To be perfectly Blunt...

With his willowy voice and haunting melodies, former Army Captain James Blunt has become an easy listener's favourite since he marched onto the scene with the number one hit You're Beautiful.

His latest tour brings him to Birmingham's National Indoor Arena on October 7, 2008.

Here are five things you might not know about him...

1. He got his pilot's license at the tender age of 16: "I can fly anything with a single engine, from Tiger Moths to Spitfires," he says.

2. The song No Bravery from his debut album, Back to Bedlam, was penned while James was serving as a British reconnaissance officer in Kosovo, in 1999. Blunt says he wrote the song "lying by my tank in my sleeping bag with my boots on - you had to sleep with your boots on."

3. After making Captain, he was the first British officer into Pristina, leading a column of 30,000 peacekeeping troops.

4. On leaving the army and deciding to pursue a career in music, Blunt stayed at the home of an actress in Los Angeles while he recorded songs and familiarised himself with the LA music scene. He says: "With my naïve background, it was like stepping into a devil's cauldron!"

5. The song Goodbye My Lover was actually recorded in a large bathroom at the house of the LA actress, which also housed an old piano.

For more information visit www.necgroup.co.uk. Tickets can be booked through the hotline on 0871 945 6000 or by visiting www.theticketfactory.com