Harrogate Advertiser offer: Win tickets to see Alex James of Blur this weekend

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Held in the beautiful village of Aldborough near Boroughbridge. the event will see the famous bass player turned likable raconteur and big cheese in, er, cheese arrive to give a talk this Saturday, June 18 at 7.30pm at St Andrew’s Church.

Thanks to organisers, this newspaper has five pairs of tickets up for grabs in a competition whose details follow at the end of this story.

For ten years, Alex James was the bass player of Blur – one of the most successful British bands of all time with hits such as Parklife, Girls & Boys, Song 2 and Country House, which was their first number one.

Learn how he left the private jets and screaming fans behind for the rural setting of his 200-acre farm in the Cotswolds, and an unlikely career as a gourmet cheesemaker.

Along the way there have been stints learning to conduct on BBC TV’s Maestro, writing singles for artists such as Sophie Ellis-Bexter, regular columns in the Independent, Observer and Spectator and his autobiography, Bit of a Blur.

In Saturday’s event, which is sponsored by Ogden of Harrogate, Alex James will be bringing samples of his cider and will also be signing copies of his book.

Northern Aldborough Festival runs from June 16-25 with an exciting programme of events held in wonderfully intimate locations in the lovely village of Aldborough which lies eight miles from Knaresborough.

Revellers at the Northern Aldborough Festival can mingle with the stars of the festival in the intimate village setting, replete with May Pole and Roman ruins.

And its late-night venue The Shed will allow concert goers to extend their evening in a relaxed environment.

Highlights include an evening of jazz with Claire Martin, who was described by the Times as “easily the best British singer of her generation”, a new production of Handel’s Theodora, an appearance by Julian Bliss, one of the world’s preeminent clarinettists, and an outdoor pop and rock covers concert in the grounds of Aldborough Manor with an orchestrated fireworks display.

To be in with a chance of being one of five people to win a pair of tickets to see Alex James this weekend on Saturday, June 18 at 7.30pm, simply answer the following question and email your answer by noon tomorrow, Friday, June 17.

Ticket competition question: What was Blur’s first number one single?

Please email your answer to: [email protected]

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