Preview: Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott at Sunderland Empire

PAUL HEATON & JACQUI ABBOTT COME TO SUNDERLAND

Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott -  ‘Crooked Calypso’ tour

Sunderland Empire

Thursday 23^rd November 2017 

Paul Heaton and Jacqui Abbott, whose eagerly awaited new album ‘Crooked Calypso’ is released on 21 July 2017, have announced a tour of Ireland and the UK in the autumn with a North East date at Sunderland Empire for one night only on Thursday 23 November 2017. 

Paul and Jacqui last played live at their ‘Beauty In The East’ show at Hull’s 23,000 capacity KCOM Craven Park Stadium last month. Paul Heaton and Jacqui Abbott will release their third album ‘Crooked Calypso’ on Virgin EMI on 21 July  2017. ‘Crooked Calypso’ boasts all the hallmarks of Heaton’s peerless songwriting: songs buoyant with melody, and redolent with biting wit, but also real emotion. 

First single ‘I Gotta Praise’, a euphoric secular Gospel anthem, raises the roof and opens the record in style. ‘The Lord Is A White Con’, meanwhile, considers religion as an exploitative tool of empire builders, while ‘She Got The Garden’ is the wittiest divorce song since ‘D-I-V-O-R-C-E’. Then there is ‘Blackwater Banks’, a gorgeous Irish waltz that the Dubliners would be proud to call their own.  Some if not all of these will get an airing when Paul and Jacqui hit the road and they will also delve deep into Paul’s phenomenal 30 year back catalogue as a songwriter and will also perform classic songs by The Beautiful South and the Housemartins.

Paul Heaton, one of the UK’s most successful songwriters with some 10 million album sales under his belt, first came to public attention in the early 80s as front man of Hull-based indie poppers The Housemartins (the same group that spawned Norman ‘Fatboy Slim’ Cook), best known for their third single ‘Happy Hour’ and their No 1 acapella Isley Bros cover ‘Caravan Of Love’.  The Housemartins released two albums ‘London 0 Hull  4’ (’86) and ‘The People Who Grinned Themselves To Death’ (’87).  In ’88 Heaton formed The Beautiful South, who released 10 hugely successful albums - ‘Welcome To The Beautiful South’ (’89), Choke (’90), ‘0898 Beautiful South’ (’92), ‘Miaow’ (’94), ‘Blue Is The Colour’ (’96), ‘Quench’ (’98), ‘Painting It Red’ (2000), ‘Gaze’ (’03), ‘Golddiggas, Headnodders & Pholk Songs’ (’04) and ‘Superbi’ (’06).   In 2001 Heaton took a break from The Beautiful South and released his first solo album ‘Fat Chance’. The Beautiful South called it a day in 2007 citing ‘musical similarities’.  

Jacqui Abbott was lead vocalist in The Beautiful Southfrom ’94 to 2000 and she sang many of their signature hits including ‘Rotterdam’, ‘Perfect 10’, ‘Don’t Marry Her’ and ‘Dream A Little Dream’.  Paul Heaton went on to release two further solo albums: ‘The Cross-Eyed Rambler’ (’08) and ‘Acid Country’ (’10).  In 2011 Heaton wrote a musical called ‘The 8^th’ based on the Seven Deadly Sins and asked Jacqui to sing one of the parts.  They have since released two acclaimed albums as a duo: ‘What Have We Become’ (’14) and ‘Wisdom, Laughter and Lines’ (’15). 

Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott’s new album ‘Crooked Calypso’ will be released on 21^st July 2017.

 

Tickets:

Tickets available from the Box Office on High Street West, via the ticket centre 0844 871 3022* or www.ATGtickets.com/Sunderland*calls cost up to 7p per minute plus standard network charges. Booking and transaction fees may apply to telephone and online bookings.

*Calls cost up to 7p per minute plus your standard network charge. Booking fees may apply to telephone and online bookings

Preview: Ray and Bob at South Shields Customs House

PANTO STALWARTS REUNITE FOR VARIETY SHOW AS PART OF SOUTH TYNESIDE COMEDY FESTIVAL

Rayand Bob: Together Again

South Shields Customs House

Friday 14^th July 2017

Ray Spencer (left) and Bob Stott (right)

Popular double act Ray Spencer and Bob Stott are reuniting on stage for the first time in two years for the South Tyneside Comedy Festival.

