A singer who suffers from cystic fibrosis has vowed to carry on with his quest for pop stardom, despite being given the thumbs down by judges of TV talent show Pop Idol.

Chris Yates, pictured, who is also an insulin-dependent diabetic, battled his way through heats to make it to the final 2,000 during auditions for Pop Idol 2. The ITV programme is a follow-up to Pop Idol, last year's hit show which set Bradford's Gareth Gates on the road to fame.

But after performing Tina Turner's hit River Deep, Mountain High, the 27-year-old, of Prospect Walk, Shipley, was axed by the judges who said his voice was too loud.

Despite a barrage of abuse from the judging panel of Simon Cowell, Pete Waterman, Dr Fox and Nicki Chapman, Chris today said he would carry on singing as it helped him to cope with his illnesses.

"When I went in to the audition room Simon Cowell asked me why I wanted to be a Pop Idol," he said. "I said I had done a lot of things for charity and wanted to give something back.

"When I finished singing Simon said, 'Charity, I'll give you some charity. Never sing in public again'. He was really rude."

Had Chris impressed the judges at the Manchester heat he would have been through to the last 100 out of 20,000 pop wannabes who originally auditioned.

He was filmed chatting to show hosts Ant and Dec and hopes to feature in the programme.

Despite not reaching the top 100, Chris, who used to run karaoke nights at the Travellers Rest pub in Shipley, said he didn't regret entering the competition.

"It was an amazing experience meeting Ant and Dec. They couldn't believe I hadn't got through," he said.

Chris, who previously worked as a chef for Bradford Council, has performed in a number of amateur theatre productions including The Wiz at the Alhambra Studio.

He appeared on a live BBC Children in Need TV contest called Bears in Their Eyes in 1999 after being picked from hundreds of other performers.

He helped to raise £4,500 for Seacroft Hospital, where he is treated, after releasing a charity album with the help of other cystic fibrosis sufferers.

"Music is my life and I couldn't live without it," he said.

Pop Idol 2 starts on ITV on Saturday.