voice who performed an almost note perfect rendition of Celine Dion's "Because You Love Me".

She said: "I love singing and I'm a huge Celine Dion fan. Singing in front of all my friends was brilliant and I have had a lot of fun."

Sarah won Smithills' "Stars In Their Eyes" school contest beating Blink 182 impersonators Daniel Finch, aged 15, Sandeep Patel, aged 16, and James McHugh, aged 15, into second place.

The trio, who are each members of their own bands, played their own instruments as they belted out Blink's "All The Small Things".

Sandeep said: "We are all into punk and rock and although we have played many gigs before this is the first time we have done it in front of so many of our friends. The night was a great idea."

In third place was Sam Court who thrilled as Tina Turner singing "Simply The Best".

She said: "I love performing on stage but it's more of a hobby. I am not sure if I could do it full time because I don't like a lot of attention."

Hannah Morris ended the night with three songs including Dido's smash hit "Here With Me".

The Bolton girl, who lives in Chorley New Road, is concentrating on her GCSEs and has put any thoughts of a second CD on hold.

She said: "I haven't worked out what I want to do next. The 'Stars In Their Eyes' night was great because I could practise my singing -- I have not done that much recently."

Headteacher John Lawson said: "It was a very successful night and people seemed to really enjoy themselves. It was very tough choosing a winner because they were all exceptional."

The night was organised by teacher Janine Haskew. The singers also included pupils Carl Slack, Kirsty Harrison, Phil Sumner, Lea Molineux, Jamie Kirby, Josie Davies, Vanisha Gangiyani, Catherine Smith, Samatha Houlston, Amy Collins, Kim Riley, Lauren Heyes and Sam Taylor.