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Back on The Chain Gang, Miles releases lockdown song Drag Me To The Light

Miles And The Chain Gang members, left to right, Billy Hickling, Miles Salter, Tim Bruce and Alan Dawson. Picture: Jim Poyner

YORK band Miles And The Chain Gang release their second song and video, Drag Me To The Light, on November 15.

Available on Spotify, iTunes and Apple Music, with the video on YouTube, this follow-up to February’s When It Comes To You reflects the experience of the pandemic lockdown in Spring 2020. 

“I wrote the song during lockdown in April,” says frontman Miles Salter. “I was trying to capture the emotional feeling of what was happening, the sense of hunger for human interaction.

“We are social creatures and I think everybody felt the absence of human connection and warmth.”

Drag Me To The Light was recorded in June and July at Young Thugs Studio, at the South Bank Social Club in York, where the video was then filmed in September. “I had no idea that when it came out, it would be during a second lockdown,”’ says Miles, musician, writer, storyteller and presenter of The Arts Show on Jorvik Radio.

Singer and guitarist Miles is joined in The Chain Gang by Billy Hickling, drums and percussion, Tim Bruce, bass, and Alan Dawson, guitar.

Swelling the gang on Drag Me To The Light are Sean McMullan, guitar, Holly Taymar-Bilton, backing vocals, Sam Pirt, accordion, Thomas Rhodes, trumpet, and Jonny Hooker, organ, most of them drawn from the York area. 

Hooker also produced the track. “Jonny’s really good to work with and Young Thugs is a great facility,” says Miles. “They want to champion music in the north of England and have enjoyed success with York band Bull, who signed to EMI Records this year.”

Drag Me To The Light is “a bit more funky than things” Salter would write usually. “I think playing with Billy, Tim and Alan has opened me up to other ways of approaching music. It has something of a Nile Rogers feel to it,” says Miles, who then reflects on a very frustrating year.

“As a result of the pandemic, we haven’t played any public gigs. We were due to play our first gig in late-March, and then the  first lockdown happened. We’re trying to focus on video and reach people that way.

“We’ve had more than 2,000 views of various things, so that’s not bad, and we’re also developing our social-media presence. We’ve made a lot of progress since the start of 2019. Nobody knew who we were then! So, things are building, slowly.”  

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Snow Patrol head to sunny Scarborough Open Air Theatre for July 2021 show

Back on Patrol: Snow Patrol re-book cancelled Scarborough Open Air Theatre gig for July 2021

FIRST Duran Duran, then Lewis Capaldi, now Snow Patrol, as Gary Lightbody’s band completes a hat-trick of new additions in quick succession to next summer’s Scarborough Open Air Theatre programme.

Tickets for Snow Patrol’s July 3 concert will go on general sale at 9am on Friday (6/11/2020) via scarboroughopenairtheatre.com

Snow Patrol were booked to play Scarborough OAT this summer, only for the sold-out July 4 show to be ruled out by the Coronavirus pandemic.

Concert programmer Peter Taylor, of Scarborough OAT promoters Cuffe and Taylor, says:“We were gutted when the 2020 season had to be postponed, so we are delighted to be able to confirm Snow Patrol are heading to Scarborough in 2021.

“They are a hugely successful and influential band who have written and recorded some of the best-loved indie rock anthems of the last 20 years. These special songs are going to sound amazing at this unique venue. It’s going to be an incredible night.”

Gary Lightbody, guitar and vocals, Johnny McDaid, keyboards and guitar, Nathan Connolly, guitar, Paul Wilson, bass and Jonny Quinn, drums, have chalked up 17 million global album sales, one billion global track streams, five UK platinum-selling albums, an Ivor Novello award, and Grammy and Mercury Music Prize nominations.

Formed in Dundee, Snow Patrol broke into the mainstream in 2003 with their Final Straw album, riding high on the top five hit Run.2006’s Eyes Open propelled the Northern Irish-Scottish band to a worldwide audience as Chasing Cars became British radio’s most played song of the 21st century.

After taking time out, Snow Patrol returned in 2018 with Wildness, their first studio album in seven years, followed up with a live tour topped off with a homecoming gig for Lightbody, playing to 35,000 fans in his birthplace of Bangor, Northern Ireland.

During lockdown, Lightbody and co recorded The Fireside Sessions EP with the help of a few thousand friends. The five songs were written by fans during a series of streams on Instagram Live dubbed Saturday Songwrite.

