Charles Aznavour to perform at Royal Albert Hall

PanARMENIAN.Net - Veteran French singer Charles Aznavour is to perform at the Royal Albert Hall in what will be his first live concert in the UK for more than 25 years, BBC News reports.

Aznavour, 89, whose career spans more than 60 years, has had many hits including She, The Old-Fashioned Way and Yesterday When I Was Young.

Aznavour has also starred in 80 movies such as Tirez sur le Pianiste (Shoot the Pianist). His songs have also been recorded by the likes of Edith Piaf and Sting. He also starred in The Tin Drum, which scooped the Palme d'Or at Cannes in 1979.

Tickets for the Albert Hall concert go on sale on June 28.

Aznavour bid farewell to his touring days over 10 years ago but has gone on to perform more than 100 one-off concerts around the world since then.

Of Armenian heritage, Aznavour - also known as "the French Sinatra" - founded the charity Aznavour for Armenia following the earthquake there in 1988.

The singer and actor is also known for supporting political causes. In January 2001, Aznavour supported the French government's recognition of the Armenian Genocide under the Ottoman Empire.

In April 2002, when far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen made it through to the second round of the French presidential elections, Aznavour joined other celebrities in signing the Vive la France petition, urging members of the public to go out and sing the French national anthem for the Republic as a protest.