FOLLOWING a remarkable recovery from a diagnosis of terminal cancer, Wilko Johnson the original Dr Feelgood guitarist, actor and all round national treasure has enjoyed a rousing return to the live arena, including a number one album with Roger Daltrey, a sold out show at The Royal Albert Hall to mark his 70th birthday and, most recently, the release of Blow Your Mind, his first album of new material in decades.

Wilko is famed for his blistering chop-chord strumming action (the ‘stab’, as he describes it), a technique inspired by his admiration of the late Pirates guitarist Mick Green. With this electrifying sound, his trademark black-suited, scowling look and his characteristic strut, Wilko became one of the guitar heroes of the 1970s and beyond, not to mention on of rock ‘n’ roll’s most extraordinary characters. He, alongside his original Feelgood bandmates, is also widely acknowledged as a forefather of punk on both sides of the Atlantic, fans ranging from Joe Strummer to Blondie.

Following a stint with Ian Dury and The Blockheads in the 1980s, he formed the Wilko Johnson Band, with Blockheads bassist Norman Watt-Roy. Featuring former Blockhead Dylan Howe on drums, the trio is known as one of the most exciting R’n’B bands in the world today.

Wilko’s career took another twist in 2010, when he was offered an acting part in the hit series Game of Thrones, playing the role of mute executioner Ilyn Payne. He appeared in four episodes shown in 2011 and 2012.

2014 saw the release of the hit album Going Back Home, Wilko’s collaboration with Roger Daltrey but then came his cancer diagnosis and a brave fight that seemed to defy medical esperts.

“All my life I’ve never planned things,” he says. “I let things happen – and rock & roll is my life. If you’d told me when I was 21 that I’d still be playing rock & roll on my 70th birthday, I wouldn’t have believed you.

The Wilko Johnson Band play New Brighton Floral Pavilion on Thursday, February 10. Tickets: £34.25.