In a nod to this collaboration, the EP was released under the banner of Snow Patrol And The Saturday Songwriters. All proceeds from sales are going to anti-poverty charity The Trussell Trust.

More dates will be added to a Scarborough OAT 2021 concert programme running to ten shows already. Watch this space.

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Lewis Capaldi to play Scarborough Open Air Theatre next summer after 2019 sell-outs

“I can’t wait to return next summer,” says Lewis Capaldi as he announces his 2021 Scarborough show

LEWIS Capaldi is “buzzing” to be returning to Scarborough Open Air Theatre next summer.

The 24-year-old Glaswegian singer-songwriter will head to the Yorkshire coast on Sunday, July 25 2021 after selling out two nights – July 20 and August 30 – at Britain’s largest purpose-built outdoor arena in record time in 2019.

Tickets will go on general sale via scarboroughopenairtheatre.com at 9am on Friday, November 6.

“Buzzing to be back playing in Yorkshire again,” says the chart-topping, two-time BRIT Award winner. “Scarborough 2019 was absolutely class, so I can’t wait to return next summer. It’s a great venue, the crowds there are always unreal and so here’s to another unforgettable night.” 

Capaldi was nominated for the Critics’ Choice Award at the 2019 BRITs before his breakthrough single, Someone You Loved, topped the UK chart for seven weeks and hit the top spot the US Billboard Hot 100 too.

A nomination for a Grammy Award for Song of the Year ensued, along with a place in UK pop history as the longest-running top ten single of all time by a British artist.

Capaldi’s debut album, Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent, was not only the top-seller of 2019 but is on track to match that feat in 2020. Boasting the singles Before You Go, Grace, Hollywood and Bruises, it is yet to vacate the UK top ten more than 18 months after its release.

His 2021 diary is filling up with headline shows at arenas and festivals across Europe, Scarborough et al.

Scarborough Open Air Theatre programmer Peter Taylor, of promoters Cuffe and Taylor, says: “Lewis Capaldi is quite simply a music phenomenon – a brilliant live performer, a great guy and someone we are beyond delighted to see return.

“When we booked his two Scarborough OAT shows in 2019, they were the biggest headline gigs Lewis had ever announced and they sold out in record time.

“Those shows will live long in the memory as brilliant, magical nights, and so to welcome Lewis back in 2021 – for what will undoubtedly be his third sell-out show here – is really special.”

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Please, please, tell me now, is there something I should know about Duran Duran?……….

Forget Rio! Duran Duran are heading to Scarborio next summer

HER name is Scarborio and she dances on the sand…

Oh yes, Duran Duran are to play on the Yorkshire coast next summer, signing up for a July 7 outdoor show at Scarborough Open Air Theatre, when Rio, Girls On Film, Save A Prayer, The Reflex and the rest will be paraded alongside their first new material since 2015.

Tickets go on general sale via scarboroughopenairtheatre.com at 9am on Friday, November 6. Duran Duran VIP Fan Community members will have first access with a pre-sale from 9am on Tuesday, November 3 via www.duranduranmusic.com

Named after Milo O’Shea’s character, Durand Durand, in Roger Vadim’s cult 1968 sci-fi film Barbarella, Duran Duran formed in 1978, joining Culture Club and Spandau Ballet at the paint and frills front of a new wave of glam pop in the early Eighties.

In all, singer Simon Le Bon, 62, keyboardist Nick Rhodes, 58, bassist John Taylor, 60, and drummer Roger Taylor, 60, have sold more than 100 million records worldwide and scored 21 UK Top 20 smashes and 18 American hit singles.

In the freshly minted words of their Scarborough OAT press release: “Consistently fusing art, technology, fashion and a signature sense of style with their unique and infectious brand of music, Duran Duran have proven themselves timeless, always innovating and reinventing, to remain ahead of the curve.” 

The Birmingham band last released a studio album in 2015 when Paper Gods peaked at number five. Produced by Mark Ronson and Chic leader Nile Rodgers, alongside Mr Hudson and Josh Blair, it featured collaborations with Janelle Monáe, Red Hot Chili Peppers’ John Frusciante, Kiesza and Jonas Bjerre of Mew.   

