September 2nd 2010

We are really pleased to bring you three pieces of breaking news, including your chance to see Elio and the band playing live...

Elio and his 10-piece band will be performing a one-off concert at The Epsom Playhouse on Saturday 18th September 2010. Don't miss out! Tickets are on sale now, to buy click here.

Those of you who listened to or watched the Weekend Wogan show which featured Queen's legendary guitarist Brian May, will remember the brilliant opening number Gimme Some Lovin'. Well, playing with Elio was enough to impress Brian May, who personally asked Elio to join him on stage for this year's Proms In The Park taking place on Saturday 11th September in London's Hyde Park. The show will also feature Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, José Carreras, Neil Sedaka and will be presented by the great Sir Terry Wogan. Tickets are available here.

The following day, Sunday 12th September, Elio will be performing in his own right at BBC Radio 2's Elvis Forever concert, also taking place in Hyde Park. Broadcasting live from 6pm (GMT), the show will be hosted by Chris Evans, with a special guest appearance by Priscilla Presley. Elio will be joined by the likes of Scouting For Girls, Tony Christie, Rick Astley, Imelda May, Tony Hadley and KT Tunstall. Click here for ticket information.

There is one more piece of really exciting news that we hope to bring you in the very near future. We are still working on the final details but hope to share the good news with you very soon...

August 24th 2010

So the final show in this series has been and gone and just like the final show in the first series, Weekend Wogan left our airwaves (for a  summer break) with another dose of brilliance and pure entertainment from Elio and the rest of the band.

As well as live music from Kiki Dee and Incognito, Elio opened the show with the Tom Jones hit ‘Love Me Tonight’ which set the mood for the whole show. He then opened up the second half of the show with another great hit, this time from Billy Joel and ‘My Life’.

But just when you thought Elio’s choice of songs couldn’t get any better, he pulls an absolute corker out of the bag. For his apéritif, Elio performed the Elvis Presley hit, ‘If I Can Dream’ which can only be described as sublime.

This week’s highlights can be seen by clicking here.

August 19th 2010

It was a great musical extravaganza this week - the penultimate show of this series. Fyfe Dangerfield, Kerry Ellis and the great Brian May all performed with Brian joining Elio for the opening number ‘Gimme Some Lovin’’. Wow - it was a superb opening song that whipped the audience into a frenzy.

The second half kicked off with Elio singing ‘Yester Me, Yester You, Yesterday’ and then finishing off with the Elton John song ‘Breaking Hearts (ain’t what it used to be).

August 9th 2010

This week’s guests were TV chef James Martin, rhythm and bluesman Leon Russell, Ben's Brother and Corrs singer and fiddle player Sharon Corr.

Elio opened the show with ‘Dance The Night Away’ and then kicked off the second half with the Chuck Berry track ‘Too Much Monkey Business’. The show was full of musical talent and to top it all off, Elio chilled everyone out with the brilliant 1924 classic ‘It Had To Be You’. A great apéritif to take everyone into Sunday lunch.

This week’s highlights can be seen by clicking here.

August 2nd 2010

It was a great show this week with Terry’s guests being the distinguished actor and director Richard Wilson plus live music from Marti Pellow and UK singer-songwriter Paloma Faith. Elio opened the show with the Prince hit ‘Kiss’ and then Elio and the band backed Marti Pellow as he sang the Elvis classic ‘In The Ghetto’.

After the news Elio kicked things off with ‘Breakfast In America’ and for his apéritif performed a smooth and beautiful version of the Louis Armstrong song ‘We Have All The Time In The World’. 

This week’s highlights can be seen by clicking here.

July 28th 2010

BREAKING NEWS: Elio is to go on tour again later this year. Dates are being added to the gigs page as and when they are confirmed so keep checking the website for updated information.

July 25th 2010

It was full house this week with national treasure Tony Christie, American singer-songwriter Gretchen Peters, comedian and writer Barry Cryer and world renowned New Zealand soprano Dame Kiri Te Kanawa.

