Veteran entertainer Max Bygraves is celebrating his 81st birthday and his 60th year in showbusiness with a trip to Sussex.

His days of gold records - he has 31 - may be long gone but the man who has performed alongside such legends as Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and Judy Garland is still going strong.

Max is due to perform at the White Rock Theatre in Hastings tomorrow and at the Pavilion Theatre in Worthing next Thursday.

With him will be the Beverley Sisters, who performed alongside Max in the Fifties.

Max's son Anthony used to live in Brighton, as did his daughters Christine and Maxine, who later moved to Spain.

And his fans can expect a familiar feel to this week's shows.

Max said: "We know what our audience is - they're generally the over-50s and we'll have the right mix of music they want to hear.

"Nowadays it seems quality music has gone missing. Television seems obsessed with sitcoms and docusoaps.

"They've taken away the main ingredient of entertainment, which is music."

Many performers of Max's age and experience would sit back and let the royalties roll in from hits like You Need Hands, Fings Ain't What They Used To Be and Tulips From Amsterdam.

But he insisted: "It's all about being able to work - that's lovely for me. I'm 81 now and when I look around at people my age, I'm thankful.

"I've still got my own hair, my own teeth and all my faculties apart from a little deafness in my right ear. And I'm still working."

He began singing and performing comedy routines in the RAF and won an award for best act in Fighter Command.

He said: "I felt I had nothing else to turn to once I was demobbed. I spent two years touring the sticks, gradually learning my craft in front of audiences which got bigger and bigger.

"By the end of 1949, I was a regular on the radio and the next step was to appear at the London Palladium."

Max went on to make a total of 19 appearances at the Palladium.

On the same bill at one performance was Wizard Of Oz star Judy Garland, who was so impressed with Max she wanted a similar star to support her back in America. Max said: "I went out and had a great time performing in 1950, 1951 and 1952."

He appeared with Judy at the Palace in Times Square, New York. