Children’s TV legend Andy Day, and his band the Odd Socks,are due to take the UK by storm this summer, with the release of their third album, ‘Odd Socks Calling’ out on April 1st on Cooking Vinyl, and a 15 date UK wide tour, which opens on 3rd April.
Andy and the Odd Socks famously played their very first gig at Glastonbury and can completely ‘rock out’ until all their hair stands on end. But the Odd Socks are also, well, odd. And that’s exactly how Andy, Moxy, Rio, Blu and Cousin Mac like it because being an Odd Sock means digging your differences, bigging-up your bizarre bits, taking on the world AND helping everyone else be whatever kind of Odd Sock they want to be too.
The first single ‘Planet Rock’ is out now and features Queen legend Brian May, who also stars as the Godfather of Rock in the band’s CBBC/CBeebies series, Andy and the Band. He makes his acting debut in the series where he joins the Odd Socks for the ‘best jam ever’ after helping them overcome a global ‘rocktastrophe’!
The 18 track album, which features 12 songs from series 2 of the show and their new BBC Sounds Podcast, and 6 exclusive tracks, is out from April 1st.
The tour kicks off in Edinburgh on 3rd April, and takes in Glasgow (4th), Newcastle (10th), Manchester (11th), London (12th), Colchester (13th), Dublin (16th), Bournemouth (18th) and Worthing (24th).
Andy and the Odd Socks will then appear atBrighton Festival on 22nd May, Bristol Good Times Festival on 29th May, Cambridge Club Festival on 11th June, Gloworm Festival on 14th August, Big Feastival on 26th August and Gone Wild on 29th August.
BAFTA nominated presenter and actor Andy Day (Andy’s Dinosaur Adventures, Andy’s Safari Adventures) comments: “We are so excited to release our new album, and let our fans have the songs they so love from our new TV show.
“It may be released on the 1st April but it’s no April Fool, this really is the dream solution to family road trips in the car! And we are equally excited about being able to play live shows again. We got to play a few festivals last year but this tour is our first for 3 years because of the pandemic and we cannot wait to see everyone again! We have missed the thrill of performing live and meeting the Odd Sockers around the country.”
Brian May comments: “I have loved working with the Oddsocks! Playing the role of their Godfather of Rock was actually a very emotional experience. The episode is a wonderful message of hope to kids who lose their self-confidence.
“The symbolic use of Air Guitar is beautifully apt. And on a broader scale I absolutely align with Andy and the Odd Socks in their quest for every kid to feel proud of their individual qualities.
“I’m backing their anti-buIlying campaign to the hilt – watch out for the magic of Planet Rock!!!”
More shows to be announced monthly, as the world’s greatest celebration of arts and culture returns for its 75th anniversary this August
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society has announced that the first set of shows for the 2022 Edinburgh Festival Fringe are available to book atedfringe.com.
The 75th anniversary of the Fringe takes place from 5th – 29th August 2022 and will feature an exciting range of shows, with theatre, comedy, music, dance, circus, musicals, variety, cabaret, events and more all represented in the programme.
Tickets for 283 shows have now been released, with more shows set to be announced on Thursday 07 April, Thursday 05 May and Thursday 09 June.
The official launch of the festival, including the reveal of the iconic printed programme, will take place in early July.
Below is a small representative sample of shows available to book now. The full list of shows released this month can be found atedfringe.com.
Shona McCarthy, Chief Executive of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society, said: “It’s always a hugely exciting moment when the first set of Fringe shows are announced, and this year, it feels more important than ever to celebrate the breadth of creativity and freedom of expression that these shows represent.
“We know that so many artists are still recovering from the impact of the pandemic, and getting your tickets early is a brilliant way to support them at this vital time. It’s also an important investment in the value of culture and creativity, and with some shows offering free and Pay What You Can options, the Fringe remains an essential access point to culture for many.
“I can’t wait to see the programme continue to unfold as we get closer to August, and to see Edinburgh filled with live performance once again as we celebrate the 75th anniversary of this magnificent festival.”
