English heavy rockers UFO are still going strong, 42 years after they were formed. Everything else is pretty much a footnote.

Currently a four piece, nearly 40 musicians have, at one time or another, been proud to call themselves members of UFO. Two - vocalist Phil Mogg and drummer Andy Parker - were part of the original 1969 line-up. Only Mogg has been ever-present, surviving two UFO break-ups; the first, briefly, in 1983 and then, for three years, in 1989. Even with the splits, UFO have still been rocking for around 39 years.

In which time, they've produced around 20 albums with the last decade or so proving to be one of their most prolific periods, seeing the release of five records including the most recent, 2009's 'The Visitor'. Their most commercially successful era was the early eighties when three successive LPs made the UK Top 20 (1982's 'Mechanix' peaked at No 8) but 'The Visitor' heralded a welcome return to the charts (albeit at No 99). A new album is rumoured to be in production.

But UFO have always been so much more than simply a commercial venture and their influence has inspired musicians behind the likes of Iron Maiden, Megadeth and Metallica. It has also attracted legions of fans around the world, which is why, more than four decades from their formation in the year of Woodstock and Altamont, UFO are still packing venues.

The UFO roadtrip launches at The Junction in Cambridge on 15th March, followed by sightings in Edinburgh, Newcastle, Belfast, Bristol, Nottingham, Manchester (Ritz) and more, before the final show at Wolverhampton's Wulfrun Hall on 31st March 2012.

We have tickets for most dates available now, priced around £20. The gigs in Newcastle, Leeds, Bristol and Birmingham go on sale tomorrow, priced £20.