Go West and Mark Owen Headline at First Thunder Sunday Event

Live Music and American Oval Racing Kick Start the 2005 Season at Rockingham

The adrenalin pumping, white knuckle, ‘Thunder Sunday’ series of events featuring the spectacular SCSA American style Stock Car racing and live music series, is back and ready to launch into the 4th season of what can only be described as the ultimate family day out. On Sunday May 1st, Rockingham, near Corby, will welcome the first live performers of the new season - Go West and Mark Owen.

To celebrate 20 Years in music, ‘80’s legends Go West will be appearing on the Rockingham Stage in the only outdoor gig of their 20th Anniversary Tour which kicked off in Manchester on April 3rd.

Go West’s legends Peter Cox and Richard Drummie will be performing their hits including classics; ‘We Close Our Eyes’, ‘Faithful’ and the smash hit from the Hollywood blockbuster Pretty Woman ‘The King of Wishful Thinking’ - A selection of songs which will definitely set the Rockingham stage alight.

Mark Owen was the first member of Take That to launch a solo career and his first album ‘Green Man’ sold over a million copies and resulted in two top 3 singles ‘Child’ and ‘Clementine’. He went onto find a wider public appeal in 2002 when viewers of the hit Channel 4 programme Celebrity Big Brother voted Mark the winner. On Monday 18th April Mark Owen’s third album ‘How The Mighty Fall’ goes on sale and the fans at Rockingham will be some the first people to see Mark and his band perform some of the new tracks live, along with the smash hit ‘Four Minute Warning’.

The final act to hit the Rockingham stage is Kontrol Freek, one of the UK’s most up and coming bands.

“We’re delighted with the range of music artists we have lined up this year. We are providing live music and entertainment to suit all tastes. This year we are especially keen to complement our existing pop music portfolio with a range of alternative music genres and with Go West at our first event we are confident we are providing an excellent mix of entertainment. Watch this space for further acts we will be announcing over this year’s Thunder Sunday event calendar,” said Mark Claussner, SCSA Race Series Director.

Rockingham in Northamptonshire is the only venue in the UK to offer the adrenalin pumping American-style stock car racing, alongside a live music featuring the UK’s leading music artists. Previous artists to have performed on the Rockingham stage, include, Busted, Girls Aloud, The Darkness, Lemar and Rachel Stevens, with more leading artists planned for 2005.

The SCSA Racing package consists of two races featuring the
awesome 450bhp American style Stock Cars, along with the adrenalin pumping Pickup Trucks and other supporting track events. The races see the cars battle two or three-wide at speeds of up to 170mph around the banked 1.5-mile oval track. The 5.7-litre V8 American Stock Cars certainly offer an amazing spectacle, unique in the UK. As well as the racing and live music, there is yet more family entertainment at Rockingham. A Spitfire air display, the HKS Drift Car stunt display, a fun fair, trampolines, the ‘Adrenalin Alley’ skateboard park and quad bikes are also features of each Thunder Sunday event.

Tickets cost £18 (adv), £25 (gate) for adults, £7 (adv), £10 (Gate) for children 5 to 16. Under 5’s are free. There is also a special advance only family ticket at £44 for two adults and two children. To purchase advance tickets and find more information on Thunder Sunday events visit www.rockingham.co.uk or ring the box office on 08700 134 044.

For more about NASCAR racing see our review of the new IMAX 3D movie by Andrew Lyndon on the main www.talkingpix.co.uk website.