The Overtones celebrate 15 years together - Eastbourne date

Mark Franks, Darren Everest, Jay James and Mike Crawshaw together promise an “unforgettable night of music, celebration and seasonal sparkle.” Dates include: November 13 – Kings Theatre, Southsea, PO5 2QJ; November 27 – Royal Hippodrome Theatre, Eastbourne BN21 3PF; and December 10 – Mayflower Studios, Southampton SO14 7DU.

The anniversary finds them all in a great place.

Darren said: “It makes me feel like a veteran and it makes us feel like veterans! But we have still got the same vigour and energy as we had on day one and we know that we are extremely lucky boys to still be doing this in this cut-throat industry. But I think we've got our fans to thank for that. I think our secret is that it is feel-good music. We make people smile and we give them a bit of escapism. What we offer is a place where people can come along and smile and sing and dance and forget everything that is going on in the outside world. We have got a chance to shut off from the every-day and just be present in the room in the moment and have fun. But we have also worked hard on our craft over the years, and I think we have got really good at it if I'm allowed to say that. But it is also escapism for us. We're just four mates having a good laugh and having a great time.

“But I would say that it's even more fun now than it was before, to be honest. At the start there were a lot of different emotions. There were nerves and excitement and worry and hoping that the record label will keep you. You want to sustain this job that you've worked so hard for all your life to get and you know it's such a cut-throat industry that people can just get dropped. But I think we're much more in the moment now. We are in control. We run this as our own business. We're not signed to a major anymore. We have the control and we are in a good position and we are having fun. We're not saving people's lives. We're not surgeons. We just sing and dance for an hour and a half, and in a way we take ourselves less seriously now but we take the shows very seriously. We know that people have saved up for tickets with their hard-earned money and maybe they're having to pay for a hotel. We really appreciate that.

“And the great thing is that we get so many lovely messages. I think I took those messages for granted in the early days because I think I was just so much looking up and looking above and thinking about what was happening next and thinking about the future. But now I'm just enjoying it in the moment and I love those great messages we get from people saying that they were really helped in a difficult moment by our music or that they are now coming along with their daughter. It really makes a difference.”

Darren is a dad himself these days, father to a 19-month-old and a four-year-old: “It's a very busy household. I call it beautiful chaos! But what is interesting is that I thought that I would become even more of a workaholic when we had kids but actually it's the reverse effect. When I am at home I want to be really present and in the moment with the children. There is nothing worse than if your daughter looks at you and you are on your phone. If I've got to do some work for a couple of hours then I go out to a cafe but when I am home I want to be really present in the moment for the children. It makes you appreciate things and you have a different perspective. The most important thing is putting food on the table for my children but also I just don't want to let the music industry take me over. Balance is the keyword. It's what we all want in so many aspects of our lives and I think I've got that. I'm feeling good. I am 44 but I feel like I'm 24. I exercise and I have a great time on stage and my girls keep me young!”