Theatre
At theSpace @ Surgeons Hall, acclaimed mystery maestros Highly Suspect return to the Fringe “with a new duo of hilarious and interactive murder mysteries, which you – the audience – must solve”. At the same venue, UK Underdog is a solo show based on true events in a London, Jewish boy’s life. “Bullied and humiliated at school, Steve Spiro realises his strength to move forward, but that ultimately comes at a price”.
BAFTA award-winner Jack Docherty is at Gilded Balloon with Nothing But: a darkly comic tale which grapples with lost youth, love, fatherhood, sex, secrets and truth.
At Underbelly, My Son’s a Queer (But What Can You Do?) is the “joyous, chaotic, autobiographical story of actor, writer and social-media sensation Rob Madge”.
Assembly has a range of theatre to book from today, including Watson: The Final Problem, in which Sherlock Holmes’ pal tells his tale of long-buried secrets; and Myra’s Story, in which a middle-aged, homeless Dublin street drinker relives her back story.
Comoedia at Greenside is a celebration of traditional Italian masked theatre, as the most famous characters of Commedia dell’arte come together in a one-man show. At the same venue, two women use nothing but their imaginations, a skull and some fancy scarves to bring together A Two WomanHamlet.
At theSpace on North Bridge, GirlPlay is “an exploration of love and sex spun out in slam”. On a night of firsts, Lucy opens the door to a world of relationships and sex that she had only ever dreamt about. But is the reality all she had hoped it would be?
Online, Transatlantic is a true story of the French immigrant experience. “Cookie is taking care of the last of her uncle’s estate in New Mexico. As she goes through her family’s belongings, she goes on an emotional journey that echoes the many trips back and forth that she and her family have taken between France and the US.”
Plus, from award-winning writer Lita Doolan comes Audrey’s Art Club. “Audrey wants to know what doodling’s got to do with love and goes back to her lover’s childhood home to find answers.”
Comedy
The Stand has a wide roster of shows on sale today, including Seann Walsh: Is Dead, Happy Now? and Stewart Lee: Basic Lee – a work-in-progress show in which “Lee enters the post-pandemic era in streamlined stand-up mode”. Also catch rising Scottish star Gareth Waugh with Doozy and Jo Caulfield with Bad Attitude.
At Assembly, Fern Brady will be tackling big issues such as “death, shagging, marriage and ageing” in her show, Autistic Bikini Queen.
David O’Doherty is back with his show whoa is me and “all of the misplaced confidence of a waiter with no pad”, while Susie McCabe returns with a brand-new show. In Born Believer, the comedian has decided to leave cynicism behind to be an “all-new positive Susie (optimistic at best, positive is pushing it)”.
Jason Byrne is at Underbelly with Unblocked, as “the constipation of Covid has been cleared, live entertainment has been colonically irrigated and readied up for us all”. At the same venue, Foil, Arms and Hogg return to the Fringe with a mix of sketch comedy, audience participation and improvisation. Plus, Richard Stott: Afterparty sees the stand-up contemplate whether he’s missed the boat. “His friends have families, six-figure salaries and houses. He has a level-two food hygiene certificate and acid reflux.”
Gilded Balloon is home to double Edinburgh Comedy Award nominee Andrew Maxwell’s Krakatoa, as well as Justin Moorhouse’s brand-new show Stretch & Think, which “may contain yoga, getting older, Madonna, shoplifters, labradoodles, middle-aged cyclists, The Menopause, running, hating football fans but loving football, not drinking, funerals” and a lot more. Plus, catch Sian Davies,winner of Best Debut Show at Leicester Comedy Festival 2020 and Funny Women runner-up. Her show is all about time, growing up and finding your place in the world.
There’s a range of Laughing Horse shows available to book from today. Shows including Annie and Angela’s Disco Divorce Party: “a drag-infused comedy of musical mirth celebrating friendship and new beginnings”, and Comedy Queers: “a spicy late-night mix of outrageous queer comedians, cabaret and drag acts”. Plus, there’s stand up from the likes of Nathan Cassidy and Dave Chawner.