The much-loved comedy duo delighted audiences as the stars of The Customs House panto until Bob – best known as Dame Dotty - retired in 2013.

Bob and Ray take a bow in their final

show as Dame Dotty and Tommy in 2013

The pair’s last official appearance together was in 2015, in Doing It For The House, a fundraiser for The Customs House Trust.

But the magic was still there when they got together at Ray’s 60^thbirthday celebrations earlier this year and they knew they had to perform together again.

Ray, who played Dame Dotty’s dopey son Tommy in the annual panto, said: “I’m looking forward to working with Mr Stott. I am sure he has lost none of his quick-wittedness and cheeky grin. It will be an exciting adventure for us both.”

Bob and Ray as Dame Dotty and

Tommy in Sleeping Beauty in 2003

Ray and Bob’s partnership began at The Westovian Theatre Society, at the Pier Pavilion Theatre in South Shields, in 1975.

They became Dame Dotty and Tommy when Ray began writing summer Tommy the Trumpeter pantomimes in 1990.

Bob, who lives in Washington, said: “A double act is about chemistry and from our first appearance on stage together, Ray and I just clicked. I doubt if either of us could explain it, it just happened. There is one thing that helps though - things are a lot easier and a lot funnier when you have a friend of over 40 years at your side and many more friends in the audience that have supported us over the years. If there is a secret to our double act, it’s that we really enjoy being on stage together.”

The South Tyneside Comedy Festival, based at The Customs House, is back for a second year, with a fantastic line-up of stars and up-and-coming comedians gracing the venue throughout July and August.

Upcoming shows include Rory Bremner: Partly Political, comedy magician and TV regular Pete Firman and Canadian comedian Sean Collins.

Tickets:

Rayand Bob: Together Again comes to The Customs House on Friday, July 14, at 7pm.

Tickets, priced £15 or £13 for Friends of The Customs House, are available from the box office on (0191) 454 1234 or online at www.customshouse.co.uk

For more information about the South Tyneside Comedy Festival, visit www.southtynesidecomedyfestival.co.uk

 

Tickets on sale for Ed Sheeran's gig at at St James Park Newcastle Upon Tyne on Friday 8th June 2018 will be on sale from Saturday 8th July. Ticket Link from our affiliate: Ed Sheeran Ticket LINK

Preview: Daliso Chaponda at Newcastle Tyne Theatre

Britain’s Got Talent comedian Daliso Chaponda brings his debut stand-up to Newcastle

Daliso Chaponda

Newcastle Tyne Theatre & Opera House
Saturday 12^th May 2018

Tyne Theatre & Opera House are thrilled to add Britain’s Got Talentand Amanda Holden’s golden buzzer act, comedian Daliso Chaponda, to their 2018 comedy line-up.

Daliso will bring his debut stand-up show What the African Said… to the Tyne Theatre stage on Saturday 12^th May 2018.

The Malawian born stand-up was a standout star from this year’s show, capturing the nation’s hearts and garnering over 8 million Facebook views and 9 million on Youtube.  The What the African Said… tour takes in 31 dates across the UK starting on 8^th February at Nottingham’s Glee Club and culminating on 27^th April at Edinburgh’s Queens Hall.  Daliso has also just been confirmed for his own Radio 4 series entitled Daliso Chaponda: Citizen of Nowhere.

“…Laughter is how I cope with pain. I have seen and experienced some horrible things but laughter helped me cope. Telling jokes is repaying the favor. This show is my thanks to the laughter.” Daliso Chaponda, June 2017

Daliso Chaponda has lived in countries where the press is not allowed to criticize the government, and in others with no libel laws where they can say anything. He has been both a journalist and a jaded newsreader. He is the perfect comedian to discuss what the media has become, which he does in his hilarious new show What the African Said… The show is about recent news, old news, fake news, and stories that were never quite but ALMOST news. It is also a show about the things we say to each other; gossip, tall stories and of course declarations of love.

