LIKE most artists, Mick Hucknall is loving being back on stage after the pandemic, and he has a special reason to look forward to his show at Sandown Park racecourse next week.

“My father was very much into horse racing, and it makes me feel kind of warm inside that whenever I’m at the racecourses I’m thinking about my dad and his enthusiasm,” says the Simply Red singer.

“For that reason, I’m very much looking forward to the racecourse shows.

“The style of the show will be very different to those we did indoors in the winter. We’re going to play a lot more up-tempo songs and it’s going to be bright and sunny, hopefully like the weather.

“It’s been very special to be back on stage. People had been through so much through this COVID, and I wanted to sort of help them escape from that problem. Music is always a way of helping people forget their problems, as well as also in the sadder songs to reflect on what’s happened to them.”

Simply Red’s Blue Eyed Soul came out in 2019 and it was Mick’s 12th Top 10 album in the UK over the past 40 years – yes, 40 years!

“I feel very fortunate to still be doing what I love after so long,” he admits. “Not every artist is that lucky. Particularly now that we can tour again, I’m just really happy to be back on stage and performing the music.”

And he promises some new material soon, after making creative use of the COVID period.