New country musical show coming to the Floral this February!

AN exciting new country musical show is coming to:- The Floral Pavilion, in February 2025. Written by local musicians:- Jimmy Rae and Pete Davies:- 'Under The Mersey Moon' includes:- 13 original songs which will be performed by a 10 strong cast of local acting talent with a live 6 piece band.

Under The Mersey Moon is making its debut at the:- Floral Pavilion Blue Lounge, in New Brighton, Wirral, at:- 7.30 pm, on:- Friday, 14 February and Saturday, 15 February 2025, with a matinee at:- 2.30 pm, on:- Saturday 15 February. The inspiring new musical tells the heartwarming story of 1 man's determination to follow his dream and the enduring power of love, home and family.

Under The Mersey Moon tells the story of a struggling country musician from Liverpool who is inspired by his ailing grandfather to embark on a make or break trip to Nashville in the hope of being discovered. An ideal choice for Valentine's Weekend, it's set to be an enthralling production on the Wirral waterfront.

Starring radio legend Billy Butler and his actress wife Lesley alongside a talented cast, Under The Mersey Moon is a must for country music fans and is a powerful and emotional tale of 1 man's search for stardom. An awe inspiring journey of self discovery and love, peppered with humour throughout, Under The Mersey Moon will have the audience laughing, crying and singing throughout the rollercoaster ride.

The two songwriters behind the musical, Jimmy Rae and Pete Davies, are both well known to local roots and acoustic music fans through their respective duos, Tennessee Waltz and The Good Intentions. Liverpool-born Pete is also known to followers of Granada TV's landmark:- 'Up' documentary series, which has followed his life, along with that of 13 other children born the same year, since 1964.

Wirral-born Jimmy Rae said:- "Pete and I had been talking about writing a musical together for a few years and then in 2024, we just decided to stop talking and get on with it! We really enjoyed conjuring up the characters and the storyline and then the script itself took about 6 months to write. We are so excited to think that the show will make its debut here on Merseyside and we hope that this short run will just be the start, and we can take it on to other theatres around the Region, including Liverpool of course!"

Pete Davies added:- "I've spent the last couple of years writing my 1st novel:- 'Valediction Records' which was published earlier this year and was really satisfying, but quite a lonely process. Writing with Jimmy was great fun because we both had a shared vision of how we wanted the story to take shape and we were excitedly bouncing ideas off each other right from the start. I like to think we've crafted something really special, with the right mix of emotion and humour to appeal to local theatre lovers."

Directed by prolific Writer, Composer and Director Brian McCann, Under the Mersey Moon is a perfect choice for Valentine's Weekend and will be performed on:- Friday, 14 February and Saturday, 15 February 2025, at the Floral Pavilion's Blue Lounge, in New Brighton, at:- 7.30 pm, with a Matinee, at:- 2.30 pm, on:- Saturday, 15 February 2024. For tickets call:- 01516660000, or visit:- FloralPavilion.Com.
 

Finalists revealed in the 2025 Liverpool City Region Culture and Creativity Awards

Ayo Omojuwa, Channel Manager of CultureDeck, which is a collaborative media platform for emerging artists and creative talent in the City Region, was on the judging panel. She said:- "It was such a difficult process when you have the vast amount of talent that exists in the City Region. It's also not just about art and performance, but technology and innovation and how they are used creatively so it was no easy task choosing the finalists! I am very much looking forward to seeing the People's Choice vote open in the New Year as I feel it's really important to have the public involved in who they feel is their culture champion this year."

The 2025 event is sponsored by:- Liverpool One, The ACC Liverpool Group, The Guide, The University of Liverpool.

For more details visit:- LCRCultureAwards.Co.UK.