THE REG Vardy Band landed a hat-trick of wins at the region’s brass band championships.

The world-class band, based in Stanley, County Durham, won the Northern Regional Championships for the 36th time at the Gala Theatre, Durham, last month (March).

Additionally, Reg Vardy cornet player Philip Tait won the Best Cornet prize for the second year running – following in the footsteps of his father Bryan Tait who won the award many times, and the band also picked up the Best Bass Section award for the second consecutive year.

The success means the band is now ranked tenth in the world rankings, its highest position for many years.

The Reg Vardy Band began life as Craghead Colliery Band and was renamed the Ever Ready Band following the closure of the colliery in the 1960s. It is supported by the Reg Vardy Foundation.

It has won its regional championships more than any other band in the country and will now represent the north in the National Brass Band Championships for the 48th time when the contest takes place at the Royal Albert Hall in October.

Its next concert will be at the Sage Gateshead on Sunday, May 1 at 2pm, appearing alongside Bede Wind Philharmonic and South Tyneside Wind Band in a concert titled Reg Vardy Band and Friends. Tickets are £15, with concessions available. To book, visit sagegateshead.com/event/reg-vardy-band-and-friends

On Saturday, May 14, the band will compete in the British Open Spring Festival in Blackpool, hoping to qualify for an invitation to the British Open Brass Band Championships, said to be the most prestigious brass band competition in the world, at the Birmingham Symphony Hall in September. The band last appeared in the contest in 2013.

For more information, visit facebook.com/theregvardyband