No, it’s not an April Fools joke – British DJ and TV presenter Scott Mills is set to headline a special party among the sand dunes at the Banyan Tree Al Wadi Resort in Ras Al Khaimah on Friday.
Better known for his long-running BBC Radio One show in the UK and for his appearance on the British version of Strictly Come Dancing than as a globe trotting DJ, the 42-year-old assures us he has plenty to offer young partygoers.
“I do a lot of student gigs in the UK,” he says. “I’m not some superclub DJ – it’s a complete party set and it’ll be the same sort of set as I would play at a student union in the UK, maybe with a bit of a tweak for Dubai, but with the same sort of party vibe.”
He is certainly no stranger to the UAE.
“I played last year at a pool party at Jebel Ali resort, and that was a great night, so I have previous with Dubai,” he says.
“I’ve actually been coming there regularly since 1998, when I visited a friend who was setting up Channel Four Radio in Ajman. I come at least once a year but I’ve never been to Ras Al Khaimah. I’ll be visiting Dubai, too, but I’m quite looking forward to the peace in RAK. I’m actually bringing my mum over and we’re having a holiday too.”
Another of Mills's claims to fame in recent years is that he is one of the hosts of the BBC's coverage of the Eurovision Song Contest. The event may attract sneers of derision from music afficiandoes, but it is the world's third-most-watched televised event after the Olympic opening ceremony and the Fifa World Cup Final, attracting about 200 million viewers every year.
“It’s the most ridiculous but most fun week of my whole year,” he says. “It’s your job to enthuse about, laugh at and celebrate average and awful music from all over Europe – and now Australia too, weirdly, who joined the competition last year because they love it so much. It’s like when I hosted it when it was in Baku the other year, too. I kept thinking, ‘This is nearly Iran – how is it Europe?’ But when you’re there, it’s all that matters. You don’t hear any news or what’s going on in the world, you’re just in this weird pop bubble. I love it.”
Alas, Mills isn’t offering a set packed with Eurovision “classics” this weekend, but since its an April Fools day gig, such requests would not be out of place.
• Scott Mills performs at the Banyan Tree Al Wadi Resort, Ras Al Khaimah, on Friday. 8pm to late. Tickets cost Dh250 and are available from platinumlist.net
cnewbould@thenational.ae