Fringe stalwart Nina Conti returns to Pleasance with The Dating Show, in which “finding true love can’t be promised, but big laughs are guaranteed”. And after a UK and Australia tour and an Amazon special, Taskmaster runner-up and accidental YouTube cult leader Mark Watson brings his show This Can’t Be It back to where it began (at last year’s “mini Fringe”).
Also on Pleasance’s bill is Angela Barnes: Hot Mess (“trying to live your best life, as it turns out, is really bloody hard”); Ivo Graham: My Future, My Clutter (“bumbling wordsmith and tripe factory returns to discuss three years of heavy-duty pranking / parenting / procrastinating since Dave’s 2019 nominations for Best Comedy Show and Joke of the Fringe”); and NewsRevue, which will return to the EICC to “parody politics in a post-pandemic world”.
At Just the Tonic, Daniel Sloss and Kai Humphries bring their hit podcast, Sloss and Humphries On The Road, to the festival. Plus, Fringe veteran Craig Hill returns with I Always Knew I Had It In Me, and rising Scottish star Connor Burns isat the festival with his show, Live, Laugh, Loathe.
At Queen’s Hall, Henning Wehn returns with It’ll All Come Out in the Wash: a show that promises to “give everything a good rinse and witness him wring sense out of the nonsensical”.
Music
At theSpaceTriplex, California-based Hip-Hop Orchestra, Ensemble Mik Nawooj (EMN), presents music from their new album, Death Become Life, which fuses hip-hop and classical (think full strings, woodwind, French horn and soprano).
There’s also a range of Night Owl Shows to choose from, including 007 Voices Of Bond (featuring hits such as Goldfinger, Skyfall, Diamonds are Forever, Live and Let Die and many more); Back to Black: The Music of Amy Winehouse (which promises to take you on a moving journey through a modern legend’s career); and California Dreams (featuring an immersive trip through California in the late 60s and 70s, with hits by The Mamas & The Papas, The Eagles, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, The Byrds and more). All are happening at theSpace UK.
Acoustic Music Centre has a range of shows on sale from today. Acts include The Willow Trio: a band of three clarsach players – Sophie Rocks, Sam MacAdam, Romy Wymer – who will be presenting a mix of Gaelic music and original new work.
The Strange Valentines are a Nova Scotian folk duo, blending acoustic instrumentation and their signature stunning two-part harmonies to tell provocative stories.
Plus, up-and-coming harpist Romy Wymer presents traditional tunes from Scotland and Netherlands in her Fringe / AMC debut. Romy recently earned second place at the World Harp Competition (2021) and was a semi-finalist in the BBC Young Traditional Musician of the Year (2022).
Cabaret and Variety
Pleasance is home to West End star and multi award-winning magician Ben Hart, as he returns to Edinburgh with his show Wonder. Using only the simplest of props and the minds of the audience, Hart conjures a show that is “always amazing, sometimes shocking and shines a light into the darkest corners of your imaginations”.
Mat Ricardo is at Gilded Balloon with The Extraordinary Gentleman: “a unique, hilarious and unmissable one-man show” from the acclaimed variety artist.
Best of Burlesque is back at Assembly, with award-winning striptease, cabaret and variety from the 2022 Fringe, plus international special guests.
Dirty Tricks – How the Illusionati Rule the World is at Greenside. In this show, The Great Baldini demonstrates “how the illusionati rig elections, launder money and orchestrate assassinations: a wholly (im)plausible conspiracy theory”.
At theSpace @ Symposium Hall,Sue Kelvin stars in Bette Midler and Me: a tribute show to Midler, covering her life and songs from the perspective of a lifelong fan. Expect musical hits, plus highlights from Midler comedy routines and a puppet version of Beaches.
Dance, Physical Theatre and Circus
Underbelly Circus Hub returns to the Meadows this year, and with it comes Circa: Humans 2.0:“asymphony of acrobatics, sound and light”, described as “a tightly woven choreography of bodies, pulsing with music”.
Also on the Meadows, Hotel Paradiso is “an irresistibly colourful, loud and fun show for all the family” from contemporary circus company, Lost in Translation. Featuring circus skills, physical comedy, theatrical storytelling and slapstick, this show “sees the staff family tackle the scheming banker as he tries to possess the Hotel Paradiso”.
