A PLEA to make the pews more comfortable in an Eastleigh church has reached the other side of the world.

Replacing the hard wooden Victorian seats is one of the top priorities in a refurbishment programme for the town's parish church of All Saints.

So hard are the current seats that some members of the congregation even bring their own cushions to the service.

The vicar the Reverend Richard Davies said: "We have 175 chairs and it will cost about £65 to replace each one. So you are talking about a lot of money."

As reported in the Daily Echo, the All Saints fundraising committee had decided to widen its net by asking high profile celebrities, like soccer ace David Beckham and his Spice Girl wife Victoria, to back its appeal with a small donation.

Now the Daily Echo story about the need for more comfy pews has reached Australia where former parishioner Marian Valentine lives.

In an e-mail to the paper from Sydney, Marian says: "I would like to donate money for one chair. I was christened in this lovely church 67 years ago. I lived in Desborough Road at the time. I moved to Bishopstoke when I was married and emigrated to Australia 25 years ago."