HIS love and talent for music has seen him share the stage with Gary Barlow and Elton John and revel at the sheer spectacle of the Olympic opening ceremony during his performance.

But for Craig Sherratt, of Norley Close, Whitecross, one of the most ‘surreal’ moments was drinking a cup of tea with Coldplay front man, Chris Martin.

The 42-year-old, who plays for the Company Performance Ensemble, is part of a marching band, which has been booked to perform on some of the UK’s biggest television shows and concerts.

He said: “I have been involved with marching bands all my life. They were looking for drummer to help with a song called Drummer Boy by Alesha Dixon and on her promotional tour and her video.

“Since then I’ve been able to spread my wings a bit more in the music business. There have been many moments that have been surreal.”

The talented drummer joined his first marching band when he was aged seven with the Warrington Corps of Drums.

“Warrington used to be the hub for marching bands,” remembers Craig, who still has a full time job in sales at a fire company. “But there are none in Warrington anymore.”

Over the years, Craig has become good friends with renowned creative director Kim Gavin and the two friends have worked together on a number of projects.

“He trusts me to get the job done. Often we are just given an idea and I have to work some of the stuff out.”

Craig is remaining tight-lipped about what the marching band has planned for the New Year but said they are some exciting things in the pipeline.

“Sometimes things can fall through at the last minute so I don’t tend to tell anyone about it,” said Craig.

Despite taking to the stage at Wembley Arena for the X Factor final and playing a part in the Olympic opening and closing ceremony, which took around 18 months of planning, Craig remains modest about his success.

He added: “It’s about being in the right place at the right time.”