A FOLK rock band are all set to celebrate their 50th anniversary at Basingstoke's The Haymarket.

Back in 1971, Lindisfarne released their ground-breaking first album and began to attract the fervent fan base that has followed them for decades.

In October of that year, they released their second album Fog On The Tyne, which topped the UK charts for six weeks in the spring of 1972 and was a game-changer for the band as the UK and international success soon followed.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of this album, Lindisfarne frontman Billy Mitchell and founding member Ray Laidlaw will be at The Haymarket on Wednesday, November 23 to tell the group's amazing story with a combination of superb songs, vital video, tall tales and, of course, scurrilous gossip.

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As a founder member of Lindisfarne, Ray was right in the middle of it. As a young lad with a drum kit and dreams of rock and roll, he set about hooking up with like-minded pals, setting him firmly on a course that would see him achieve success in a band with a number-one album and a varied life in the music business.  Thankfully, he kept all the best bits in a diary, and there are lots of them, which came in very handy when The Lindisfarne Story was first mooted.

Billy was also there when it all began. Close friends since the early days of rock ‘n’ roll, Billy has never been far from the Lindisfarne action.  When the band split temporarily, he teamed up with founder members Ray, Rod Clements and Si Cowe to form folk-rockers Jack the Lad.  He eventually joined the band for the third time of asking in 1996, fronting the band until it split in 2003.  His experience as both an outsider and insider gives a warm, unique perspective to The Lindisfarne Story.

 Visit www.anvilarts.org.uk for tickets.