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One of the world's biggest singing stars is coming to Kent to perform an open-air concert to what is hoped to be a crowd of 20,000.
Canadian crooner Michael Bublé will take to the stage at Kent Cricket Club's Spitfire Ground St Lawrence in Canterbury as part of a 13-date tour across the country.
Billed as an Evening with Michael Bublé, promoters say it will be among the most vocally and visually stunning shows of 2021.
The July 10 gig is a huge coup for the cricket club, which has staged numerous big-name concerts, attracting artists such as Elton John , Simply Red , Bryan Adams , UB40 , Sir Tom Jones and Steps in recent years.
And club chief executive Simon Storey hopes Covid restrictions will have been lifted by the time of the concert and the 20,000-capacity venue will be sold out.
He believes the cricket ground's track record as a venue for big names put them in the frame to pitch for a date on the Bublé UK tour.
"The promoters have gone for open-air gigs perhaps to be on the safe side, " he said.
"It's impossible to predict what the situation will be then but we will work with whatever, if any, restrictions are in place at the time."
Grammy award-winning Bublé is expected to perform some of his biggest hits, including Home, Feeling Good and Haven't Met You Yet.
Mr Storey says that after such a difficult year for sporting venues, securing the gig is a very welcome boost for the club.
It lost £2 million in revenue during the summer, with the cancellation of cricket, conferences and money-spinning concerts, including Little Mix .
"Bringing a superstar like Michael Bublé to Canterbury will help us to continue to invest in our core activity of county cricket," said Mr Storey
"It's also great news for Canterbury because the city's hotels and restaurants will benefit too."
Mr Storey hopes the concert will add to the club's growing reputation and attract even more international stars to Canterbury in the future.
Tickets for An Evening with Michael Bublé go on sale at 9am on Friday.
Subscribers to Kent Cricket's Extra Cover e-newsletter will receive exclusive 24-hour pre-sale access to tickets from 9am on Thursday direct to their inbox.
Mr Storey added: "We’re proud to ensure that Canterbury remains on the map as a regional venue for live outdoor music.
“We’re expecting tickets to sell well in the run up to Christmas since it gives everyone something to look forward to next Summer, and we’re looking forward to welcoming fans from all over the south east of England.
“We hope that this amazing concert will provide a welcome boost to the city’s restaurant, bars and hotels, and we’ll be working with our partners at Shepherd Neame, Canterbury City Council, Canterbury BID and Visit Kent to ensure that visitors to the area will have an amazing stay and the whole city can reap the benefits of Michael Bublé coming to town.”
