Ed Harcourt was born in south London two days before Elvis died. Thirty-four years later, Harcourt is a decade into a busy career that has seen him quietly emerge as something of a dark horse of a singer-songwriter.

Ever since his debut album 'Here be Monsters' was nominated for the 2001 Mercury Music Prize, Harcourt's stock has steadily continued to rise. The follow-up 'From Every Sphere' may have been his best performing record with regard to chart position, a modest No 39 hit in 2003, but that early peak has done little to dampen subsequent enthusiasm for Harcourt's brand of dreamy folk-pop.

He has since released another five studio albums, the latest being 2010's 'Lustre', and a clutch of singles and artists as distinguished as The Magic Numbers and Graham Coxon both performed on his fourth album, 2006's 'The Beautiful Lie'. Although yet to 'break' America in any commercial sense, in 2009, Harcourt composed soundtrack music to the film 'S.Darko', the sequel to 2001's sleeper smash, 'Donnie Darko'.

'The Beautiful Lie' precipitated a four-year break between albums, punctuated only by the 2009 EP 'Russian Roulette', until last year saw the release of 'Lustre'. The latest record attracted radio play for the lead single 'Do As I Say, Not As I Do' and the LP peaked at No 12 on the UK Indie Album Chart.

All Harcourt's records and the majority of his compositions have been warmly received, helping the Englishman build a loyal fan base across the UK and Europe and he has announced two UK shows in the run-up to Christmas.

Ed Harcourt is playing at Matt & Phreds in Manchester's Northern Quarter on Thursday 15th December, moving onto London's Bush Hall the following night.

We will have tickets for both dates when they go on sale at 9AM on Thursday 6th October, priced £15 for Manchester and £17.50 for London.