A global, three-year, sold-out arena tour followed, and now the two-time Grammy, BRIT Award and Ivor Novello winners are working on their 15th studio album, set for release next year when their continuing 40th anniversary celebrations will take in the Scarborough OAT show and headline spots at the Isle of White Festival and Lytham Festival.

Until 1986 Duran Duran had a third Taylor, lead guitarist Andy, in their line-up. Now a fourth Taylor, promoter Peter of Scarborough OAT programmers Cuffe and Taylor, says: “Duran Duran are global superstars and we are so excited to be bringing them here to Scarborough next summer. 

“Their live shows are simply epic and fans have been asking us for some time now to bring them here to the Yorkshire coast. It is another massive headline show for Scarborough OAT 2021!”

Next summer’s line-up so far comprises: June 12, Lionel Richie; June 19,  UB40 featuring Ali Campbell and Astro; June 20, Ru Paul’s Drag Race: Werq The World; July 7, Duran Duran; July 9, Keane; July 10, Olly Murs; August 17,  Westlife, and August 20,  Nile Rodgers & Chic. More dates are to be added very soon. Watch this space.

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Review: Steven Isserlis and Connie Shih, Leeds Town Hall, October 27

Steven Isserlis: “Infinitely elegiac encore that seemed to crystallize these sad times”

THE floodgates are beginning to open and performers of stature are returning to our concert halls – those that remain open, that is.

Steven Isserlis brought his cello and his regular pianist, Canadian-born Connie Shih, to become the latest in LeedsTown Hall’s Artists’ Choice chamber music series. Their programme was French or French-inspired, the thrilling exception being Adès’s Lieux retrouvés (Rediscovered Places) of 2009.

The original last movement of Saint-Saëns’s First Cello Sonata of 1872 is not the one normally heard today. He replaced it at the instigation of his mother, who possibly found its themes hard to discern. It still made an energetic opener. A page-turning error near the end (by Isserlis) brought it to a brief halt, but he resumed with redoubled fury. No-one could have minded.

The four Adès sketches contrast aspects of nature – water, mountain, fields – in the first three, with a frantic cityscape at the close. The smoothly flowing waters gradually took on more challenging currents, with heightened cross-rhythms. The mountain proved an arduous ascent to an oxygen-free summit, followed by what sounded like a sudden, disastrous return to base (denied by the composer).

The sweet repose and gently leaping lyricism evoking open fields disappeared into the stratosphere. It was only in the finale – described by the composer as a “cancan macabre” – that we had a moto perpetuo of energetic turbulence, taking both players to their limits. These paintings are not pastels, but brilliantly vivid in their detail. The duo took up the challenge with riveting conviction.

Lullabies by Chaminade and Fauré provided a welcome antidote; they were tenderly delivered. Fireworks returned with Franck’s sonata, originally written (1886) for the violin but here in an authorised transcription by cellist Jules Delsart, published two years later.

Since the piano part remains unchanged, it needs to be handled with care since the lower-voiced cello can easily be swamped. Shih pushed Isserlis hard in the finale, where he tossed his tousled mane without great effect on the balance between the two.

No matter: there was plenty to savour elsewhere, notably in his rich, yearning tone in the second movement and the rambling Fantasia that followed.

Duparc’s only foray into chamber music was a cello sonata, written at the age of 19. Its Lento movement made an infinitely elegiac encore that seemed to crystallize these sad times.

Review by Martin Dreyer

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Martin Barrass WILL star in a York panto this Christmas, but what’s the show? UPDATED

Martin Barrass: Back in pantoland for Strictly Xmas Live In The Park

MARTIN Barrass will be starring in a York pantomime after all this winter.

Dame Berwick’s perennial comic stooge may be missing out on the Covid-cancelled Kaler comeback in Dick Turpin Rides Again at the Grand Opera House, but now he will lead the pantomime section of Strictly Xmas Live In The Park.

Presented by the Bev Jones Music Company in a Covid-secure, socially distanced, open-air performance at the Rowntree Park Amphitheatre, the show will be a one-off on Sunday, December 13 at 2pm.

Martin Barrass as Queen Ariadne in his last York Theatre Royal pantomime, Sleeping Beauty, last winter

“I met Lesley Jones, widow of the formidable York producer and director Bev Jones, five or six weeks ago about doing a Christmas show to get people out and about on a crisp winter’s day,” says Martin.