Cirque Berserk! is at Pleasance. Showcasing “traditional circus thrills and skills”, Cirque Berserk! combines “contemporary cirque-style artistry with adrenaline-fuelled stunt action”, as “this astoundingly talented international troupe includes over 30 fearless acrobats, aerialists and daredevil stuntmen”.
At Assembly, Muse is a circus piece which attempts to answer the question, “what does it mean to be a woman?” Plus, The Black Blues Brothers sees “five extraordinary acrobats perform their comedy tribute to the cult movie The Blues Brothers”. Expect breathtaking jumps, fire, somersault routines, human pyramids and more.
Intambo is at Greenside. This show features Ruciteme Karyenda Culture de Buyenzi: a group of Burundian drummers, founded in 1987. Starting with 27 members, the members range in age from 8 to 50, and they will be performing an old, traditional Burundi dance that used to be played for the Kings.
Also at Greenside is Éowyn Emerald & Dancers. Éowyn presents Your Tomorrow: “an entertaining and deeply intimate jazz dance for two performers”.
Children’s shows
Peppa Pig – My First Concert is at Assembly. This interactive introduction to a live orchestra is “an accessible, exciting concert designed for the youngest audience members, with Aurora Orchestra.”
Also at Assembly, Yellow Bird Chase follows “a clownish maintenance crew” who find a magical bird and a mad chase begins. Appropriate for the whole family and accessible to deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences.
Plus, from the creative team behind the Hairy Maclary show, young audiences can now see all three of Nick Sharratt’sShark in the Park books live on stage.
At Pleasance,The Smeds and the Smoos is an exciting adaptation of the award-winning book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler. On a far-off planet, Smeds and Smoos can’t be friends. So when a young Smed and Smoo fall in love and zoom off into space together, how will their families get them back?
At Underbelly, the Amazing Bubble ManLouis Pearl is back. Louis “explores the breathtaking dynamics of bubbles, combining comedy and artistry with audience participation and enough spellbinding bubble tricks to keep everyone mesmerised”.
Fox Tales: The Pied Piper is at theSpace @ Surgeons Hall. In this family puppet show, Hans the Storyteller, Reynard the Fox and Gripp the Raven give “a hilarious new telling of the classic fairy tale, The Pied Piper of Hamelin”. Expect “jokes, ridiculous rhymes, mischief and nonsense”.
At the same venue, Den of Enquiry “is a fun, light-hearted show that gets kids talking about democracy”.
Musicals
In Soho Boy at theSpace @ Symposium Hall, “young, trendy Spencer leaves home and hits Soho like a whirlwind in a journey of love, laughter, heartbreak and happiness”. This work is a “modern tale of the gay scene, which can be harsh and lonely, surrounded by glamour, sex and songs”.
At theSpace @ Niddry St,Julie: The Musical is an original, new musical telling the life and adventures of historical LGBTQ+ icon Julie D’Aubigny. “One of the first public figures to live as an openly bisexual woman, she seduced nuns, dueled multiple men at once, burnt down convents, was bribed by princes, innovated opera – all before she turned 30.”
Now in its 10th year, The Improv Musical is at Gilded Balloon. Each show is a completely improvised, never-before-seen musical on its opening, and closing, night.
At Greenside, Raft follows four women, seemingly trapped on a raft in the middle of the ocean, hunted by a mystical sea monster. “An original one-act musical around abuse, bravery and friendship.”
2001 was the best year for music, with releases including Daft Punk’s album ‘Discovery’, Bjork’s ‘Vespertine’ and Jay-Z’s ‘The Blueprint’
1998 and 1999 were the second and third best years respectively
2012, 2000 and 1971 also feature in the list
2001 was the best year for music, new research has revealed.
The study by Convertr.org analysed the top 250 albums on AlbumOfTheYear.org and found that 2001 produced the highest number of albums appearing in the top 250, according to the public.
