SNOW PATROL'S GARY LIGHTBODY RETURNS TO DUNDEE UNI

SNOW Patrol's Gary Lightbody is going back to where his music began when he receives an honorary degree from the University of Dundee this summer.
Gary graduated from the University in 1998 with an English degree. But the real impact on his life and career from university life came with the formation of the band, which started from a conversation on his very first day in Dundee.
Snow Patrol have since gone on to sell millions of records, play the world’s biggest stages, and Gary has become a songwriter in demand, including collaborations with Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran.
He will receive the honorary degree Doctor of Laws at the University’s Graduation ceremony on Friday June 24th.
He said: "On my very first day at Dundee I met Mark McClelland and we started the band. It really means the world to me to be coming back to the University to receive an honorary degree. My mum and aunt are coming over and a few of my best mates will be there too, so it’s going to be a great day.”
Gary is currently busy recording a new Snow Patrol album.
Professor Sir Pete Downes, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Dundee, added: “We are always keen to follow the progress of our graduates and see the impact they make on the world after leaving Dundee.
“Gary’s success with Snow Patrol has helped spread the University’s name around the world and we are delighted to welcome him back to receive his honorary degree.”
The University’s Graduation ceremonies take place in the Caird Hall in Dundee from June 22 to June 24. Gary will receive his honorary degree at the afternoon ceremony on Friday June 24, which starts at 2.30 pm.











- From Scotland with love from theshowbizlion.com

CALVIN CONFIRMS TAYLOR SPLIT

CALVIN Harris claims he still has "a huge amount of love and respect" for Taylor Swift as he confirmed news of their break up.
After 15 months Talvin has met its demise and Dumfries born Calvin has tried to silence the rumours by telling fans on Twitter: "The only truth here is that a relationship came to an end & what remains is a huge amount of love and respect."
Taylor herself retweeted the message late last night.
The two former lovebirds were said to be incompatible and it is believed Calvin reluctantly ended the relationship after things became too intense.
Either way, fans of both artists are mourning the end of their very special relationship.




- From Scotland with love from theshowbizlion.com

TRAVIS GO CLASSICAL WITH A CONE ON BBC MUSIC DAY

TRAVIS claim playing their BBC Music Day gig with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestr at Glasgow's Barrowland is 'like putting the traffic cone on the statue.'
Referring to the Duke of Wellington statue in Royal Exchange Square which now sports a cone on its head, singer Fran Healy explained: "Promoters generally push you to play bigger venues with more seats to make more money from tickets but playing here at the Barrowlands was all led by the BBC and there was never any talk of anywhere else.
It's like putting the traffic cone on top of the statue - mixing the two things and that sums me up.
Bassist Dougie Payne added: "I think part of that is not being afraid to put to that together. It's where interesting things happen when you put high and low culture together."
Fran is so excited about the performance tomorrow night that he's tempted to jump off stage. He said: "Fans have been going mental on Twitter. When we are doing it I'd love to be in the audience and see it. I might jump out."
The lads reckon playing with a live orchestra has been an education.
From said: "You are playing with professional musicians and I'm not talking about us. We are semi professional and when you play with a professional orchestra they turn up on time, know what they are doing and can read music. It's like German transport. It's all very union."
Dougie, Fran and the lads can't wait to showcase some of their songs like More Than Us with orchestral arrangements. They are also playing songs including Animals and Paralysed from their new album.
Fran added: "To bring a band like this in The Barrowlands is completely out of their comfort zone.
Dougie added:"It's never been done before. It's the first time they've ever extended the stage so much the permanent barrier in front of the stage has ever been moved.
It's a one off. It's so expensive we couldn't do it without the help of The BBC or a big organisation like that and and it makes it more special for us. I doubt we'll ever do anything like this again."

THE BOSS GOT THE GLASGOW HAMPDEN CROWDS ROARING

THE Temperature was already on high for Bruce Springsteen's marathon set at Glasgow's Hampden and the famous roar echoed round the stadium for his arrival.
The national stadium burst with pride as The Boss and his now legendary E Street band took over the stage, sax, guitar, bass, drums and piano at the ready.


