I'm Alfie Boe & I'm thrilled to be performing in my hometown Blackpool tomorrow!

50-year-old Alfie, who was born in Blackpool and grew up in Fleetwood, is currently part way though his latest UK tour, having completed a run of sold-out dates so far this summer.

Due to popular demand, the former Cardinal Allen Catholic High School pupil even added five extra dates to the tour in March, one of which was a homecoming show in Blackpool, which is to take place tomorrow (Friday, July 5).

Alfie’s show ‘Encore’ at the Blackpool Opera House will even be the finale event to the tour so audiences are bound to be in for a treat.  

Ahead of his homecoming show, our celebrity reporter was able to catch the Lancashire star for a chat, see what was said below...

How do you feel about doing a show in Blackpool?

Alfie: “Thrilled! I've been pushing for another show back in my home region, you know Blackpool or Fleetwood, and it finally got put on the list. And yeah, I love coming home, I love meeting friends, I love seeing old faces, me and my family, showing people that I haven't forgotten my roots, I haven’t forgotten where I'm from.

“I love that region of England and it's so close to my heart still and… I want to do so much for the area. I would love to eventually at some point have my own music festival or create something that could fly the flag for the Fylde Coast, Blackpool, for myself and my connection with it and just show my passion, my support and my loyalty to the area.”

Is performing on the Fylde Coast different?

Alife: “I get nervous on every show and I have to say probably when I come back to Blackpool, the pressure’s on a little bit because I'm playing in front of people that are saying, ‘okay, well, he's gone off to London, he's gone off to the big smoke and he's done all this here, there and everywhere. Let's see what he's made of now’ … that's myself telling me that, that's my own head saying that.

“But the minute I walk out on stage, it's like being at a family party and putting on your favourite record, singing along with a pint of Guinness in your hand. It is coming home, it’s so good. Everybody has a laugh, everybody can associate with the stuff that I've not forgotten, that I grew up with…and it's lovely. My accent gets stronger... it's like, I've not been away and I love it. I really love it.”

Have you performed at the Opera House before?

Alfie: “Many times now! Yeah, I’ve performed there quite a bit, on numerous sorts of platforms - as a classical singer, musical theatre singer, pop and rock singer.. Ieven worked there, I was stage crew at the Blackpool Opera House. So you know, having done that full circle - worked backstage and now front of the house, front stage - .. it feels like a real solid home for me coming back there. The smells are the same, the feelings the same, the emotion is the same. It's great, I love it.

“It’s probably the most nostalgic venue for me full stop. I mean, I've played so many wonderful venues in my life, like the Greek Arena in Los Angeles, the Royal Albert Hall, the O2 Arena in London here, Opera Houses throughout the world… Buckingham Palace for crying out loud but for nostalgia and memories and emotion it has to be Blackpool Opera House because it holds so much for me.

“It's seen me become the person I am, become the artists that I am, it's it's groomed me in a sense, it's taught me how shows work, how backstage works, how to appreciate people that work backstage - how hard they graft to get a show up and running. Also it’s taught me to appreciate the audience's that go there, that love music, love entertainment and Blackpool has a huge legacy for entertainment and I'm proud to be from there, I'm proud to be part of that entertainment legacy.”

And how would you describe your show Encore?

Alfie: “Encore is sort of a spinoff from my previous tour, which was open arms. Encore means come back on and sing another song so there'll be a few changes to the set. I want to incorporate more songs that reflect my childhood growing up in the northwest. I want to sing some cool old classic songs that my dad used to play. 

“It was real fun stuff that he used to put on the record player, like cool old country songs and things like that. So I'm going to throw in a few of those, throw in some Irish tunes because my mother's side of the family is Irish and then throw in some more classical stuff and a bit more of the straight laced stuff that I ended up starting my career with. And of course, moving into the music theatre, and then into my contemporary work that I've been doing lately on my new album.

“So I just want to celebrate, I want to celebrate my life, in music, my life in Fleetwood, share it with everybody and have a good time in the process  and learn about them as well, hopefully, sing music that they grew up listening to as well, things that spark off memories for them - that's really my goal on the show.”

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Will any guests be joining you on stage?

“In Blackpool, everybody wants to join me, weirdly. So I've got a list of celebrities that are going to turn up and sing a song with me and we'll have a bit of fun. It'll be a real light hearted funny evening, no pressure, everybody on the feet dancing if they want to, or singing along, having  a good drink just relaxed and chill.”

Can you tell us who these guests are?

I've got a list of about five or six people that want to join me. Gary Barlow was thinking of coming, but he can't unfortunately. Jason Manford always turns out for me, he's a great guy and I think he said he's available but once it is confirmed, it would be worth coming out just to see him!”

Will you be getting up to anything else whilst in Lancashire?

Alfie: “I can't I can't not go back home to Fleetwood when I'm there. I've got lots of friends that live in the surrounding areas so I'll see as many as I possibly can. A damn good walk along the beach -that's what I want to do! Eat some chips and gravy, grab an ice cream, do something like that. I'm also patron of the Showtime Museum, I went to the opening of that, so I'll call in and see everybody there. So yeah, I've got a lot to do while I'm there but singing for friends and family is the most important. I hope people will come out and enjoy themselves, I really would love to just be with familiar faces again, my own crowd and just have a good time. I'll if they want to shout requests from the audience from the stalls, I'll try my best to do it.”

Well why should the people of Lancashire grab those last tickets?

I can't persuade anybody to buy tickets,  it's really down to them wanting to - you know if they want to have a fun night, if they want to experience a nice broad spectrum of music from different genres, different styles, have some light hearted fun, a bit of comedy in there, listen to some fantastic musicians with some great histories - my band in themselves have played with some legends, my backing singers are George Michael's backing singers so them in themselves, Surely Louis and Joe garland are worth coming out to see on their own, they're incredible. 

“It's a great evening of music, fun spontaneity and me just showing my appreciation for the support that the Northwest has given me… I know it's a difficult time for everybody buying tickets for shows and things, but it would be worth it and I'll make it worth your while. Then we can all go to the Yate’s Wine Lodge after the gig and I'll buy everybody a drink!”

You can buy tickets to see Alfie in Blackpool here.