Originally from Frilford, near Abingdon,Tom Hingley first found fame as the singer with The Inspiral Carpets - a band who were part of the city's booming scene in the eighties, alongside such legends as the Stone Roses and Happy Mondays.

Tom was offered the job after the band he was in played a series of support slots with the Inspirals. "I was living up in Manchester, two of my mates moved up with me," he remembers. "We did a Peel session, then we supported the Inspirals at LSE, Hull Adelphi, and the Co-op Hall in Oxford - which is now The Zodiac. The Inspirals singer left, so they asked me to come and join the band. The rest is history," he explains. Following the demise of The Inspiral Carpets, Tom was briefly with a band by the name of The Lovers, who produced one single and featured on Creation's Rock the Docks album.

Then, for around 12 months or so, Tom taught music. But the desire to make music proved to be too strong to resist. He embarked on a series of select solo acoustic gigs, while recording songs for his debut solo album, Keep Britain Untidy, released on his own New Memorabilia label.

Tom is impressed by Oxford's musical diversity. "When I left for Manchester there was no scene to speak of. Now Oxford's got a healthy scene," he says.

Tom is doing a full UK tour throughout July - so how does he view life on the road? "I divide my time between smoking cigarettes, drinking beer and then living a real rock 'n' roll lifestyle. Driving all round the country, listening to The Archers!"