The Boss smiled from ear to ear as he launched into the for once ironically titled track Waitin On A Sunny Day.
My Love Will Not Let You Down and The Ties That Bind led into Sherry Darling and Two Hearts which got everyone singing along.
Weirdly there appeared some boos just before Rosalita but it turned out just to be people calling Bruce in admiration. The cheers came on even stronger as well as a mass singalong for Hungry Heart while Bruce ran into the crowd.
Out In The Street followed then Lonesome Day and You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch) which saw him share the microphone with Steve Van Zandt.
Death To My Hometown and Johnny 99 came soon after as The Boss showed off his skills on the harmonica or moothie was we Scots call it.
Point Blank slowed down the pace with its poignant end note 'bang bang baby your dead.



Darkness on the Edge Of Town and The Promised Land all got the crowd stomping while Thunder Road and the jaunty Badlands got arms in the air.


The pace was upped as the chords to Born in the USA were struck and everyone - including the seated part of the stadium- rose to their feet.
It was just as well as the stadium was getting a bit chilly.
Born To Run And Glory Days followed as hips shook and bodies swayed in the fully animated and chanting crowd.
Springsteen shouted: "Glasgow you don't want to go home yet" as he launched into Dancing In The Dark.
The grannies were dancing along with with mums and dads and their offspring.
Of course a Springsteen gig wouldn't be complete someone being plucked from the crowd and Springsteen managed to do just that with two lucky Scots ladies who had a night they'll never forget.


This New Jersey boy knows how to entertain and three and a half hours just wasn't enough.
Springsteen knew it himself as he asked if we had anything left and we replied with a sea of hands waving.
So he did what any self respecting rocker in Glasgow did and sang Lulus Shout. He said: "I want you to go home and tell everyone you saw the bootie shaking, viagra taking, history making, earth quaking E Street Band. "
It was some encore and it made him an honorary Scot. Rock n roll.




- From Scotland with love from theshowbizlion.com

GLASGOW GETS LUCKY WITH PHARRELL GIG

US superstar Pharrell Williams is coming to Glasgow's SSE Hydro on Tuesday July 19.
We've been told by one of our wild contacts that the Get Lucky and Happy hitmaker Pharrell will be in the UK supporting Stevie Wonder at the British Summertime show at Hyde Park in London on July 10 as well as playing dates in Switzerland, Rotterdam and Copenhagen and will head north to Glasgow for the Hydro gig.
Pharrell who was one half of The Neptunes and also had a hit with Blurred Lines previously played Glasgow for Radio 1's Big Weekend.
The Showbiz Lion also managed to have a dance with him when he played in Edinburgh for the MTV Awards.
Tickets will go on public sale this Friday (June 3) at 9am.
- From Scotland with love from theshowbizlion.com