Ten top 250 entries were produced in 2001, including hits like Daft Punk’s second studio album ‘Discovery’, Jay-Z’s ‘The Blueprint’, Bjork’s ‘Vespertine’, The Strokes’ ‘Is This It’ and System of a Down’s ‘Toxicity’.
The albums released that year averaged out a score of 87.9 out of 100 on AlbumOfTheYear.org.
Daft Punk’s ‘Discovery’ is regarded as one of the most influential albums of all time, with the futuristic and fresh sounds still being enjoyed and even sampled to this day.
1998 was the second-best year for music according to the rankings, with nine top 250 titles produced.
Notable albums include Lauryn Hill’s debut entry ‘The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’, Madonna’s ‘Ray of Light’, Massive Attack’s ‘Mezzanine’ and Tori Amos’ ‘From The Choirgirl Hotel’ with all of the 1998 releases averaging a score of 87.2.
‘The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’ was Lauryn Hill’s only studio album and debuted at number one in Billboard’s Top 200 in its release week, where it then went on to sell more than 20 million copies.
The third-best year for music was 1999, with eight titles featuring in the top 250.
These entries include Fiona Apple’s ‘When the Pawn…’, Mos Def’s ‘Black on Both Sides’, Pharoahe Monch’s ‘Internal Affairs’, and The Roots’ ‘Things Fall Apart’. Mos Def’s ‘Black on Both Sides’ was the American rapper’s debut album and featured the likes of Q-Tip, Busta Rhymes and Talib Kweli. Five months after its release, the album was certified Gold after selling more than 500,000 copies.
The best year for music, by Convertr.org
RANK
YEAR
1
2001
2
1998
3
1999
4
1997
5
2012
6
2000
7
1995
8
1994
9
1971
10
1969
2012 comes in fifth place in the list, with notable releases including Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Good Kid, M.A.A.D City’, Frank Ocean’s ‘Channel ORANGE’, Swans’ ‘The Seer’ and Beach House’s ‘Bloom’.
In sixth place is 2000, with albums such as Radiohead’s ‘Kid A’, Outkast’s ‘Stankonia’ and The Avalanches’ ‘Since I Left You’.
1971 sits in ninth place with releases including Led Zeppelin’s ‘Led Zeppelin IV’, David Bowie’s ‘Hunky Dory’ and Leonard Cohen’s ‘Songs of Love and Hate’. (Don’t forget Jethro Tull’s Aqualung – Ed!)
Commenting on the findings, a spokesperson from Convertr.org said: “With the sound of music constantly evolving, it’s interesting to see how timeless many albums are, with listeners today still enjoying tracks from decades past.
“From this list, hip-hop seems to be a standout genre, with many hip-hop albums featuring in the top 250. While this data shows the early 2000s and late 90s was a great time for music lovers, the quality of the 60s and 70s should not be doubted in the modern-day either.”
Convertr.org offers free online file conversion for audio, video and image files, with many formats supported.
It’s got to be an age thing – after much deliberation 1970 comes out is tops for me (Black Sabbath’s Paranoid, Led Zeppelin III, Simon and Garfunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled Water … I could go on and on and on …! – Ed.
Following the announcement of our 2022 venue – the wonderful old Royal High School – we are now inviting submissions for our THEATRE and SPOKEN WORD programmes.
The old Royal High is a large, stunning complex in the city centre which we plan to transform into live music venues and performance spaces for theatre, dance and spoken word, alongside pop-up bars and a multitude of art exhibition and installation spaces.
We are running open calls to invite proposals for ambitious, innovative and experimental pieces, existing performances and works in development.
Alongside our call for theatre and spoken word artists, we are still inviting dance submissions. Also stay tuned for a local bands call coming soon.
Following the announcement of our 2022 venue – the wonderful old Royal High School – we are now inviting submissions for our THEATRE and SPOKEN WORD programmes. The old Royal High is a large, stunning complex in the city centre which we plan to transform into live music venues and performance spaces for theatre, dance and spoken word, alongside pop-up bars and a multitude of art exhibition and installation spaces.
We are running open calls to invite proposals for ambitious, innovative and experimental pieces, existing performances and works in development.
