It was one of the first chilly evenings of 2018 when Duncan Lockerby asked me if I wanted to attend an Open Mic with him...

"It'll be fun" he said...

Uuuuuurgh... I thought...

I must have had a face on me like a big hairy bear eating a jam jar full of very grumpy wasps...

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term; an "Open Mic" is basically an event in a bar/pub or similar location where multiple solo performers/duos and even bands of all abilities/ages etc. play a short set of musical, or sometimes spoken word, material to showcase their skills or gain a bit of experience...

I'm a professional musician and I'd been very busy gigging all year (it's my job) and had just finished a particularly exhausting long run of tinsel fuelled Festive Shows...

The idea of me playing at all, let alone for free, in a room full of other musicians seemed like a bit of a "busman's holiday" to me... I needed an ACTUAL holiday or, at least, a little lie down in a darkened, soundproofed room with my special yellow comfort blanket to snuggle..!

"Come on you big Diva..!" he said...

So...I shrugged and sighed and went along to what was going to become week one of a very long challenge...at The Copper Pot Open Mic Night in Royal Leamington Spa... We sang and played...and, of course, listened to the other music makers... And I thought... "Hmmmm, that wasn't so bad...I guess..."

But then... Somehow... A bit later on... And the precise timeline for this still escapes me... In a moment of glittery showbiz bravado I said to Duncan after he'd (slightly sarcastically) teased me yet again about me "being too big time to ever play another Open Mic, ever again..."

Perhaps foolishly...

"I could do one of these every week for a whole year if I wanted to...and, actually, I think I will..!"

So... Obviously... He immediately bet me I couldn't/wouldn't be able to complete such a task which led me to committing, all the more fervently, to my slightly daft, self imposed challenge...

"To perform at one Open Mic event every week for one whole year. 52 mini shows at 52 different venues within the UK. Any costs incurred would come from my own pocket...any money earned or raised would be for charity"

By the time I played at the second event (in Alcester) I had a completed my game plan...and chosen the perfect charity...

Amy-Lee Hayes absolutely adores foxes. I'd taken her to the Nuneaton and Warwickshire Wildlife Sanctuary to meet one once. A rescued animal that had become too tame to release after treatment. She got to hug the beautiful creature...maybe almost a little too hard...and described the intimate encounter as "one of the best moments" of her whole life..!

We looked around the buildings and pens and met many of the other residents during our visit... Deer, owls, hedgehogs...a frankly bewildering array of mainly native animals and birds... The place was a menagerie of unfortunate animals... In need of care... And a second chance...

Geoff and Minty the Badger...

The centre is run by Mr Geoff Grewcock and he and his team (of mainly family and volunteers) explained their work to us, and their tireless efforts to assist injured wildlife in all weathers, day and night, 365 days a year... with little personal reward, apart from the knowledge that they were making a big difference...

And so I immediately understood that if I could use my music making profile to help them and this astonishing project one day... I absolutely 100% would...

So I had my Challenge and a Charity to assist (and one of their little yellow shakers) all I needed to do now was to somehow fit in one Open Mic per week, in between my regular shows and other professional commitments...for the next 52 weeks..!

Seems like a very long time ago now...

However... This week was Open Mic number 44..! At Cox's Yard in Stratford Upon Avon in Warwickshire. I'm on the home straight. The last 8... The countdown has begun..!

The whole list of events I have attended can be found below... The details can also be seen in the form of 'check- ins' on my Facebook page as proof...

The perfect time to fire up the JustGiving page I feel...

It's been a remarkable journey so far. I've performed an awful lot of music for an awful lot of people. I've driven to places I'd never have encountered without having this Challenge to complete. I've performed in some wonderful venues and met some of the most remarkable people. I've experienced love and kindness in great abundance and have been reminded of the warmth and generosity that exists within the vast interconnected communities of music makers and music fans alike...

Music is indeed...its own reward...

I've raised quite a bit of money using the traditional method of rattling my "charity box" at people (big thanks to everyone who shook it for me while I sang and played) but now I'm hoping that you will support me by pledging to donate to the Wildlife Sanctuary and help me keep going to complete my Charity Open Mic Challenge..!

I'm entering the busiest period for any professional performer now...

My Dirty Jazz Christmas Show is almost fully booked but I still somehow need to deliver on my promise to complete my task...

Please help me get to week 52 by donating here for my chosen cause... Every penny raised goes to assist vulnerable wild and wonderful creatures...

Every rescued animal is given a chance to be wild again after treatment wherever possible...

Your generous donations will help directly in The Sanctuary's efforts to keep this incredible work going...

Lets do this together...

Thank you all...

From left to right Duncan Lockerby (the challenger), Me (the multiple Open Mic attender) and Amy-Lee Hayes (the fox cuddler)...

Here's a list of the Open Mics I've done so far...

1. The Copper Pot - Royal Leamington Spa - Warwickshire

2. The Royal Oak - Alcester - Warwickshire

3. Ale & Gin - Banbury - Oxfordshire

4. Big Cat Coma - Royal Leamington Spa - Warwickshire

5. Millsy's Bar - Coventry - West Midlands

6. Leif Piano Bar - Royal Leamington Spa - Warwickshire

7. The Cross Keys - Alcester - Warwickshire

8. The Fat Pug - Royal Leamington Spa - Warwickshire

9. The Red Lion - Solihull - West Midlands

10. The Lion - Kenilworth - Warwickshire

11. Fletchers Bar - Kings Heath/Birmingham - West Midlands

12. Lil' Greens - Kenilworth - Warwickshire

13. The Nelson - Warwick - Warwickshire

14. The Three Horseshoes - Stirchley/Birmingham - West Midlands

15. The Town Crier - Coventry - West Midlands

16. The Reliance - Shoreditch - East London

17. The Old Pheasant - Worcester - Worcestershire

18. The Townhouse - Royal Leamington Spa - Warwickshire

19. The Yard - Coventry - West Midlands

20. The Raven - Hodge Hill/Birmingham - West Midlands

21. The Station - Moseley/Birmingham - West Midlands

22. The Feathers - Lichfield - Staffordshire

23. Mida - Stratford Upon Avon - Warwickshire

24. The Old Shepherd - Coventry - West Midlands

25. Twisted Barrel Brewery - Coventry - West Midlands

26. The Rainbow - Allesley Village/Coventry - West Midlands

27. The Bohemian - Moseley/Birmingham - West Midlands

28.The Golden Cross - Coventry - West Midlands

29. The Gunmakers Arms - Birmingham - West Midlands

30. The Bear - Stratford Upon Avon - Warwickshire

31. DJ Quinns - Yardley Wood/Birmingham - West Midlands

32. The Devonshire Arms - Coventry - West Midlands

33. The Rose & Woodbine - Coventry - West Midlands

34. Drapers Bar - Coventry - West Midlands

35. The Ivy Leaf Sheldon/Birmingham - West Midlands

36. The Chindit - Wolverhampton - West Midlands

37. The Rugby Tap - Rugby - Warwickshire

38. The Royal Oak - Wolverhampton - West Midlands

39. The Tin Angel - Coventry - West Midlands

40. Rosey Mac's - Sutton Coldfield/Birmingham - West Midlands

41. The Alehouse Brewery - Stratford Upon Avon - Warwickshire

42. The Oddfellows Arms - Redditch - Warwickshire

43. The Squirrel - Rugby - Warwickshire

44. Cox's Yard - Stratford Upon Avon - Warwickshire

45. The Farthings - Birmingham - West Midlands