When Stephen 'Tin Tin' Duffy flounced out of rehearsals for a little-known Midlands pop outfit named after an obscure sci-fi character back in early 1979, he no doubt presumed he would be moving onto bigger things and leaving these Brummie losers behind.

Duffy has indeed enjoyed a successful career as a performer and songwriter but, compared to the exploits and highs of Duran Duran, his achievements are comparatively modest. With Duffy gone, Simon Le Bon was drafted in as the new frontman and soon the five piece of Le Bon, founder Nick Rhodes and assorted, unrelated Taylors (Roger, Andy, John), were standing astride the pop industry, kicking it defiantly as and when they felt like it.

Despite being cast as make-up wearing, New Romantic bed-wetters, Duran Duran were a massive commercial success in the UK and, to an even greater extent, in the US. Embracing the emergence of MTV and understanding the importance of the promo video in styling (and selling) a band, Duran Duran threw themselves into the new era. With promos like their legendary shoot for 'Rio', Rhodes and Le Bon particularly gained a reputation as auteurs of the new musical aesthetic.

Some 32 years after Duffy slammed the door on a singer-less Duran Duran, global sales for the band have moved past the 100 million mark and they remain a massive pull. With their summer arena tour now scheduled to take place in November and December, the band have announced four intimate warm-up gigs - at "warm-up", not arena prices.

The four warm-ups kick-off at the Old Fire Station in Bournemouth on 1st September, followed by Cambridge, Bristol and then the Oxford O2 Academy on 10th September. We have tickets available now for all four shows, priced £28.50.

The 'main' arena tour begins at the Brighton Centre on 30th November, taking in the Glasgow SECC, the Liverpool Echo Arena, the O2, the MEN and more, before the final show of the year at Dublin's O2 Arena on 20th December.

We have tickets for all dates, with prices ranging from £30 - £65 (€44.20 - €70.70 for Dublin).