Elio kicked it all off with ‘Yeh Yeh’ and followed it with the Elton John hit ‘Sad Songs’ straight after the lunchtime news. Elio and the band backed the great Tony Christie as he performed three songs and then Elio topped it all off with his own ’Oh So Tight’.

This week’s highlights can be seen by clicking here.

July 19th 2010

What a rocking way to start the show this week with the Elvis Presley hit ‘Bossa Nova Baby’!

Elio’s version of this great song (with a brilliant brass arrangement) went down a storm and set up the whole show once again. Esther Rantzen, Richard Hawley and Joe Longthorne were Terry’s guests this week with Elio performing another two corkers to add a great deal of gusto to the show. He opened the second half of the show with his own ‘Can’t Get Down’ and then for his apéritif, performed the Glen Campbell classic ‘Wichita Lineman’.

Another good show this week - don’t forget to check out Elio by clicking here.

July 12th 2010

This week’s show got off to a flying start with Elio opening the show with the song that he wrote for the great Albert Lee, ‘Can Your Grandpa Rock  & Roll Like This’. It set up the show and was followed by great music from Jon Allen and Gabriella Cilmi and topped off my Terry’s special guest, Bernard Cribbins. Elio’s second half opener was the Delbert McClinton hit ‘One Of The Fortunate Few’ and Elio ended the show with one of Billy Joel’s greatest songs, ‘Honesty’.

This week’s highlights can be seen by clicking here.

July 4th 2010

With Terry’s guests this week being Irish singer Brian Kennedy, the great Maureen Lipman and The Real Thing, it was always going to be a good show.

Elio opened the show with the Stevie Wonder hit ‘Sir Duke’ and then went on to provide the music for Brian Kennedy who performed three songs including ‘You Raise Me Up’ which was brilliantly supported both vocally and musically by the Elio and the band.

After the news Elio opened the show with ‘I Can See Clearly Now’ which was followed with an interview by the great Maureen Lipman. But the highlight of the show was next...

Elio’s dad, celebrating his birthday, was in the studio audience, so Elio performed the Italian song ‘Rose Rosse’. It was beautifully performed, moving and emotional, even for those who may not necessarily have understood the words.

The Real Thing got people moving by belting out their famous hits which topped off a superb 4th July show.

This week’s highlights can be seen by clicking here.

June 28th 2010

It was a bit of a 80s fest this Sunday with two stars from the 80s’ appearing on Weekend Wogan...Tony Hadley and Rick Astley.

It proved to be a busy week for Elio, the girls and the band as they provided the music for all the artists, as well as Elio opening the show with ‘You Can’t Do That’ and then opening the second-half of the show with a brilliant version of ‘Green Door’.

Elio and the band took the audience back to 1939 and the era of Glenn Miller’s big band, belting out ‘In The Mood’, which was performed by West End star Jodie Prenger.

And as if that wasn’t enough, Eiio finished the show with the Chas & Dave classic ‘Ain't No Pleasin' You’...even singing some of it in a Cockney accent!

This week’s highlights can be seen by clicking here.

June 20th 2010

What a great Father’s Day show this week with some brilliant guests and superb music. The Tom Jones hit ‘Help Yourself’ was the opening song by Elio this week and what a first-class choice it was.

Terry’s musical guests this week were Ben Montague and Sandi Thom and Terry’s special guest this week, the one and only Ronnie Corbett, also decided to show off his vocal talents performing ‘Lulu's Back In Town’ with the backing of Elio and the band.

After the news, Elio kicked things off with a toe-tappin’ rendition of ‘Fly Me To The Moon’ and later in the show for his apéritif, Elio performed the Willie Nelson hit ‘Funny How Time Slips Away’ which was met with a rapturous round of applause from the studio audience.

This week’s highlights can be seen by clicking here.

