Two of Britain's major music influences, English pop singer-songwriter Tony Hadley of "Spandau Ballet" and English pop duo Go West featuring lead vocalists Peter Cox and Richard Drummie, will be performing together on-stage in Australia in October 2011. As lead singer of one of the most successful British bands of the 1980's "Spandau Ballet", Tony Hadley's strong vocals featured on such Top Ten hits as "To Cut A Long Story Short", "Gold", "Only When You Leave", "True", "Lifeline", "Communication", and many others. Joining Tony Hadley on the Australian Tour will be Drummer John Keeble, from "Spandau Ballet". On the other hand, Go West were responsible for such blockbuster hits as "We Close Our Eyes", "Call Me", "King Of Wishful Thinking", "Faithful" and others. This is a night of pure 80's pop heaven. Proudly presented by Abstract Entertainment, the tour dates are:

TONY HADLEY - BIOGRAPHY
SPANDAU BALLET THE 80S PHENOMENON Pioneers of the 80s Romantic movement, Spandau Ballet had numerous chart topping singles and albums all over the world, the most memorable being the singles "Gold" and the international number one "True", the latter famously sampled by PM Dawn in 1991 and featured on Paul Anka's Rock Swings in 2005.

As lead singer of Spandau Ballet Tony Hadley has over the years earned himself the accolade of being one of pop music greatest vocalists. In addition to all the band's songs, many will remember his prominent vocal contribution to the Band Aid UK charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas" and subsequent 1985 London appearance at Live Aid. A LIFE IN MUSIC Turning the page on Spandau Ballet, Tony has stuck to the same raw instincts that brought him early success. Tony is now a solo artist in his own right who has spent the past twenty years entertaining audiences all over the world with his stunning rich voice that has lost none of its power. He has continued to write and record, and to date has released four solo studio albums; "State of Play" on EMI Records, two albums through Universal Records; a self-titled album in 1998 and "True Ballads" in 2003. In 2006, on his own label Slipstream Records he released his long awaited swing album "Passing Strangers".

He has also released three live albums & two live DVDs. On the live music front he is regular performer, delighting audiences at home and abroad with such events as the 'Night Of The Proms' in Holland & Belgium/ Orchestral tours of Europe and South America as well as on his own annual UK & European solo tours. In 2007 he won a new legion of fans following his critically acclaimed performances as Billy Flynn in Chicago on the London stage.

Tony's appearances in the show gave the musical one of it's most successful runs ever and earned Tony an invitiation to perform in the 10th Anniversary Show. In 2005 Tony's contribution to the music industry was officially recognised by a Gold Badge Award from the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters. A PASSION FOR SWING Aside from the orchestras and his own live band, Tony also has a passion for "Swing".

Sinatra and Jack Jones being just a couple of personal favourites. Tony has performed with some of the greatest jazz orchestras in Europe, including the BBC Orchestra at Hyde Park Proms in The Park and shows at The Hague, Barcelona and Palermo Jazz Festivals with the respective Jazz Orchestras.

In 2005 Tony started work on his "Swing" album. It was a personal project that had been months in planning, Tony has recorded some of his favourite old songs. The album "Passing Strangers, was released on the 2nd October 2006, to coincide with Tony's first Swing tour, "Swinging True".

BOYS ON TOUR
As well as the conventional shows Tony has played some extremely unconventional venues for British, NATO, and UN Troops on active service in Bosnia, Kosovo, Kuwait, Cyprus, the Falkland Islands and Northern Ireland. From Aircraft Hangers & Tank workshops to bombed out theatres & sports halls to name but a few. Always keen to give something back Tony felt it was a real honour to be asked to entertain the troops, plus getting to dress up as a soldier is every young or old boys dream.

TV AND RADIO
Tony's talents as an artist extend beyond the stage and in recent years Tony's profile has increased dramatically in the UK following his participation in the UK reality TV show "Reborn In The USA", which saw him travelling across The US in a tour bus with eight other British artists. He also launched a successful Radio DJ career at Virgin (now Absolute Radio), bringing his own brand of chat and music to the national airwaves. "Tony Hadley's Party Classics" is now being syndicated around the world.

CHARITABLE WORK
Tony also likes to donate his time to support charitable causes. As Patron of Shooting Stars ( a children's hospice) he won £64,000 on British TV's cult quiz programme Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. Tony has also been very involved with Action Medical Research participating in their treks to Machau Pichu, The Lost World (Venzuela) and last year the Eden Trek from Pacific to Caribbean in Costa Rica, resulting in a huge sum of money being raised for the charity "Touching Tiny Lives" campaign, looking at research into and help for premature birth.

Tony is patron of the following four charities:

www.shootingstar.org.uk The Shooting Star Children's Hospice provides care, support and advice for children and young people with life-limiting conditions and their families. These care services are offered free of charge to families, 365 days a year across the western half of London and North Surrey.
 
The care services are based around the needs of the whole family, so as well as caring for the children and young people, there are activities for siblings and support groups for parents and grandparents. This makes a real difference to families who find themselves in unimaginable circumstances - helping them live life to the full by providing opportunities for fun and laughter, as well as helping them through the tougher times.
 
