Badly Drawn Boy

English Indie singer-songwriter Damon Gough was born in Dunstable in 1969 and raised in Bolton.

Taking the stage name ‘Badly Drawn Boy’ (inspired by a character in the 1970s British children’s television show The Magic Ball), Gough became known on the British alternative music scene at the turn of the millennium for his lo-fi aesthetic and signature look, almost always wearing a bohemian tea cosy beanie hat.

A chance meeting with DJ and producer Andy Votel led the pair to co-found Twisted Nerve Records, an independent label that released Gough’s early EPs.

Gough became a household name with his debut studio album, The Hour of Bewilderbeast (2000), which blended eccentric folk ditties, sweeping orchestral arrangements, acoustic guitar, and nocturnal piano ballads.

The LP won the prestigious Mercury Music Prize, beating out industry favourites including Coldplay’s debut album Parachutes, Doves, and Richard Ashcroft.

Following his Mercury win, film directors Paul and Chris Weitz commissioned Gough to write the entire soundtrack for the 2002 film About a Boy.

Rather than delivering a conventional backing score, Gough treated it like a true studio album, crafting full-length hit singles like Once Around the Block and Something to Talk About.

The soundtrack was a commercial success.

Later that same year, he released Have You Fed the Fish? (2002), which leaned into a glossy, larger stadium rock sound, yielding the hit single You Were Right.

He followed it with a string of introspective albums, including One Plus One Is One (2004) and Born in the UK (2006).

After a lengthy hiatus, he made a triumphant return with his highly praised album Banana Skin Shoes in 2020.