June 13th 2010

Weekend Wogan returned to our radios today with Elio opening the first show of Series 2 with a Rock ‘n’ Roll classic ‘Great Balls Of Fire’. It was a fitting start to the opening show which featured live music from Nerina Pallot and Des O’Connor. Terry was also joined by Hollywood great Jeff Goldblum who, during the interview, decided to move over to Elio’s piano and give an impromptu jazz performance which the band expertly busked along to.

A great opening show - the highlights can be seen by clicking here.

May 31st 2010

Not long to go before the second series of Weekend Wogan is back with us. Tickets to be in the audience for Weekend Wogan are available from the BBC Radio 2 website.

May 4th 2010

So that’s it. Week 12, the final show in this series has been and gone - but not without a massive dose of brilliance and pure talented entertainment from Elio and the rest of the band.

It all started with Elio opening the show with Elton John’s ‘Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting)’ which once again set the mood for the whole show.

The band then backed the great Glen Campbell who ended ‘Southern Nights’ with the comment “Wow.. what a band!”. And to prove just how good they are, their spontaneous backing of Justin Lee Collins singing ‘Delilah’ went down a storm and is truly worth watching if you haven’t seen it already. Terry’s other musical guest this week was the great Katie Melua.

Elio performed his own ’Thinkin’’ and ended the show with ‘The River Of Dreams’ but performed in his own unique way.

If you haven’t seen the show to end all shows, you can watch it here.

April 26th 2010

With only one week left in this series of Weekend Wogan, there’s no shortage of “WOW!”, loud applause and general awe at the performances from Elio, the band and for this week especially, Kirstie, Sue and Chloe - Elio’s amazing backing singers. 

As well as Elio, the band and the girls backing Red Hurley and the brilliant Billy Ocean, Terry’s listeners had requested that the girls do their own thing one week - and this week was the week they showed the world their incredible talent with a great version of ‘Sweet Inspiration’.

Elio performed the Elvis song ‘Big Hunk O’Love’, the Ray Charles hit ‘Unchain My Heart’ and then topped it all off with ‘You Loved Me Too’ from his album ‘A Seat At My Table’ which proved to be yet another great amuse-bouche...

The highlights of the show are available to watch here.

April 19th 2010

Elio playing Boogie-Woogie with dinosaurs...now that’s a phrase I never thought I’d have to type!. Elio appeared on CBBC today on ZingZillas where he played some great Boogie-Woogie tunes.

April 18th 2010

Scouting For Girls, Ricky Gervais and Don McLean were Sir Terry’s guests this week. Elio opened the show with a brilliant version of ‘Bright Side Of The Road’ and then after the 12 o’clock news, got the audience and listeners tapping their feet as he belted out ‘Reet Petite’.  As well as Elio and the band backing the wonderful Don McLean, Elio also performed his own ‘Lazy Days’.

The highlights of the show are available to watch here.

April 12th 2010

Today saw the UK release on DVD of ‘The Shouting Men’ which was written by Matt Daniel-Baker and

Warren Llambias.

Elio appears on the soundtrack singing ‘The Glory Days’ which is a brilliant song and has the potential to become one of those great football anthems.

You can watch the trailer or read more about the film here.

April 11th 2010

Week nine done and dusted and only three more Weekend Wogan shows to go for this series. It was a busy week on the show with Elio and the band backing (musically and vocally) the musical guests - Mika and Nell Bryden. 

Elio opened the show with ‘Why Me’ and then after the mid-day news, chilled out the audience and listeners with the Elton John hit ‘I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues’. The brilliant aperitif this week was Elio’s

own ‘Still Want You’.

Week ten looks set to be a great week with Ricky Gervais, Scouting For Girls and the great Don McLean.

The highlights of the show are available to watch here.

April 5th 2010

It’s not every day that you get the chance to play for a Hollywood legend but with Debbie Reynolds as one of Terry’s guests on this week’s Weekend Wogan, Elio had the opportunity to do just that. As well as being interviewed by Terry, Debbie (and Elio!) performed her 1957 hit ‘Tammy’ which went down a storm.