“I’m thrilled to be taking part, and if you’re wondering why I’m wearing black and pink in the publicity picture, they were Bev’s favourite colours.”

Producer Lesley says: “We are delighted to welcome Martin into our company for this special guest appearance and he fits in so well to the company personality. He will lead the audience in the Christmas song with a drop-down song sheet.”

Martin Barrass, right, with AJ Powell, Berwick Kaler, Suzy Cooper and David Leonard at the February 14 launch of their debut Grand Opera House pantomime, now put back to 2021. PIcture: David Harrison

“I’ve chosen the first song-sheet I ever did at the Theatre Royal…about Yorkshire Puddings!” reveals Martin, as he breaks into song from memory: “‘You can’t beat a better bit of batter on your platter than a good old Yorkshire Pud!’

“I did that with Berwick in Sinbad The Sailor in 1984, and I always remember thinking, ‘Are they going to respond?’, but of course they did!” Nobody does it batter, Martin!

Expect a few seasonal jokes too from Barrass, who will be joined in the festive concert’s panto sequence by Melissa Boyd’s Princess, Terry Ford’s villain and Charlotte Wood’s Silly Billy.

“In addition, we’ll have the Dame, the Fairy Godmother, Prince Charming, Jack Ass and other characters,” says Lesley.

Charlotte Wood as Silly Billy for Strictly Xmas In The Park

“The concert will include all the favourite Christmas songs, such as Santa Baby, Jingle Bell Rock and Band Aid’s Do They Know It’s Christmas?, as well as the fun panto section for all the family.

“There’ll be a visit from Santa Claus for all the children, followed by a moving Carols By Candlelight finale, encouraging a sing-along for everyone.”

Rowntree Park Amphitheatre will play host to a non-alcoholic Festive Mulled Wine Van, selling hot drinks for all the family, whether tea, coffee, hot apple juice or children’s drinks, served with light complimentary snacks. 

Melissa Boyd’s Princess and Terry Ford’s villain for the Bev Jones Music Company’s Strictly Xmas In The Park

Rehearsals will be held at Rufforth Institute Hall , socially distanced and under a full Covid risk assessment. 

All audience members will be temperature tested on arrival and placed into family private bubble areas.

Tickets cost £5 for children and £10 for adults in bubbles for two to six people, on sale  on 01904 501935 or online at josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk/whats-on/concert/strictly-xmas-live-in-the-park/1342/#schedules

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REVIEW: Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Brass in Leeds…but brassed off in York

Conductor Simon Wright

REVIEW: Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Brass (and other thoughts), Leeds Town Hall, October 24

TWELVE heroes from the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra – ten brass players and two percussionists – travelled to Leeds on Saturday to play before an audience of around five dozen.

Simon Wright conducted them in a stimulating mixed bag of music from the last 130 years, plus an early interjection from Giovanni Gabrieli.

Harmless though this may sound, the event was hugely significant. Locally based groups, notably from Opera North, have been appearing at the Town Hall since late August. But this was the first time that a professional ensemble from further afield had appeared there since lockdown.

Later this week, there will be two lunchtime events and three evening lieder recitals, all given by musicians of international standing. And that’s just on the classical side. So, it can be done, all within the regulations: distanced seating, masks worn by the audience, no interval or refreshments. But these are small privations compared to the thrill of live music returning. Leeds Playhouse has been equally adventurous.

In other cities, the silence continues to be deafening. Take York, for example, normally a bastion of classical performance. The Minster, the Barbican, University of York’s Central Hall, all are large venues well suited to music and easily adaptable to the new conditions.

Smaller but equally adaptable is the National Centre for Early Music and the university’s Lyons Concert Hall. All remain resolutely shut. Why? Hasn’t government (our) money been made available to keep such venues open?

Back to the brass. They opened with an ingenious arrangement of Elgar’s Cockaigne (In London Town) by one of their own, trombonist Matthew Knight. Given its complexity, it was a surprising choice as opener and took a while to settle.

But the main theme emerged triumphant on the trombones just in time for the accelerando towards the close. With the Town Hall so empty, and therefore even more resonant than usual, Gabrieli’s Canzon on the seventh tone had a regal clarity, comparable surely to St Mark’s Venice itself, as the two quartets bounced off another; it might have made a better curtain-raiser.

