SQUEEZE co-founder Chris Difford will play a solo show in Otley this month.

The guitarist, singer and songwriter will take the stage at the Courthouse at 8pm on Saturday, May 27.

As a member of Squeeze, one of London's best-loved and longest enduring bands, Difford helped pen a string of classic hits including Cool for Cats, Up the Junction and Labelled with Love.

He recently celebrated his 60th birthday and for 41 of those years has been songwriting with the group's co-founder, Glenn Tilbrook.

Difford has been widely hailed for his smart, pithy lyricism and his and Squeeze's influence has been acknowledged by a string of contemporary acts including Lily Allen, Mark Ronson, Kasabian and Razorlight.

His first solo endeavour was writing the lyrics for the fictional band Strange Fruit in the 1998 British comedy film, Still Crazy, for which he won his first Ivor Novello award.

Since then he has written and contributed lyrics for the likes of Elton John, Wet Wet Wet, Jools Holland, Paul Carrack, Lisa Stansfield and Bryan Ferry.

Difford has als released three solot albums - most recently Cashmere if you Can, in 2010. T

A Courthouse spokeswoman said: "This is a rare chance to see one of the UK’s most talented musicians perform in a local, intimate venue."

Tickets for the show cost £15.

English Folk vocal trio Lady Maisery, meanwhile, will perform at the Courthouse on Friday, May 26.

Featuring three of the scene's rising stars - Hannah James, Hazel Askew and Rowan Rheingans - the group's repertoire spans everything from traditional tales with a feminist twist to anti-war ballads.

The band have also written a number of original compositions that draw on a myriad of musical influences, and each member is a respected musician in their own right.

Accordionist Hannah James came to fame with her band Kerfuffle before forming a duo with Sam Sweeney and is also a champion clog dancer.

Hazel Askew is a multi-instrumentalist who performs in a longstanding duo with her sister Emily, as The Askew Sisters.

Their most recent album, In the Air or the Earth, won Best Traditional Album at the Spiral Earth Awards 2015.

Rowan Rheingans, who plays fiddle, banjo and bansitar, also performs in a duo with her sister and last year their song Mackerel won the BBC Folk Award for best original track.

All three are also key members of the English/Scottish supergroup Songs of Separation, whose debut album and premiere at Celtic Connections festival pushed them straight into the indie album charts top 20 last January.

Lady Maisery’s debut album, Weave and Spin, was released in 2011 and their reputation was cemented with its follow-up, Mayday, two years later, and then the acclaimed Cycle in October, 2016.

Tickets for the band's Otley show cost £12.

To book tickets for any forthcoming attraction at the Courthosue visit otleycourthouse.org.uk, call (01943) 467466 or pop into the venue on Courthouse Street, Otley.