Mark's on Eire!

For although you may not recognise the name, the drummer and lead singer is a man you'll definitely have heard of.

That doyen of the airwaves, Radio One's very own rebel Mark Radcliffe will be in town with the band playing some "raggle-taggle Pogues-type tunes" (his description, not mine).

But there will be someone missing.

Unlike Radcliffe's previous foray as a "serious" musician in The Shirehorses, his co-conspirator on the wireless, the man known universally as Lard, will not be present.

"To be honest, Lard was never meant to in The Shirehorses," says Radcliffe without a trace of irony. "But it's gone to his head, so he stays in these days on a Friday to do a spot of baking,"

For five years Mark and Lard have been bringing their irreverent, and at times surreal, double act to the afternoons on Radio One.

Before that they had a less successful spell as breakfast DJs.

"I don't think people really got us at that time of the morning.

"It was far too early," says Radcliffe in his distinct northern tones.

Although DJ-ing -- with a little anarchy thrown in -- may be the day job, it's playing live which Radcliffe clearly relishes.

"Ever since I was 13 and saw The Monkees I wanted to be in a band," he says.

"I thought you all lived together, drove round in a van and wore matching suits. I suppose I'm there to be shot at but I don't care. There's just something about being in a band."

First with The Shirehorses and now with The Family Mahone, Radcliffe takes centre stage playing the drums and singing vocals. "It's a benign dictatorship," he says.

"I have a specially modified kit which means I drum standing up and can sing.

"The Prince of Darkness, who is an engineer on the radio show and was in The Shirehorses, is with me in the new band, plus a few mates.

"We get out once or twice a month and generally have a good time.

"We have a few drinks and then get up and play some Celtic tunes.

"It's the sort of stuff that, if it doesn't get you moving after a couple of drinks, then you're probably clinically dead.

"Having said that, the same could probably be said of the members of the band."

For a man whose roots are clearly in the North, where does the love of Irish music come from?

"I come from a very colourful lineage," he says by way of explanation.

"My mother's family were from Lancashire and my dad's were also from Lancashire, from the Bolton/Farnworth area.

"Actually, it's down to my granddad who would play a few rebel songs and had all The Dubliners' records."

So are there plans to take the band on tour and conquer the charts in the process?

"Coming to Blackburn's an adventure for us. We don't normally stray far from Manchester," he says.

"We're all old blokes with families and have to get home after a gig, so that puts the south and too far north out of bounds."

Radcliffe has played in Blackburn before.

The Shirehorses played King George's Hall.

And he also has earlier memories of the town.

"When I was a kid we'd go to Tommy Ball's.

"Is there still a Tommy Ball's?

"We look at all the shoes with string through them.

"There'd be those big triangular displays piled up with shoes and I'd hide from my mum in the middle of them."

From the tone of the interview, you've probably guessed that Radcliffe is not a man to take things too seriously.

"It's like the radio show," he says.

"It's well paid and the hours are good. We're just riding our luck.

"We aren't trying to be cool and we make no secret of our ages (at 43, Radcliife is a veritable senior citizen in the stable of Radio DJs)."

Come next Friday he'll be having a night out with a few mates, a few drinks and a few songs and he's inviting you to join him.

Tickets for the gig at the North Bar on September 20 cost £10. For further details contact Ronnie on 07790 279557.