Imogen Holst’s Leiston Suite (1967) delivered five neatly concentrated miniatures, including a sparkling fanfare, a balletic jig and several flashes of her father’s spare harmony, all tastefully interwoven.

Eric Crees’ skilful arrangements of three Spanish dances by Granados were enchantingly idiomatic, rays of mediterranean sunshine. The colours in Duke Ellington’s bluesy Chelsea Bridge were more muted.

Hartlepool-born Jim Parker’s name may not be on everyone’s lips, but most of us have heard his music through his soundtracks for Midsomer Murders, Foyle’s War, Moll Flanders and any number of films. Why he has four BAFTAS to his name became clear in A Londoner In New York (1987), five attractive cameos of the city’s buzz, including steam engines at Grand Central, a romantic walk in Central Park, and the can-can chorus line at Radio City.

London came to Leeds here and we may all be grateful for the glimpse of normality.

Review by Martin Dreyer

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Young Composers Award night to be live-streamed from NCEM on November 11

“We’ve been working hard to give our aspiring finalists the best possible experience, even though we won’t be able to welcome them, their friends and family to York,” says NCEM director Delma Tomlin

THE winners of the Young Composers Award 2020 will be revealed by the National Centre for Early Music, York, in a live-streamed performance on November 11.

At 7pm, Ex Corde Vocal Ensemble, the consort of the Ebor Singers, will perform each of the shortlisted pieces for a panel of judges.

The Coronavirus pandemic enforced the postponement of the 2020 awards, but next month online audience can watch the re-scheduled finals free of charge, tuning in to hear music from the composers of the future performed by artists of the highest calibre.

This national annual award is open to young composers up to the age of 25 and resident in the UK in two age categories: 18 years and under and 19 to 25 .  For the 2020 award, composers were invited to create a new polyphonic work for unaccompanied choir, setting either the Our Father (Pater Noster) prayer from St Matthew’s Gospel or the first and last verses of George Herbert’s poem The Flower.

Competing for the 18 years and under award will be Ethan Lieber’s composition The Flower, Eilidh Owen’s As If There Were No Such Cold Thing and Emily Pedersen’s Pater Noster.

Seeking the prize in the 18 to 25 final will be Noah Bray’s Our Father, Sam Gooderham’s Late-Past, Caitlin Harrison’s The Flower, James Mitchell’s The Lord’s Prayer and Fintan O’Hare’s Come Passing Rain.

The live-streamed performance will follow a day-long workshop when the young composers will join composer Christopher Fox, Professor of Music at Brunel University, and Ex Corde Vocal Ensemble.

Judging the finals will be The Tallis Scholars’ director, Peter Phillips; BBC Radio 3 producer Les Pratt and NCEM director Delma Tomlin. The winners, one from each age category, will be announced after the concert. 

The Young Composers Award is deemed an important landmark in the careers of aspiring composers. Every year, the winning compositions are performed in public and recorded for broadcast on BBC Radio 3’s Early Music Show. This year’s winning works will be premiered by The Tallis Scholars in a public performance at the Cadogan Hall, London, on March 24 2021.

Delma Tomlin says: “Once again, the NCEM Young Composers Award has attracted attention from all over the UK. This year, we will be live-streaming the excitement and inviting audiences, friends and aspiring young composers and musicians to join us for this highly regarded annual event.

“For everyone working in the arts and entertainment, the last few months have not been easy. We’ve been working hard to give our aspiring finalists the best possible experience, even though we won’t be able to welcome them, their friends and family to York. We hope to be able to celebrate in style next year with the public performance at the Cadogan Hall.”

Alan Davey, controller of BBC Radio 3 and classical music, says: “Nurturing young composers is one of our key missions here at BBC Radio 3: we are keen on discovering new voices and supporting emerging talent.

“In the current circumstances, our commitment is more urgent than ever, as we need to make sure creativity survives and thrives in these unprecedented times. We can’t wait to delight our audiences broadcasting the winning compositions by some of the most promising young composers in the UK.”

The NCEM was among the first arts organisations to live-stream performances and festivals as a response to the lockdown. The first concert, broadcast on March 21, attracted more than 60,000 viewers from all over the world, from as far afield as Australia and Japan.

For full details on how to watch the Young Composers Award 2020 performance, go to ncem.co.uk.

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Easy does it as Lionel Richie switches 2020 Scarborough OAT show to next summer

HELLO again, Lionel Richie will play Scarborough Open Air Theatre next summer.