Alongside our call for theatre and spoken word artists, we are still inviting dance submissions. Also stay tuned for a local bands call coming soon.
SPIRITS at a Cramond care home have been lifted thanks to a local school pipe band treating residents to a fine performance.
Pupils from Cargilfield School, an independent preparatory school for boys and girls aged three to 13, visited Cramond Residence for an afternoon of traditional Scottish music for pipes and drums.
The performance is just one way the home is helping residents filter back into the local community following months of lockdown, while encouraging intergenerational conversations.
Angela Skilky, Lifestyle Co-ordinator at the 74-bedroom home, said: “Our main aim is always to provide fun, interactive and stimulating activities for residents to take part in, so we’re delighted to be able to resume in-person visits from members of the community.
“Residents thoroughly enjoyed the performance and the music has helped many reminisce fondly on previous moments in their life.
“We’re really thankful for the pupils coming along and taking time to entertain our residents. Creating intergenerational relationships are extremely important as they can help residents boost confidence, increase communication and improve memory.”
Cramond Residence holds a vast range of tailored activities that are open to all residents. Recent get-togethers have included arts and crafts, armchair aerobics and sensory sessions.
CargilfieldHeadteacher Rob Taylor said: “It was lovely to see the residents smiling and tapping their feet along to the music.
“Some of the favourite songs included Highland Cathedral and of course ‘A Man’s a Man’ in honour of our Burns Night celebrations.”
The event kickstarted a week of Burns night activities, with residents enjoying a traditional Scottish menu including cock-a-leekie soup for starter, followed by a main of haggis, neeps and tatties with cranachan and a “wee dram” for dessert.
Jan Henderson, resident at the home, said: “Thanks to both Cramond Residence staff and Cargilfield School for organising such a wonderful afternoon. There were smiles all round and the performance was enjoyed by everyone.”
Cramond Residence offers high quality care for up to 74 residents offering a small-group living concept in nine houses, with all residents enjoying an exceptional range of amenities and activities, delicious food and bespoke care from a highly-trained team.
Hidden Door is delighted to announce that we will be bringing the old Royal High School on Calton Hill to life for a ten day festival of live music, visual art, dance, theatre and spoken word.
The property, which has mostly lain empty since the school closed in the late 1960s, will be used to celebrate Scotland’s exciting new and emerging creative talent, before work begins to transform it into Scotland’s new National Centre for Music.
The festival will completely transform the entire complex from 9 – 18 June 2022.
Inside the vast building, forgotten rooms will be transformed into performance spaces and given over to artists to fill with installations. The audience will be encouraged to explore the myriad of passageways, corridors, nooks and crannies that make up this remarkable building.
One of the most impressive rooms, the central debate chamber, will host specially commissioned in-the-round performances and spectacular events that respond to the unique space.
Outside, a stage will be built for large music performances and a bar will take over the front terrace, giving festival goers a unique view on the city.
With the 70th Christmas Number One due to be crowned in little over 24 hours time, bookmaker William Hill can reveal Perfect, by Ed Sheeran, to be the most successful festive chart-topper of the new Millennium.
The singer-songwriter capped a hugely successful 2017 by scoring his first ever Christmas Number One, landing top spot with Perfect. In all, hit-maker Sheeran released six versions of the track, including duets with Beyoncé and Andrea Bocelli.
William Hill, which instituted the now traditional festive flutter on the coveted Christmas Number One back in 1977, has ranked all previous Christmas chart-toppers based on a combination of Spotify plays, first week sales, total sales, weeks at number one and YouTube video views.
And while a number of the 20 tracks analysed barely even mention a snowflake or a bauble, let alone the great man himself – only 12 Number Ones out of the 69 so far mention the festive season – the one thing they do have in common, is that they sold copies by the sleighful.
Sheeran has racked up a staggering 1,910,250,798 Spotify plays, 3,030,169,858 YouTube video views, and combined UK sales to date in excess of 4.1 million.
