Mr Vampire’s Norwich gigs to thank those who saved his life
A Norwich man who survived major heart surgery is giving back to those who helped him by singing in Norfolk pubs – under his stage name of Mr Vampire.
Clive Dyball, 66, of Marlborough Road, survived a double heart bypass three years ago and is now on a mission to raise as much money as possible for the British Heart Foundation and Papworth Hospital, in Cambridgeshire, where he had his operation.
After suffering from stomach pains for more than three years, specialists at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital were unable to find the cause and referred him to have tests on his heart.
An angiogram showed that he had narrow arteries and that he needed a double heart bypass.
His stage name is a tribute to the Vampires, a band he was in when he was a teenager.
Mr Dyball said: 'I have never felt better in my life. I want to do as much charity work as I can; that is my final goal in life.
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'I have made a lot of my dreams come true – now I want to sing.'
Speaking about how he got into performing, he added: 'I was in a shed with a friend what was playing a guitar and I just started singing. My friend said that a man called Bob Sutton was looking to put a band together. I auditioned and started performing with the band. We were each earning �1 a night. Back then it was a lot of money when I was 16.'
The band dissolved and Mr Dyball moved to Australia when he was 17 and worked by cutting sugar cane.
'I then moved to a small island in the Indian Ocean and worked as a labourer in a mining town. I had always dreamed of seeing the world, the furthest I had been was Old Catton.
'By the time I was 21 I had travelled the world,' he said.
He returned to the UK in 1971 when his mother became unwell.
After unsuccessfully trying to reform the band last year, Mr Dyball decided to go solo and now performs hits by Elvis, Cliff Richard and Ricky Nelson, in an attempt to raise as much money as possible.
Are you doing something amazing for charity? Call reporter Lucy Wright on 01603 772495 or email lucy.wright@archant.co.uk