The Alabama soul luminary’s June 9 show on the East Coast this summer was ruled out by the Covid-19 lockdown, but now he is booked in for June 12 2021.

This will be 71-year-old Richie’s second appearance at Scarborough OAT, having made his sold-out debut there in 2018.

“I was really excited to be playing at Scarborough Open Air Theatre this summer as I enjoyed a truly wonderful night there in 2018,” says Richie.

“I was very sad that, like so many things, the show had to be delayed but obviously, everyone’s health and safety comes first. I’m now looking forward to it even more and know we’ll all have such an incredible night of partying together.”

Richie’s set-list will span his early years in The Commodores to the present day, taking in such favourites as Three Times A Lady, Easy, Truly, Dancing On The Ceiling, Say You, Say Me, Running With The Night, Endless Love, Hello and All Night Long.

“I’m now looking forward to it even more and know we’ll all have such an incredible night of partying together,” says Lionel Richie of his re-arranged Scarborough Open Air Theatre concert

The American has sold more than 125 million albums worldwide and has received an Oscar, Golden Globe and four Grammy Awards, along with the Ivor Novello PRS for Music Special International Award. On June 28 2015, he drew a crowd of 200,000 at Glastonbury festival. Last year, he released the concert album Live From Las Vegas.

Programmer Peter Taylor, of Scarborough OAT promoters Cuffe and Taylor, says: “We are incredibly proud and excited that Lionel Richie – one of the most successful and celebrated music artists of all time – is returning to Scarborough Open Air Theatre.

“His 2018 sold-out show here was just a brilliant night and this is going to be another amazing show by an undoubted global superstar. Roll on June 12 next year. We cannot wait!”

Cuffe and Taylor also booked Richie for the closing concert of their inaugural York Festival at York Sports Club on June 21 this summer, only for Coronavirus to intervene.

Tickets for June 12 2021 will go on sale from 8am on Friday, October 30 at scarboroughopenairtheatre.com.

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Westlife go East to play Scarborough Open Air Theatre as only 2021 outdoor north date

Westlife’s poster for next summer’s Scarborough Open Air Theatre concert

IRISH grown-up boy band Westlife will play an exclusive north of England outdoor show at Scarborough Open Air Theatre next summer.

The top-selling album band of the 21st century should have played both the Yorkshire coast venue and the inaugural York Festival in 2020, but the Covid lockdown enforced their cancellation.

Instead, Shane Filan, Mark Feehily, Kian Egan and Nicky Byrne will perform in Scarborough four days before their headline show at Wembley Stadium.

Westlife’s official statement reads: “Some exciting news! We are delighted to announce that Scarborough Open Air Theatre have invited us to join next year’s line-up on Tuesday, August 17.

“Given the current circumstances, we really are hopeful to announce more shows in the new year and look forward to being back with you all as soon as we can.

Westlife will perform such hits as Swear It Again, You Raise Me Up, My Love, Flying Without Wings, Uptown Girl, Unbreakable, When You’re Looking Like That and World Of Our Own, as well as picks from their chart-topping tenth album, 2019‘s Spectrum, Hello My Love among them.

Venue programmer Peter Taylor, of Scarborough OAT promoters Cuffe and Taylor, says: “Westlife fans were heartbroken when this summer’s tour was postponed due to the global pandemic, so we are delighted the boys will be coming to Scarborough OAT next summer.

“This is a real exclusive: Westlife’s only outdoor show in the north of England and four days before their headline show at Wembley. It’s going to be a brilliant night here!”

Westlife were booked to play Scarborough OAT on June 17 and York Festival at York Sports Club, Clifton Park, on June 20 as part of their 2020 Summer In The Stadiums tour before summer was scrapped.

Tickets for August 17 will go on sale via scarboroughopenairtheatre.com at 9am on Friday, October 30.

Scarborough Open Air Theatre’s 2021 season so far comprises: June 19, UB40 featuring Ali Campbell and Astro; June 20, RuPaul’s Drag Race: Werq The World; July 9, Keane; July 10, Olly Murs; August 17, Westlife, and August 20, Nile Rodgers & Chic. More concerts will be added; watch this space.

Did you know?

ALL ten of Westlife’s studio albums have reached the top five in the Official UK Albums Chart, five of them peaking at number one. Fourteen of their singles have made the top spot too.