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Sharon Cain
Time for Life Correspondent
10:19 AM 6th July 2018
arts

People’s Tenor Fires Up Fans On Scarborough’s Armed Forces Day

 
Alfie Boe at Scarborough
Alfie Boe at Scarborough
Singing on the production line at a Lancashire car factory, Alfie Boe has soared to fame as an international recording artist – but you’d go a long way to find a more grounded, gritty and gregarious performer.

Equally at home among the most glamorous opera houses, theatres and venues, he wowed the crowds as sunshine streamed through Scarborough’s Open Air Theatre – joking how it was a far cry from his appearance last year when torrential rain drenched poncho-clad fans.

Humble, humorous with a likeability factor of a gazillion, the car mechanic turned tenor has earned his stripes as one of Britain’s biggest selling vocalists of his generation.

A trailblazing success, he has starred in legendary stage productions alongside artists including Katherine Jenkins, clinched a Tony award for his lead role of the complex Jean Valjean in Les Miserables where he led the cast at the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee concert at Buckingham Palace and her 90th birthday bash at Windsor Castle.

Selling over one million albums in the UK, he clinched a Silver Clef Award in 2011 and was nominated in the 2008 Classic Brit Awards for Male Artist of the Year and Album of the Year.

Accompanied by his 10-strong band and three backing singers, a relaxed Alfie bantered effortlessly with the appreciative crowd in Scarborough, where the tenth annual action-packed Armed Forces day included an RAF Dakota Flypast in tribute to RAF100.

The set included popular numbers Sing, Sing Sing, Mambo Italiano and Bring Him Home from Les Mis. Charismatic and cheeky, he changed the lyrics of Volare to ‘Oh Scarborough, beautiful Scarborough, the beautiful town by the sea, I know you’ve been waiting for me”’ which went down a proverbial storm with the crowd.

He also performed He Lives in You, Pinball Wizard, and See Me, Feel Me and Run, which saw him literally tear around the theatre with his boundless energy.

The performer’s passion to fuse all musical genres was reflected in his love of country music with Tom Petty’s Wildflowers.

Supporting act, Emily and Sophie - the glamorous and talented Belle Voci duo who made the final four in The Voice - mesmerised the crowds with numbers including the immortal ‘Somewhere over the rainbow’.

Generous to fault, Alfie invited Belle Voci to share the stage with him for numbers including ‘You’re The Voice’ – a number he’s sung with Michael Ball whom he highly regards as a fellow performer and a friend. Their escapades include breaking a world record in 2016 by flying to five UK cities in just 24 hours to sign copies of their smash album ‘Somewhere’.

Born in Blackpool in 1973, Alfie grew up in Fleetwood, where he dreamed of a career as a singer.

His exceptional voice has cemented him as one of Britain’s biggest selling, most popular and best loved vocalists of his generation. Not bad for a Lancashire lad who earned £100 a week on a sports car production line.

For the latest news and updates, visit https://alfie-boe.com/

Images courtesy of Cuffe and Taylor.