Ullman to sing tribute to MacColl

LONDON, UK (Royal Festival Hall Website) - Comedienne Tracey Ullman is to sing on stage for the first time in nearly 20 years at a concert to celebrate the life of the late Kirsty MacColl.

Ullman, a one-time chart star, will join a host of entertainers at a tribute night to be held at London's Royal Festival Hall.
She will be joined by star's such as former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr and ex-Lemonheads frontman Evan Dando.

MacColl was killed in December 2000 after a speedboat hit her as she was diving off the coast of Mexico.

Ullman had a number two hit with MacColl's song They Don't Know About Love in 1983.

Although she notched up six hit singles, including My Guy which featured politician Neil Kinnock in the video, Ullman gave up music to concentrate on her acting and comedy career.

The London-born performer made the successful transition to become a US star, where The Tracey Ullman Show picked up four Emmys.
More recently she appeared in Ally McBeal as the scatty lawyer's therapist. The tribute concert on 23 September will feature a band under the direction of MacColl's musical collaborators Pete Glenister and Dave Ruffy performing with special guests.

The show is part of a season of shows showcasing the art of songwriters called The Song's The Thing at the Royal Festival Hall.

MacColl, the daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl, she is best known for her 1987 Christmas hit with The Pogues, Fairytale of New York, and the hit single There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis.

Once in punk band Drug Addix, her first solo release was They Don't Know, in 1979. It failed to make the charts until Ullman covered it four years later.

MacColl's other hits include a cover of Billy Bragg's song A New England, and a version of The Kinks' track Days.
Her last album, Tropical Brainstorm, was a tribute to Cuban music, which had influenced her throughout the 1990s.