Bootleg Beatles closing tour at Birmingham NIA

Widely considered the best tribute band in the world, the Bootleg Beatles looks set to make it a Fab Christmas when they bring their annual festive tour to a close in Birmingham this month.

The Bootleg Beatles play Birmingham NIA on Tues 20th December, 2011. Tickets cost £24.

It has been 45 years since The Beatles' last concert (in Candlestick Park, San Francisco on August 29, 1966), yet the demand to hear their music remains as high as ever.

This tour will be particularly poignant for Andre Barreau, who has portrayed George Harrison in the Bootleg Beatles for 32 years, as 29th November marks the 10 year anniversary of Harrison losing his battle with cancer.

The band performed in front of George in 1996, after which Andre had a lengthy conversation with George. Andre has been invited to perform at the free concerts in Liverpool on 29th November.

The tour is also the first for Adam Hastings, who has added his raspingly accurate Lennon vocals to the line-up, replacing Neil Harrison, who has portrayed Lennon in the Bootlegs since their formation 31 years ago. Adam has received unanimously rave reviews from fans following his debut with the band this summer.

In fact, the Bootleg Beatles were the first band that Adam ever saw perform live – he met Neil and got a signed poster after a gig at Newcastle City Hall.

Adam recalls: "I had three posters on my bedroom wall – Nirvana, one of the real Beatles and the autographed Bootlegs poster – in my mind as a lad they all had equal status, so to be joining them full time is amazingly ridiculous!"

The concerts will feature The Bootleg Beatles performing their authentic and note-perfect renditions of the greatest songs from the entire Beatles catalogue. They will be accompanied by their accomplished eight-piece orchestra, who help them faithfully recreate many of the hits the Beatles never performed live.

The Bootleg Beatles have performed over 4,000 shows across the globe and have shared stages with Oasis, Jon Bon Jovi, Rod Stewart, Seal, KD Lang, The Corrs, Simple Minds and Iggy Pop at venues such as Glastonbury, Wembley Stadium, Earl's Court, Knebworth and The Fleadh and In 2002 they performed at the Queen's Golden Jubilee celebration at Buckingham Palace.