NEWTON-LE-WILLOWS born singer-songwriter Rick Astley is set to take to the Glastonbury stage this weekend, ahead of his album release.

The ‘Never Gonna Give you Up’ singer, who returned to the charts in 2016 for the first time in nearly 30 years with the release of his number one album 50, will perform on the Pyramid Stage at Worthy Farm on June 24.

Talking about Glastonbury, the singer went on to describe himself as “still in shock” that he has the chance to perform at the world-famous festival in Somerset.

He said: “I’m ashamed to say I have never performed there, I’ve never even been to Glastonbury. I’ve dropped my daughter off several times.

“As a performer and someone who has been on stage most of my life, this one’s a big one, there’s no doubt about it.

“We’ve all done it, we’ve all watched Glastonbury on the BBC and gone, ‘wow that is monster’, so to actually walk out on that stage is going to be crazy.”

The singer said he had been booked to perform at Glastonbury in the year it was cancelled due to the pandemic and he thought, “that’s my shot gone”.

“I didn’t think we’d get an invite back simply because time moves on so quickly and they’ve got new artists and they’ve got a massive schedule to organise so I kind of did think that’s my chance gone,” he said.

“I was really completely made up when they got in touch, it’s a badge of honour.”

Rick has also anmounced his new album ‘Are We There Yet?’ which is set to be released on October 6.

He will be touring, including two prestigious dates at London’s Royal Albert Hall and culminating at Manchester’s AO Arena.

He will be joined by guests including Belinda Carlisle and The Feeling.

Headline tour dates: 2023 Wednesday 01 November London Royal Albert Hall Thursday 02 November London Royal Albert Hall 2024 Thursday 22 February Nottingham Motorpoint Arena Friday 23 February Newcastle Utilita Arena Saturday 24 February Leeds First Direct Arena Monday 26 February Cardiff International Arena Tuesday 27 February Glasgow OVO Hydro Thursday 29 February Bournemouth International Centre Friday 01 March Birmingham Resorts World Arena Saturday 02 March Manchester AO Arena