Mal Pope plays The Swansea Grand Theatre with his Heritage Chart hits and classics, plus some surprise guests.
Mal Pope is back at the Swansea Grand Theatre on Monday 9 November with Moving On, his latest show. He'll be playing through his recent Heritage Chart hits alongside a selection of his most beloved classics, and he's bringing a few special surprise guests along for the night.
If you're not familiar with the name, Pope is a Swansea native, born Maldwyn Pope in Brynhyfryd into a family of teachers. He started on guitar at seven and was writing songs by then. In the early seventies, he sent a tape to John Peel at BBC Radio 1, who invited him to perform at the BBC, which led to a contract with Elton John's Rocket Record Company. From there, he studied at Christ's College, Cambridge, moved to London, was managed by Harvey Goldsmith, and signed a deal with Larry Page.
His career has run through a lot of different rooms. He wrote for Cliff Richard and The Hollies, duetted with Bonnie Tyler and Aled Jones, and toured with Art Garfunkel and Belinda Carlisle. He also spent time on screen: he hosted The Mal Pope Show, a late-night music chat show for HTV that won a Welsh BAFTA in 1995, and later Heaven's Sound, which won at the New York Film and Television Awards in 2001.
Every week we pick 🏆 the 5 best 🏆 things to do in Swansea and send them to your inbox. Just one weekly email, no spam.
By submitting your email, you accept our Privacy Policy
There's a particular reason this show feels like a homecoming. In 2023, Elton John returned his old Rocket tapes and the rights to the songs. Fifty years on, Rocket Boy was released in time for his Golden Jubilee concert at the Swansea Grand Theatre, so Moving On follows a very local full circle. The set will pull from those Heritage Chart hits and the older classics he's known for, with the surprise guests added into the mix. It's on Monday 9 November at the Swansea Grand Theatre.
