For an interrupted 40 years-plus, Sir Paul McCartney has achieved an almighty amount since The Beatles imploded, a band that pretty much changed the way that pop-songs were written, structured and performed. For a start, he issued his first solo album in 1970, playing pretty-much all of the instruments himself, save for girlie backing vocals provided by his first wife Linda.

It took him ten years to follow it up, interrupted by the small matter of Wings, his incredibly successful band that scored two #1 albums with "Band on the Run" and "Venus and Mars". 1980's second solo album 'proper' sported a strange mixture of synth-laden rock and pop - "Coming Up", "Waterfalls" and "Temporary Secretary" are the oddest trio of singles you could wish for.

The man's legacy hasn't waned since that album, despite the occasionally irksome distractions ("The Frog Song", "Give My Regards to Broad Street", "The Girl Is Mine" and the press having a field day with his private life). After recently marrying for the third time, you hope he's found solace at last.

Thankfully, he hasn't lost his mojo - McCartney has announced a 2011-closing jaunt around the world that includes three stops in England. The 'On The Run' tour will see the 69-year old appear in London on 5th December, followed by shows in Sweden, Finland and Russia before heading back to Manchester on 19th December and Liverpool on the 20th to round it all off. It will be his first Manchester show for some time.

We will have tickets at 9am this Thursday, an event which will probably cause 'queues' on the internet, so please be patient. Prices will start at £50 plus fees (£55 for London).

To lure you into seeing the great man in concert, McCartney was recently voted Best Live Act at the UK's Nordoff Robbins Silver Clef Awards, a public vote at that. He beat Muse to the prize! Think about that for a second. Therefore, you can expect the same quality of show witnessed at the Isle of Wight Festival in 2010, peppered with McCartney magic throughout.