   

 

His father was a refugee who became a diplomat and he therefore grew up bouncing from country to country. He always wanted to be a novelist, but his family pressured him to study programming and he ended up at university in Canada. During this time he wrote funny science fiction that occasionally got published. He had never seen stand-up comedy until he went to Montreal Just for Laughs.  There was no comedy circuit in Malawi so he eventually moved to the UK and started performing at open mic nights that led to circuit gigs.

A few years ago he did his first ever comedy show in Malawi, which became a massive success, and after that he started to be booked on big African shows. Then, just as he thought of moving back to Malawi and becoming the Malawi McIntyre, he did jokes about the Malawi President and his own father (who was the cabinet minister).  This received a huge amount of media attention and the Malawi censorship board threatened to arrest him. This is not the only time his humour got him into trouble. Doing pro-homosexuality material in response to gay men being arrested and criticizing a Zimbabwean prophet got him a lot of hate mail!  This made him realise that he wanted to keep doing edgy comedy material but in no way could he move back home to Malawi!

Daliso has appeared at many festivals that have included Melbourne, Edinburgh, Singapore and Cape Town Festivals. He is also a prolific fiction writer and has had his science fiction, murder mysteries and fantasy fiction published in numerous magazines and anthologies. He also he co-wrote a play recently that aired on BBC Radio 4.

Theatre Director Joanne Johnson says: “Daliso is one of the hottest new comedians around right now, so we’re very excited that he’s coming to Tyne Theatre & Opera House. He joins a stellar line-up of comedy for 2017 & 2018, including Katherine Ryan, Sarah Millican, Ed Byrne and more.”

(Age restriction 14+)

Tickets: £15.50 (Plus booking fees when booking online or over the phone)

Tickets available now: Eventim Tickets LINK

Preview: Dan Cruickshank at South Shields Customs House

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HISTORIAN AND BROADCASTER DAN CRUICKSHANK EXPLORES THE WORLD’S GREATEST ARCHITECTURE IN TALK

Dan Cruickshank

South Shields Customs House

Saturday 8^th July 2017

Writer and television presenter Dan Cruickshank will give a potted history on 5,000 years of architecture in a talk at The Customs House this weekend.

Architectural historian Dan Cruickshank

The architectural historian will explore some of the world’s most inspirational and characterful buildings, from the ancient Egyptian pyramids to the soaring skyscrapers of Manhattan.

His selection – based on his book, A History of Architecture in 100 Buildings – includes buildings that represent key pioneering moments in architectural history, such as the Pantheon in Rome and the Taj Mahal in Agra.

He also presents less obvious, more surprising structures.

Mr Cruickshank, who is a regular presenter on the BBC, said: “My talk touches on buildings around the world stretching back 5,000 years and into the 21^st century. It will offer a history of architecture, touching on how mankind builds and on the message buildings can carry and on their varied meanings and function – shelter, defence, conquest, trade, the expressions of pride and identity, poetic monuments to faith, explanations of the mysteries of life, death and afterlife.

“This is a big story because any history of architecture is a history of the world, embracing art, science, technology, economics and politics. And architecture is all-important in our lives – we all have to live with it – it defines our physical world whether we like it or not. It is too important to be left to the building professionals and politicians. The better informed we are, the better able we will be to engage in a productive debate about the architectural world we inhabit, about what to conserve and how new buildings should be designed.

“Although the scope of the talk is broad – in time and space – and the examples discussed come from around the world the issues raised are applicable on the most local scale. Indeed the buildings of South Tyneside have significant lessons to teach and offer much to reflect upon.”

Dan Cruickshank’s verdict on some of South Tyneside’s architectural marvels:

The Customs House is a fine mid-19^thcentury commercial building of classical design that was calculated to express the virtues of strength and solidity. The historic styles of architect and ornament were, at the time, seen as a vital attribute of modern design. The building also tells a story about the ways in which old buildings can make a positive contribution to the modern age. The building became redundant but was saved and adapted to serve a productive new use, giving a sense of continuity with the past and adding delight to our daily lives.

South Shields Town Hall – a splendid classical building completed in 1910 yet rooted in the English Baroque traditions of the early 18^th century - is another example of the way in which history was – in the past – used to ennoble and dignify our lives, and to carry a message about the virtues of a democratic society with its ideals rooted in the world of ancient Greece.