PLAN YOUR T IN THE PARK 2016 HERE

Izzy Bizu, The Telermen, The Lapelles and Hey! Hello! will join headliners The Stone Roses, Calvin Harris, Red Hot Chili Peppers plus Disclosure, The 1975, Catfish and the Bottlemen, and Jess Glynne at T In The Park.
The event at Strathallan Castle across July 8 - 10 has also just revealed its stage splits (pic above) for this year's fest. Organisers DF Concerts and founding partner Tennent’s Lager can't wait to welcome singer-songwriter, Izzy Bizu can count Sam Smith, Rudimental, Foxes and Jamie Cullum amongst fans, having supported them on UK tours as well as securing a coveted spot on the Brits Critics’ Choice award shortlist and the BBC Sound of… 2016 longlist.
Her soul, funk, jazz and pop fusion is sure to go down a treat when she performs on the T Break Stage at T in the Park.
Glasgow-bred, indie-rock quartet, The Telermen, who recently released their debut EP, Organic also play.
The band features Dillon Squire (lead vocals, rhythm and lead guitar) whose father, guitarist John Squire, will headline T in the Park on Friday July 8 with The Stone Roses. With festival-worthy tunes including I’m a Liar, Lonely Mind and Trust You they will rock the T Break Stage this summer.
Having supported fellow T in the Park act The Last Shadow Puppets last night in Newcastle, and also joining Turner and Kane this evening for their Leicester show, Scottish five-piece The Lapelles are on the rise. Recently released track, Grab Life By was hailed by NME as possessing the “youthful swagger of Catfish and the Bottlemen”, with national airplay also secured from Radio X – catch them on the T Break Stage on Sunday 10th July.
Hey! Hello! are an international power-pop band formed by English singer-songwriter Ginger Wildheart. The band’s single How I Survived The Punk Wars was championed by Guns ‘n’ Roses’ Duff McKagan who commented in his Seattle weekly blog that the track was “perhaps the best and most real punk rock song in a long, long time. It actually stunned me”.
They’ll bring their melodic tunes to T in the Park this summer.
Tickets for T in the Park 2016 are on sale now from www.tinthepark.com and remain at the same price for a fourth year running.
Www.ticketmaster.co.uk or 08444 999 990.

- From Scotland with love from theshowbizlion.com

MOBO AWARDS RETURN TO GLASGOW SSE HYDRO

The MOBO Awards are coming back to Glasgow for the fourth time on Friday November 4.
And Pre-sale tickets are available from 09.00am today on Tuesday May 31, with general sale commencing on June 1.
The awards established in 1996 by founder Kanya King MBE will celebrate their 21st anniversary with spectacular musical performances from a host of world famous talents at Glasgow’s SSE Hydro arena.
In 2013 The MOBO Awards made history as the first music awards ceremony and live multi-artist show to be held at the newly opened SSE Hydro. Since then the venue has gone on to become the world’s third busiest arena in terms of ticket sales in 2015.
In addition to Glasgow, the MOBO Awards have previously been held in London, Liverpool and Leeds, have been attended by over 100,000 music fans who have seen over 200 award winners among some 1,500 nominees over the years, thus making a massive contribution to UK music. The star-studded shows have featured global superstars including Rihanna, Grace Jones, John Legend, Sam Smith, Destiny’s Child and Scotland-born Emeli Sandé.
Kanya King MBE, CEO and founder of the MOBO Organisation, commented: “MOBO turning 21 is a huge achievement and a special time for us. Celebrating this in Glasgow, which has be- come our second home is an absolute joy. The MOBO Awards has changed the music industry, and helped represent a diverse range of music that is now the heartbeat of youth culture. Having given a platform to so much emerging talent which has then gone on to achieve global and com- mercial success is something to be proud of. We will continue to build a positive legacy that can beenjoyed by various generations to come. There has never been a more thrilling time in music than now so I look forward to making some exciting talent announcements in the lead up to the show.”
Paul Bush OBE, VisitScotland’s Director of Events, said: “We are delighted that the MOBO Awards are set to return to Glasgow’s SSE Hydro in this very special year and know that music lovers from across the city and around Scotland will turn out in force to celebrate the very best in British urban music. The EventScotland team will be working closely with partners at MOBO and Glasgow City Marketing Bureau ahead of November 4 to ensure another night to remember at the SSE Hydro, one of the world’s finest venues for live music. MOBO will be announcing an exciting line-up of renowned artists over the coming weeks who are sure to create a magnificent spectacle, once again proving that Scotland is the perfect stage for major events.”
Joe Aitken, the Head of Events at Glasgow City Marketing Bureau, added: “Since 2009, Glas- gow has been the home of the MOBOs and during that time audiences have witnessed some out- standing and memorable performances. This year promises to be yet another stand-out as we cel- ebrate the 21st anniversary of the awards at the iconic SSE Hydro.”
Arena tickets for the MOBO Awards vary from £25 to £45 (excl. handling charge) and will be on general sale on 1st June via www.mobo.com/tickets and www.thessehydro.com. The one day pre- sale starts at 09.00am Tuesday 31st May.


- From Scotland with love from theshowbizlion.com