£1m deal puts Dinnington Colliery Band on Lady Gaga record label

A STRUGGLING brass band has been given a £1 million record deal by the same label as pop star Lady Gaga after it took part in a TV documentary.

Dinnington Colliery Band, which features in the BBC show A Band For Britain, also shares the record label with the Rolling Stones and Amy Winehouse.

Members have been paid an advance by Decca, which will be spent on a new practice room.

They also released a debut album on Monday, to coincide with the end of the Miners' Strike 25 years ago.

When it was picked to star in A Band for Britain, the first episode of which aired on Monday, the 106-year-old brass band was on its last legs.

It had only six members, five of whom were from the same family, and had no conductor or funding, leaving comedian Sue Perkins with a daunting challenge as its new conductor.

Decca signed the band up and agreed to pay them an advance that will allow them to pay off debts and build a new rehearsal room.

Band manager Joanne Brookes-Wright said: “We can’t believe it, everyone is still pinching themselves.

“The band was actually approached by another record label but we decided to go with Decca.

“We would never have been signed if it wasn't for the show and would like to thank Sue, who was just wonderful.”

Head of A&R for Decca, Tom Lewis, said: “The record is like an authentic piece of Yorkshire coal.

“You can immediately feel the warmth, passion and pride of the band.

“They've been keeping a great British tradition alive at grass roots level. This is not for any individual gain but more for the important role the band plays in their community."

The extraordinary change of fortunes for the Dinnington band is revealed in A Band for Britain, a three-part series at 9pm on Mondays on BBC2.

Joanne hopes that their success will lead to more children becoming interested in brass bands.

She added: “Just to get into the charts would be an achievement in itself.”