Families benefit from Shooting Star's care services in the community, in their own homes and at Shooting Star House, the purpose-built facility based in Hampton, Middlesex. These services include Short Breaks, Outreach Care, Day Care, Family Support and Therapies and End of Life Care. It costs £3.5 million every year (£9,500 a day) to maintain these care services and with no long-term statutory funding, the majority of this comes from voluntary donations.

www.lowetrust.com The Lowe Syndrome Trust is a UK Charity formed in June 2000 by parents of a Lowe syndrome child. The charity supports families and initiates and funds medical research into Lowe Syndrome. Lowe Syndrome is a genetic disorder that can occur with no family history, affecting boys and multiple physical and mental handicaps including cataracts in both eyes, muscle weakness (hypotonia or floppy baby syndrome), kidney problems, cysts, brittle bones, arthritis, poor growth, mental impairment with behaviour problems (autistic spectrum disorder) and epilepsy. Sadly the life expectancy for these children is short due to the complications of the disease and the lack of funding to find a cure.

The charity supports families and raises funds to support vital medical research in the hope of better treatment and cure of the disease. The charity has funded research at Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital, Dundee University, Imperial College London, Manchester University, UCL Opthalmology, University College London, Addenbrooke’s Cambridge,The Institute of California and Purdue University USA (see research section). In 2004 the UK charity held the first international Lowe Medical Symposium at the Royal Society in London. In 2006 the trust sponsored a meeting at the American Cell Biology Conference followed by a second symposium in 2007 at the Royal Society in London. The Trust advertises Requests for Research Proposals (RFP) in the UK with grants of up to £80,000.

www.bibic.org.uk bibic is a national charity with more than 37 years experience of working with children, young people and families. They are available all year. They are a registered charity (Reg No. 1057635) and receive no state funding. bibic’s mission is to help children with conditions affecting their social, communication and learning abilities to achieve their potential for a happier and more fulfilled life. bibic works with children and young people who have developmental problems such as Autism, Asperger’s, ADHD, Cerebral Palsy, Developmental Delay, Down’s syndrome, Dyslexia, auditory processing disorder, brain injury, and challenging behaviour.

The team of bibic developmental therapists work with children, young people and their families to assess their areas of difficulties and strengths. A therapy programme is devised, based on the initial assessment, and taught to the whole family to practice at home within their routines. Regular reassessments then take place and progress is measured and celebrated for as long as the family need us.
www.hda.org.uk The Huntington's Disease Association exists to support people affected by the disease and to provide information and advice to professionals whose task it is to support Huntington's disease families. The HDA is financed through the generosity of trusts, foundations, the statutory and corporate sectors, branches of the HDA, members and friends.

Huntington's disease, which is often called HD, is an hereditary disorder of the central nervous system. It used to be known as Huntington's Chorea or HC. Huntington's disease usually develops in adulthood and can cause a very wide range of symptoms. The disease affects both men and women.

WHAT'S NEXT
Following on from the success of the 2009-2010 Spandau Ballet Reunion Tony is back in the studio working on tracks for his new solo album due for release in late 2011.

GO WEST - BIOGRAPHY
Peter Cox met Richard Drummie in 1974 and played him a demo tape. Richard liked what he heard and so began their continuing friendship and collaboration. In 1982 they signed a publishing deal as songwriters 'Cox and Drummie'. They approached several record companies without success, but with the help of manager John Glover they secured some studio time and recorded their first two singles 'We Close Our Eyes' and 'Call Me' and renamed themselves Go West. Within a matter of days of completion of these tracks, John was negotiating with Chrysalis Records and Go West finally had a record deal.

'We Close Our Eyes' was released in the spring of 1985. It reached number 5 in the UK charts and became a top 10 hit in the USA. This success was followed by three further UK top 10 hits – 'Call Me', 'Goodbye Girl' and 'Don't Look Down'.

The album 'Go West' sold 1.5 million copies worldwide and remained on the UK chart for 83 weeks, establishing them as one of the greatest songwriting duos to emerge in the 80's. In 1986 they won the BRIT Award for 'Best British Newcomer' - the one BRIT which is decided by the listening public.

Their second album 'Dancing On The Couch' was released in 1987. The singles 'True Colours', 'I Wanna Hear It From You' and 'The King Is Dead' were all top 30 hits and although it did not match the sales success of their debut LP, the album provided further evidence of their strength as songwriters and has become something of a cult collectors item.

In 1992 their third album 'Indian Summer' was released. Written and recorded in California, it further justified legendary producer Arif Mardin's early description of Go West as 'modern Motown'. 'Indian Summer' included the single 'King Of Wishful Thinking', the opening song in the hugely successful film 'Pretty Woman'. The film's soundtrack has sold over 10 million copies worldwide. 'King Of Wishful Thinking' received ASCAP awards in 1991 and 1992 as one of the most played songs on American radio.

'Faithful', the second single from the album, received similar BMI Awards in 1992 and 1993.

'Aces and Kings', released in 1993, was a greatest hits collection but for the previously unreleased single 'Tracks Of My Tears', a take on Smokey Robinson's Motown classic, which entered the UK top 20.

The album 'Go West' sold 1.5 million copies worldwide and remained on the UK chart for 83 weeks, establishing them as one of the greatest songwriting duos to emerge in the 80's. In 1986 they won the BRIT Award for 'Best British Newcomer' - the one BRIT which is decided by the listening public.

Their second album 'Dancing On The Couch' was released in 1987. The singles 'True Colours', 'I Wanna Hear It From You' and 'The King Is Dead' were all top 30 hits and although it did not match the sales success of their debut LP, the album provided further evidence of their strength as songwriters and has become something of a cult collectors item.