Elio opened the show with the Billy Joel hit ‘Tell Her About It’ and after the mid-day news, set the mood for the

rest of the show with ‘How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)’. Elio and the band also backed Mica Paris as she performed some great soulful tunes. Terry’s other musical guest this week was Elkie Brooks.

The highlights of the show are available to watch here.

March 28th 2010

No superlative has been created that can describe this week’s Weekend Wogan as Elio, who was joined by the fabulous Albert Lee for the duration of the show, made radio history. 

Perhaps Sir Terry Wogan’s blog sums up the show, but in particular the standing ovation that Elio, the band and Albert received after “Country Boy”. He described it as a “spontaneous outburst of joyful enthusiasm for the finest display of vituoso musicianship we've heard on the show so far...The guitar of Albert Lee, combined with the piano of Elio Pace, gave us all the kind of Sunday treat to set everyone up for the rest of the week.”

Which ever way you look at it, it was an amazing performance and worthy of the comments and praise it is receiving.

The highlights of the show are available to watch here.

March 21st 2010

Elio seems to be getting his fair share of attention from listeners (and of course TOGS) as each week passes by and after three brilliant performances this week on Weekend Wogan, it’s not surprising.

Elio opened the show this week with the Louis Prima classic ‘Jump, Jive An’ Wail’ which once again set the mood for the whole show. Terry was joined by Mick Hucknall, Katrina Leskanich and Griff Rhys Jones.

After the 12 o’clock news, Elio performed one of his own songs ‘Every Last Memory’ and then topped it all off with his aperitif, Neil Diamond’s ‘And The Grass Won’t Pay No Mind’.

The highlights of the show are available to watch here.

March 17th 2010

Elio opened this week’s Weekend Wogan with a rocking version of ‘Honky Tonk Women’ and set the mood for another great in which Paul Carrack sang with the band (as well as the amazing London Community Gospel Choir). Terry chatted to June Whitfield and there was further live music from Beverly Knight.

Elio performed his own ‘Take You Home’ as well as Billy Joel’s ‘Get It Right The First Time’.

The highlights of the show are available to watch here.

March 8th 2010

Four shows down with another eight to go in this ‘series’ of ‘Weekend Wogan’ and with each show, Elio continues to wow listeners. This week’s show was opened with Elio’s first Elvis song ‘Burning Love’ which provided a great rock ‘n’ roll start to the show.

Craig David was Terry’s guest this week and he performed a few Motown classics with the help of Elio, the band and the girls providing the brilliant backing vocals. Terry’s other musical guest was Carly Simon and Terry also spoke to actor Jonathan Pryce.

Elio performed his own song ’Katy Likes House’ and then sent the theatre audience and listeners around the world into a dream like trance with the smoothest and most mesmerising version of ‘The Nearness Of You’.

The highlights of the show are available to watch here.

March 1st 2010

Another great Weekend Wogan with Elio opening the show with the Elton John song 'Honky Cat' which was met with rapturous applause from the 300+ audience gathered in the BBC Radio Theatre.

The brilliant Beth Nielson Chapman was also on the show and Elio and the band had the privilege of backing her for three of her hit songs. John Barrowman was a special guest this week performing Copacabana and of course, the legend that is Neil Sedaka was on the show talking to Terry and performing some of his world-famous hits.

Elio kept the audience full of life with his own song, ’Got The Bug Back’ and towards the end of the show, with a sublime version of Stevie Wonder's hit 'Ebony Eyes'.

The highlights of the show are available to watch here.

February 22nd 2010

"Well, there’s no possibility of topping that...so thank you all for coming...” was how Sir Terry Wogan reacted after Elio opened this week's Weekend Wogan with Chuck Berry’s ‘You Never Can Tell’. It was a rip-roaring opening to another great show which featured special guests Sharleen Spiteri, David Gray and Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Elio and the band also rocked the theatre audience and listeners with two more brilliant songs - ’Proud Mary’ and ‘Two More Bottles of Wine’ as well as backing Sharleen Spiteri during her performances.

