Rick Astley spotted at Rushden Lakes Shopping Centre ahead of gig

Pop star Rick Astley turned heads when he was spotted at a shopping centre hours before a live show.

The Never Gonna Give You Up singer was seen in Bill's restaurant at Rushden Lakes, Northamptonshire on Thursday, ahead of a gig in Nottingham.

Astley was wearing a baseball cap and glasses but it was not enough to stop one fan from recognising him.

Michael Duignan said he "knew his face looked familiar" and "had to get a selfie".

Mr Duignan was at the shopping centre with his wife and children and had sat down in a restaurant, when he spotted a familiar face outside.

He told the BBC: "We ate our food and, when paying the bill, I noticed a man in a baseball cap and glasses greeting a couple.

"I thought his face looked familiar. It was either Rick Astley or good lookalike.

"I told my wife and went outside to see if it was him by giving him a fist bump and saying 'Hey Rick, how are you?'".

He said the star appeared shocked before responding: "Well spotted."

He added he was "a very nice man" and had to go back for a photo because "no-one would have believed me otherwise".

Astley performed at the Motorpoint Arena in Nottingham as part of his Are We There Yet? tour on Thursday evening.

He was due to perform in Newcastle on Friday night.

Now 58 years old, Astley became an overnight sensation in 1987, when Never Gonna Give You Up topped the charts in 25 countries.

He staged a musical comeback in 2016 and went on to play Glastonbury.

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