West End and TV star Lee Mead at Alban Arena

A WEST END sensation who rose to fame on a reality TV show is set to serenade St Albans.

Best known for winning the title role in the 2007 West End revival of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, 28-year-old Lee Mead will be singing at the Alban Arena next weekend with songs from his two albums.

Lee, who has a one-month old baby named Betsy with his celebrity wife Denise Van Outen, said that he would be playing West End numbers, modern pop rock classics and his own material alongside a live band.

“I’ve done hundreds of guest concerts at places like Hyde Park and Wembley but I’ve only played three of my very own gigs,” he said. “I cannot wait to entertain St Albans – I came to the city a couple of years ago for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat and I thought it was a really pretty place.”

Lee, who is currently playing the male lead, Fiyero, in the West End smash hit Wicked, said that ever since he won reality TV casting show Any Dream Will Do in 2007, he had been working non-stop.

“Luckily, I really like being busy and whether it be writing songs in the comfort of my own home to training in New York, I enjoy every minute of it. What’s more, I have a beautiful baby girl now too! She’s very sweet and demands a lot of attention, but I have certainly taken to fatherhood.”

Lee, who performed his first solo concert last month in his home town of Southend-on-Sea, said that he had come a long way since he first started acting: “I came into it quite late at the age of 18 and before then I did gigs on cruise ferries and the like. I can’t believe that I have two albums under my belt now – everything has worked out so well and I want to dabble in television next.”

Lee Mead and his special guest star Niamh Perry will be performing at the Alban Arena at 7.30pm on Sunday, June 27. Tickets start at �24.50 and to book a seat or for more information, contact the Alban Arena box office on 01727 844488 or see www.alban-arena.co.uk