After recently rounding off another huge year at this year's iTunes Festival, Ben Drew is surely living the dream. From R&B hopeful as a youth to rapper, grimer, producer, film-maker, actor and Strickland Banks creator in adulthood, it's been a tempestuous and rollercoaster ride for the man who, like many, saw his father walk out when he was just a nipper, giving him enough pent up emotion to deliver a stream of award-winning tracks and albums.

Following on from his rough 'n' ready debut album 'Who Needs Actions When You Got Words' and 2010's breakthrough set, 'The Defamation of Strickland Banks', Plan B does indeed have a Plan B when it comes to follow-ups. New project 'Ill Manors', born out of frustrations felt across deprived inner city boroughs, is something of a hark back to the rebellious '70s and early '90s and perhaps his most rewarding work yet. It made mincemeat of other contenders during the week of release by hitting the top slot on the album charts and paving the way for the film of the same name to do the business, as they say.

Drew is also doing the business as an actor - he's appearing in the 2012 remake of ultra-violent blagger-busting slag-imprisoning TV cop show The Sweeney, playing the part of DS George Carter (previously played by New Tricks actor, Dennis Waterman). After the release of the film however, it's back to real business - performing tours and it just so happens that you can catch him perform during an early 2013 UK arena tour.

Initial dates confirmed include Newcastle on 1st February 2013, followed by Manchester, Cardiff, Nottingham, Bournemouth, Birmingham, London's O2 Arena, Brighton and Plymouth. We will have tickets on sale from Friday 14th September at 9am with prices starting from £27.50.