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Keane’s Tom Chaplin busks for The Big Issue in London, Birmingham & Glasgow

Ahead of the release of his new Christmas album, Twelve Tales of Christmas, the chart-topping songwriter hit the road to play a series of free street busks.

Tom Chaplin – the chart-topping songwriter best known as the frontman of Keane – hit the streets of Britain over the weekend to treat fans to a series of busks with The Big Issue.

The Somewhere Only We Know singer performed three stripped-back sets at London’s Borough Market on Saturday – which you can watch in full, above – where he was also joined by the fantastic Choir With No Name, before rolling on to St Philip’s Cathedral in Birmingham on Sunday and Glasgow’s bustling Buchanan Street on Monday.

As well as treating hundreds of fans to some multi-million selling Keane favourites, Chaplin also performed his favourite Christmas dittys (including a cover of East 17’s festive juggernaut Stay Another Day) and songs from his debut solo festive album, Twelve Tales of Christmas (out now!).

“If you see a Big Issue seller, please buy a copy. Every week, for the rest of your life,” Chaplin told the 200+ crowd inside London’s Christmas-tastic Borough Market on Saturday. Sound advice.

He added: “I live in London and spend a lot of time in the city, and with it being such a freezing cold winter and still seeing homeless people on our streets, it seemed right to do this.

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“The turnout was fantastic. It was really nice because there were the more dedicated fans who got down for the start, but then more and more people turned up and the numbers began to swell.

With it being such a freezing cold winter and still seeing people on our streets, it seemed right to do this

“This is a time of year when we’re all buying lots of stuff, we’re in this mode of celebration and hooking up with family, but for many people the reality of Christmas is obviously very different.

“It’s important to stop and reflect how it might be different for other people at this time of year, and  how supporting initiatives such as The Big Issue is a very important thing to do.”

https://twitter.com/tomchaplin/status/937013415305981952

Judging by social media, fans were are as delighted with the #BigIssueBusk gigs as we were. Here are some of your responses from London…

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From Birmingham…

https://twitter.com/he4vensent1/status/937304299561824256

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https://twitter.com/he4vensent1/status/937329769565302784

https://twitter.com/melaniekwood/status/937317608864583680

https://twitter.com/Jolouise25/status/937330620749041664

And finally, from Glasgow…

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Change a vendor's life this Christmas

This Christmas, 3.8 million people across the UK will be facing extreme poverty. Thousands of those struggling will turn to selling the Big Issue as a vital source of income - they need your support to earn and lift themselves out of poverty.

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