"AWESOME!"Only a few weeks after the Evening Star announced Charlie Simpson is to play on home turf with Matt Jay and James Bourne - aka Busted - the 18-year-old has given his own reaction to the news.

"AWESOME!"

Only a few weeks after the Evening Star announced Charlie Simpson is to play on home turf with Matt Jay and James Bourne - aka Busted - the 18-year-old has given his own reaction to the news.

The chart-topping band will be headlining an outdoor concert in Christchurch Park on July 6 next year and having been left disappointed when an Ipswich date was pulled from their recent sell out UK tour, Charlie is thrilled by the news.

"We were due to play the Regent on the first night of our original tour but it had cancelled. I was very hacked off," he told the Star, which is sponsoring the summer gig.

"Our agent told us they were looking to book us for Christchurch Park or Portman Road and now we're playing the park.

"Christchurch Park. That's amazing. I used to walk our dog there with my mum.

"James is excited too because he's from Southend. All our mates and family are going to be there."

The recent news is the icing on the cake of a whirlwind year of success for Busted. The band have enjoyed two number one singles, two number one albums and a sell-out 16-date tour of the country. Their single Year 3000 was runner up in the Record of the Year competition on Saturday. Meanwhile their debut self-titled album was beaten by only one other band in terms of sales and its recently released follow up, A Present For Everyone, looks set to find its way on to hundreds of Christmas lists up and down Britain.

Next year is already shaping up to be another incredibly busy 12 months with a arena tour - which is selling fast - the rounds of summer gigs and pop festivals, including the Christchurch Park date, and promotional trips to America.

Before that, however, Charlie, who went to Framlingham College, is going to be heading back to Suffolk to spend Christmas with his parents and brothers at their Woodbridge home. From tomorrow he has three weeks before the Busted schedule picks up again - and he intends to make the most of this time off.

He'll spend time with his family before heading to the South of France for a holiday after Christmas - but he hasn't ruled out the possibility of heading into Ipswich for some last minute shopping and to check out some old haunts, so no doubt the eyes of his Suffolk fans will be pealed for a glimpse of the chart-topping pop-rock star.

"Maybe I'll pop in," he said. "I'll just have to put a cap on or something."

Charlie, James and Matt formed Busted last year and hit the big time a short while later with the release of their debut single What I Go To School For . Today, little more than a year later they are one of the country's biggest bands.

n Busted play Christchurch Park, in Ipswich, on July 16 next year. Tickets for the concert cost £25.50 (plus booking fee) and are on sale now by calling the ticketline on 0870 2255 163/164/165 any time from 9am to 5pm Monday to Saturday. Conditions apply.

Weblink: www.busted.com