Barbara Dickson, The Anvil, Basingstoke

IN RECENT years, Barbara Dickson has become better known as an actress and West End leading lady, with TV appearances in dramas like Band of Gold and starring roles in musicals such as Blood Brothers and Spend, Spend, Spend.

But she was originally famous as a singer, and enjoyed several chart hits in the late Seventies and early Eighties, including Answer Me, January February and her number one duet with Elaine Paige, I Know Him So Well.

The Dunfermline-born star has been performing since she was a teenager, when she worked in a registrar's office by day and sang in folk clubs by night.

Her big break came in 1974, when Liverpool playwright Willy Russell offered her a role in his musical John, Paul, George, Ringo...and Bert.

After a lengthy run at Liverpool's Everyman Theatre, the show transferred to the West End - but Dickson's greatest West End successes were a good ten years in the future.

In the meantime, she established herself as a familiar face on TV, with regular appearances on The Two Ronnies and other light entertainment shows.

Recently, she has toured the UK in Spend, Spend, Spend, the musical based on the life of pools winner Viv Nicholson, and was awarded an OBE for services to music and drama.

May 16 Performance: 7.45pm. Tickets: from £16. Box office: 01256 844244.