Searchers Snippets – January 2026
I don’t know if anyone came across my letter to the readers letters page in the Mail today (Jan 5th) but lest anyone thinks I’m getting ideas above my station I want to point out the erroneous credit at the end stating that I am the lead vocalist with the Searchers. My goodness, that is something I am certainly not. I’m usually safely tucked away in the harmonies section of our recordings while the main voices came from Mike Pender, Spencer James or occasionally in the early days Chris Curtis, all of whom possess (or possessed in Chris’s case, he having sadly passed on) excellent vocal talents.
I have indeed managed a few lead parts with varying degrees of success (or failure depending on your point of view) but I certainly wouldn’t call myself a lead singer.
Anyway, all that apart, I do hope the someone rectifies the Petula Clark situation before she is no longer with us to enjoy the most deserved honour. It should have been done years ago.
Happy New Year to you all.
Frank Allen
Hi yet again. I’m here with yet another snippet. I hope it is of interest to you.
We Searchers have always been so proud of our crew and in particular the duo of Phil Hayes and John Semark who stayed with us for around thirty years each. A little more for Phil and just under for John. And so it was a slight worry when we began the Thank You tours in 2023 without them. John had by that time taken up what you might call a ‘proper job’. Phil decided he wanted a well earned rest from touring and therefore understandably didn’t accept the offer of being with us for a few more shows.
For the new run of concerts Alan Field had secured the employment of two guys we had never met before, sound man Jimi Howell and back line/guitar tech Rob Hawkins. We had already been told they were excellent but even then we still had to find out if we were going to get on well with them socially. It turned out to be a worry free zone. Jimi and Rob were technically over-competent and were incredibly affable blokes to boot. They made life on our ‘comeback tours’ an absolute joy and we have kept in touch with them ever since. I am always keen to find out what bands and shows they have been working with and to hear the stories about their adventures in their lives beyond The Searchers.
I got a text from Jimi recently saying that he and his daughter Lily-Mae were coming to London to catch the musical The Producers at The Garrick Theatre and would I like to join them? Well, certainly, I very much would. And what an enjoyable time it was. We met up early in order to have a bite to eat at a cafe in Frith Street just opposite the world famous Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club first. Jimi and I had a lot to catch up on and I hope Lily-Mae didn’t feel too left out at any point. She seemed quite happy listening to Jimi and I reminiscing over the shows we did together and in particular Glastonbury which none of us have ever managed to get over with so far.
I can thoroughly recommend The Producers, lots of fun, lots of glitter and a super stage production. We managed to take a quick snap in our seats before curtain up to accompany this snippet.
Do check in regularly because I intend to add new items as and when the opportunity arises and if they seem fitting, even though there obviously won’t be any Searchers shows to talk about. Do let Gary know if it’s what you want. Or even if it’s not what you want.
I hope the new year has started well for you.
Cheers
Frank Allen.