The highlights of the show are available to watch here.

February 14th 2010

Listeners around the UK (and the world) tuned into BBC Radio 2 today to hear the first of the new ‘Weekend Wogan’ shows being broadcast live from the BBC Theatre in London. It was a great first show with Sir Ian McKellen, Norah Jones and Jamie Cullum as Terry’s special guests.

The show opened with Elio and the band playing the new theme tune to the show, which may sound familiar to fans of Elio’s Christmas hit, ‘What A Day’ !

Elio and the band performed the opening number, an adapted version of ‘What A Day’ using new ‘Weekend Wogan’ lyrics as well as two more songs; ‘Addicted To The Phone’ and ‘Don’t Get Around Much Anymore’.

The highlights of the show are available to watch here.

February 8th 2010

Oh, what a superb night last night with over 250 excited ‘fans’ turning up at The Brook, Southampton to witness Elio’s homecoming concert. It was a real party and a fitting way to end the 2010 tour. For those who attended, I’m sure you’ll agree that it was a great show with amazingly talented musicians.

If you attended any of the gigs and feel like sending us your comments, then we’d love to hear from you. Simply click here and send us an email with your feedback. Or, if you feel like it you can even send us any pictures you’ve taken at the gigs (that we can maybe put in the 2010 gallery we’re working on).

For those of you that attended one (or more!) of the gigs, thank you SO MUCH for all your support.

So now it’s countdown time.

Only 6 days to the first ‘Weekend Wogan’ show. Don’t forget to tune in to Radio 2 on Valentine’s Day at 11am.

February 7th 2010

The ‘Homecoming Concert’ is tonight at The Brook, Southampton. Everyone is really looking forward to this one. If you want to check availability of tickets, then visit the GIGS page.

February 2nd 2010

It’s been quite an incredible few weeks with Elio and the band touring around the UK playing to enthusiastic (and appreciative) audiences.

Take a look at Elio’s Facebook page to see what people are saying about the gigs and also to see some pictures from various venues.

There is only ONE venue to go which is the much anticipated ‘homecoming concert’ at The Brook in Southampton on February 7th.  Visit the GIGS page for more information.

January 24th 2010

There was a great article in the Sunday Express today about Elio joining Sir Terry Wogan as his Musical Director and House Band.  There was also a mention for Elio’s UK tour which is proving to be a big hit with those who are coming along. It was nice to see Dave Lee-Travis at Wavendon who even got up on stage to introduce Elio and the band. Thanks DLT.

The tour continues next week starting in Berwick and ends on February 7th at The Brook in Southampton. You can check availability of upcoming shows by going via the GIGS page.

To read today’s Sunday Express article, click here.

January 22nd 2010

Three amazing shows down and eight more to look forward to. Elio is playing at the Epsom Playhouse tonight and then Wavendon, Milton Keynes tomorrow night. We’re getting some superb feedback coming in from people who have watched the show so far, so if you haven’t got your tickets yet, you better hurry! You can check availability by going via the GIGS page.

January 19th 2010

First gig tonight of the UK tour starting in South Wales. Don’t forget to get your tickets if you haven’t already. More information is available on the GIGS page.

January 17th 2010

Elio recorded the pilot for the new Terry Wogan radio show today at the BBC. He opened the show with Queen’s ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ and then backed Tony Christie as he sang a few of his classics. It was a great show and everyone is looking forward to the first live show on Valentine’s Day.

January 1st 2010

Happy New Year everyone. It’s now full steam ahead for Elio with rehearsals for his own Tour this year and of course his newest venture as Sir Terry Wogan’s house band and Musical Director. Don’t forget to visit the GIGS link to get more information on Elio’s forthcoming tour.