That is enough to see him finish above X Factor’ winner Alexandra Burke, who raced to Number One in the UK singles chart in 2008, nabbing the coveted Christmas top spot with her cover of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah. Burke’s Hallelujah became the fastest-selling single by a female solo artist, with 576,000 copies shifted in its first week.
Shayne Ward, another winner of everyone’s favourite talent show, the X-Factor, debuted at Number One in 2005 with That’s My Goal, and with 742,000 first week sales – the only track to surpass Burke’s Hallelujah – is the third most successful Christmas Number One in the last 20 years.
Burke clocked 18,570,042 YouTube views, with Ward mustering just half of that, but both were dwarfed by Sheeran – 3,030,169,858, and counting – whose track, Perfect, spent six weeks at number one.
Rockabye, by Clean Bandit, is the fourth most successful Christmas Number One of the new Millennium, the dance hit, about a single mother struggling to support her family, fended off stiff competition in 2016, to spend a mammoth nine weeks in top spot.
Fifth is Do They Know It’s Christmas? By Band Aid 20. It remains one of the most iconic charity records of all time and claimed top spot in 2004, two decades after the original, with another clutch of famous faces – not to mention voices – getting together to record a cover version.
Total combined UK sales of 3,820,000 make it the second biggest selling behind Sheeran’s Perfect, but its Spotify plays, first week sales and YouTube views of 9,595,268, make it successful enough, JUST, to make the top five.
Bottom of the pile is He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother, by The Justice Collective, closely followed by all three of the LadBaby efforts to date.
Meanwhile, Nottingham Youtube duo, LadBaby, are at the front of the queue for Santa’s grotto, as William Hill have slashed their odds even further to 1-25 for this year’s Christmas Number One.
The Christmas single on course to win, Sausage Rolls for Everyone, was released last week, featuring two very special celebrity guests and rival Christmas carolers – Ed Sheeran and Sir Elton John.
The single is a rework of Sir Elton and Ed’s recently-released festively named tune Merry Christmas, which is second favourite, 9-1, to land at the top of the Christmas tree.
If successful the fundraising, sausage roll-loving Dad, would make Christmas chart history, joining the Spice Girls and The Beatles as the only music acts to pick up four Christmas Number Ones. In doing so consecutively, they would set a brand new record!
The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo will celebrate the power of connection with a spectacular combination of music, dance and military precision from some of the world’s leading armed forces and cultural performers, as it makes its return to the Castle Esplanade in 2022 with a new show titled Voices.
Tickets for the iconic military spectacle go on sale from 1 December 2021, with the show running from 5 – 27 August 2022.
The show is the first from the Tattoo’s new Creative Director, Michael Braithwaite. It draws inspiration from people across the globe who, despite physical separation, continue to connect and share their voices creatively through spoken word, song, writing, music and dance – languages common to all.
Military acts continue to play a central role in the performance, with the Army confirmed as the lead service in 2022. Audiences will enjoy the legendary sound of the Massed Pipes and Drums that will echo around the Esplanade as part of Voices, supported by Tattoo pipers and drummers, and musicians from UK Military Regiments. The Tattoo dancers and Shetland fiddlers also join the line-up, with international acts and further details about Voices announced in the coming months.
Tattoo Creative Director, Michael Braithwaite
Tattoo Creative Director, Michael Braithwaite, says:“Through the challenges and separation of the last two years, people of every culture have used their voices to remain connected. These voices can be found in many ways – the piper through music, the dancer with movement, the poet through words and the drummer with a beat.
“Voices is our desire to make next year’s Tattoo not just a reunion, but a celebration of the connections, cultures and languages that bring us together at the unique setting of Edinburgh Castle.
“I’m hugely excited to play a part in the history and spectacle of the Tattoo, helping it return to the global stage, re-energised and invigorated for a new era.”
Voices is the first show under the Tattoo’s bold new brand proposition, Performance in a New Light. It embraces all the military tradition the Tattoo is known and loved for, while combining exciting new innovations in production effects, lighting and staging, along with world-class appointments to the creative team.
Tickets for next year’s Tattoo can be purchased from 10am on 1st December online at edintattoo.co.uk/tickets or on the phone on 0131 225 1188.
