f you’re looking for the feel-good factor in these days of doom and gloom, look no further than the Holywell Music Room where, on February 26, you can catch ukulele player Andy Eastwood in what promises to be a fun and energetic show. Andy is returning to Oxford ten years after he caused a stir in the national press by becoming the first student to gain a music degree by giving a recital on the ukulele. “I think they still talk about it in the Music Faculty,” he chuckles. “I was also the first to do something that wasn’t serious classical music. I woke up on the morning of the exam and it was all in the papers because it was such a quirky story.

“The examiners were medieval music experts, which made it even funnier, and by the end they were all smiling and laughing. So it turned the exam recital into a fun event!”

The fun has continued ever since, and Andy has toured the world, usually making guest appearances in variety shows. The Oxford concert is a rare opportunity to see him giving a complete recital.

“It’s quite an old-fashioned show,“ he says. “There will be lots of comic songs. I like to explore the comic side of music. Nobody writes comic songs any more, and I like to try to keep them alive.”

As always, Andy will be juggling four instruments during the recital — ukulele, banjo-uke, guitar and violin.

“I try to make it a one-man variety show. I love that kind of entertainment, where it’s all fast moving.

“I’m really looking forward to it, because the Holywell is such a great venue, and it’s quite unusual to be doing that kind of concert there. So I’m really excited about it, and I think it’s going to be good fun.”

The Return of the Uke is at the Holywell on Sunday, February 26. For more information, visit www.AndyEastwood.com. Box office: 01865 305305.