THE UKULELE ORCHESTRA OF GREAT BRITAIN at City Hall

The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britainhas seen over 9,000 days of ukulele action and been playing for one 40th of a millennium. The Orchestra has been giving concerts for one quarter of a century, expanding from gigs in London pubs to touring the world;
from the Village Hall to the Royal Albert Hall.

The original Ukulele Orchestra, the oldest and best, is touring Australia for the first time in 2012 with Brisbane hosting their initial appearanceThe oldest and the best, it unites fans across the globe in celebration of "one plucking thing after another" on "instruments bought for loose change"; a "world tour with only hand luggage".

The last 25 years have seen them develop from a fun gigging orchestra playing in the upstairs room at a London pub, to a fun gigging orchestra playing in some of the most established venues in the UK and the world, selling out theatres and appearing on TV in many countries, being their own record label, video production company, management and concert agency. Is it a contentious claim to say that they have sixteen-handedly turned the world on to the ukulele and its entertainment possibilities? You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll never think about music, humour or entertainment in the same way once you've seen and heard the Ukulele Orchestra.

Is it a modern exercise in minimal art or a rabble rousing music hall cum stadium rock experience, as the Ukes turn up on stage with precision, and with only one ukulele per performer (no gimmicks, no tricks, no vocal enhancers and overproduced wizardry), proceed to tear the house down, with audiences routinely giving multiple standing ovations, baying for more and booking tickets
for future gigs as soon as they get home.

Absolutely the Best of British – Monty Python’s Michael Palin
Plucking brilliant – Sunday Times
Wonderfully clever – David Bowie
They are among the great entertainers – London Evening Standard
The best musical entertainment in the country…worth travelling a thousand miles to hear. The Independent