Souter Lighthouse If 1871 is a wonderful monument to inspired, 19^th century engineered design. It was pioneering – the first lighthouse to be purpose built to incorporate electricity – but it’s also a reminder of the fact that is was heroic Victorian engineers like James Douglass who built the modern world.

Arbela Roman Fort raises fascinating issues. The recreation of lost buildings has never been more topical, given the shocking destruction we have seen during the last two years in the Middle East – notably at the 2,000 year old city of Palmyra in Syria and at Nimrud and Mosul in Iraq. Can the dead be brought back to life, can reconstructions have purpose and meaning? Arbela suggests very forcefully that they can, that they can help us understand the past, inspire, educate and delight. And, in uncanny fashion, it is known that a merchant from Palmyra operated at Arbela and it’s likely that mercenaries from Mesopotamia – now Iraq – were based there. It is a most relevant example when discussing the plight of these culturally rich nations.

The Word, National Centre for the Written Word, reveals the potential – and the challenges – offered by contemporary design. It no doubt fulfils its function well – is fit for purpose, perhaps indeed in its boldness offers a sense of local pride and identity. But does it feel distinct and of the place? Does it make a contribution to the established local architectural character? Perhaps the Word is no more or no less alien than the Town Hall was when it was completed over 100 years ago. Lots to discuss.

Tickets:

Dan Cruickshank: A History of Architecture in 100 Buildings starts at 7.30pm on Saturday, July 8, at The Customs House, Mill Dam, South Shields.

Tickets, priced £14 or £12 for Friends of the Customs House, are available from the box office on (0191) 454 1234 or online at www.customshouse.co.uk.

Affiliate Tikcet Link: Ed Sheeran Tickets at Newcastle St James Park 8/6/18

 

 

Preview: Oliver! at Whitley Bay Playhouse

Whitley Bay Operatic Society presents

Oliver!

Whitley Bay Playhouse

Tuesday 31^st October – Saturday 4^th November 2017

Whitley Bay Operatic Society will grace the stage this autumn with the hugely popular musical Oliver!  Whitley Bay Operatic Society last performed Oliver! on the Playhouse stage in 2011 with sensational reviews, the show will run from 31st October to 4th November 2017.

In this musical adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel, nine year old Oliver Twist falls in with a group of street-urchin pickpockets led by the Artful Dodger and masterminded by the criminal Fagin. When Oliver's intended target Mr Brownlow takes pity on the lad and offers him a home, Fagin's henchman Bill Sykes plots to kidnap the boy to keep him from talking. 

Patrons can expect to hear all the favourites including ‘Food Glorious Food’, ‘Consider Yourself’, and ‘I’d do Anything’ with five evening performances at 7.15pm, and a Saturday Matinee at 2.15pm.

Tickets:

Tickets costing £15, £13 conc, are available now.

Tickets are available from the Box Office open Monday – Friday 10am – 4pm, Saturday 10.30am – 2.30pm plus until show start on event days. Tickets can also be purchased on the booking hotline 0844 248 1588* or online at www.playhousewhitleybay.co.uk

*Calls cost 7p per minute plus your phone company’s access charge.

Preview: Combustion at South Shields Customs House

WRITER’S DEBUT PLAY AIMS TO BREAK DOWN STEREOTYPES ABOUT YOUNG BRITISH MUSLIMS

Combustion

by Asif Khan

South Shields Customs House

Thursday 6^th July 2017

A writer hailed as ‘one to watch’ is hoping to challenge racial and religious stereotypes and misconceptions as he brings his debut play to The Customs House.

Combustion, by Asif Khan, is a comic satire on the issues facing young British Muslims today.

It makes its penultimate stop of a national tour at the South Shields theatre on Thursday 6^thJuly, before finishing up at the Bradford Literature Festival.

It deals with some important and dramatic contemporary issues and explores them in the context of gender, faith and ethnicity, from different contrasting perspectives.

Set in Bradford during Ramadan, the dramatic tension in Combustion is centred around the effect on families and communities of sexual grooming.

As a group of racists plan to march through the city, latching on to the latest grooming scandal, mechanic Shaz (Beruce Khan) desperately tries to keep his garage business running smoothly so he can marry well.

Meanwhile, his sister, Samina (Shireen Farkhoy) is determined to make her voice heard.

