Who needs Chris Martin singing when you can have his wife Gwyneth Paltrow instead? Eschewing Coldplay's back catalogue, Paltrow sang a karaoke version of Killing Me Softly With His Song to a standing ovation at a charity event in aid of Palestinian children.

The Oscar-winning actress, 35, began shyly, according to eyewitnesses, "but soon got into the swing of it". She reappeared at the climax of the event at Ronnie Scott's to sing Hi Ho Silver Lining in a supergroup fronted by Jeff Beck and including Jarvis Cocker, Nigel Kennedy and Stella McCartney. Beck first had a hit with the song in the Sixties. Earlier Bryan Ferry, 62, and supermodel-Lily Cole, 20, sang a spectacular duet of Let's Stick Together in front of an audience of 300 mainly A-list celebrities.

Nick Cave performed He's The Greatest Dancer, Lou Reed sang Dirty Boulevard while Joe Corre, boss of Agent Provocateur, sang Roy Orbison's In Dreams.

Bruce Forsyth, 80, compered the event, which is expected to raise £500,000 for the Hoping Foundation through an auction in which guests bid for the celebrity of their choice to serenade them from the stage.

Paltrow has had musical success before, topping the Australian charts in 2001 with a spin-off single from her film Duets. Meanwhile her husband, who was nowhere to be seen, is on stage himself on Monday with Coldplay in New York.

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