Bradford-born actor and writer Khan trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and was included in the BBC’s New Talent Hotlist 2017.

He formed the theatre company AIK Productions in 2015 to produce, new, high quality theatre specialising in stories and voices from minority backgrounds.

He said: “As a British Muslim, I’ve found my voice under-represented. I believe this voice to be the voice of most British Muslims in this country. Who feel as though they’re tarred with the same brush as the ‘bad’ Muslims, shown frequently on our screens and in our newspapers.  But also those battling against the challenges in our own communities, about how we should tackle the problems we are now faced with. As an artist, drama is my tool to communicate. I hope Combustion will communicate how I and many others feel about being British and Muslim today.”

Asif Khan’s play is a comedy, but it does not minimise the importance of the dramatic effect of grooming and racial abuse.

He added: “I hope it entertains the audience and makes them laugh, but also breaks stereotypes and misconceptions about Muslims. I hope that Muslim audiences can identify with the characters. I've not tried to shy away from anything. Some of it is quite hard hitting.  It hopefully represents the good and the bad. Most importantly, it's the truth of what I feel and see. It's from the heart and that's all I can bring.”

AIK Productions is touring Combustion nationally in association with London-based theatre company Tara Arts, supported by Arts Council England and Philip and Christine Carne (The Carne Trust).

Director Nona Shepphard said: “Asif Khan’s play is a much needed insight into a world which is largely unknown to those who are not part of or closely related to it.

“It raises issues that are complicated, difficult, and in need of greater exposure, knowledge and understanding; Asif’s writing confronts these issues directly with humour, empathy and grace.”

Tickets:

Combustion comes to The Customs House in Mill Dam, South Shields, on Thursday, July 6, at 7.30pm. Tickets are priced £16, or £13 for Friends of The Customs House. Contact the box office on (0191) 454 1234 or book online at www.customshouse.co.uk.

The production includes adult themes and strong language and the age guidance is 14+.

 

Preview: Lee Kyle at Arts Centre Washington

Lee Kyle, Burning This Place to the Ground

Arts Centre Washington

Friday 7^th July 2017

During his decade-long run as a professional wrestler, Lee Kyle battled alongside WWE superstars like Daniel Bryan, Neville, Road Dogg and D-Lo Brown. Before that, he spent much of the late nineties playing Mel B in an all male Spice Girls tribute act.

His life has been a never ending quest to not have a real job.

Now he's rolling with the punches on the comedy circuit, as his debut stand up tour comes to Arts Centre Washington on 7th July.

Lee Kyle

"The show is called Burning This Place to the Ground and it's basically about making grand plans that never come to fruition," Lee, 37, from South Shields, tells us.

"But it’s way sillier than that sounds, I can proudly say that people will leave the show not having learned anything, except for a pretty excellent fact about Butch Dingle from Emmerdale.”

In 2016 Lee saw his first book, Spandex Ballet, about his time as a wrestler released and become a surprise hit.

"It's not something I expected" Lee says “I wrote the book more as an accompaniment to another stand up show I was writing but it ended up being the top selling wrestling book on Amazon UK for a number of weeks and, gratifyingly, has proven popular among comedy fans too. It was outselling the likes of James Corden for a short time and, although that couldn’t last, it was pleasing and ridiculous to find myself in Amazon’s top ten comedy biographies for a short while.”

Last year also saw Lee compose two different hour long comedy shows, including this one which he took to the Edinburgh fringe, as well as his first ever kids comedy tour show, an interesting and unusual career diversion which has seen him work with Jedward and appear on CBBC.

He appeared on Ross Noble’s ‘History of Geordie Comedy’ on Radio 4 and has a video on youtube with over 3 million views, with many comments from Americans who don’t understand his accent.

His podcast ‘Which is the Best?’ has proven popular with listeners and has translated into a succesful live show, it is, oddly, surprisingly popular in the Pacific island nation of Palau.  It features Lee and his support act for much of this tour, Sammy Dobson (From BBCs Boy Meets Girl and the feature film I, Daniel Blake).

Tickets:

Lee Kyle, Burning This Place to the Ground comes to Arts Centre Washington on Friday 7 July, 7.30pm.  Tickets are £8 and are available from www.artscentrewashington.co.ukor by calling 0191 561 3455.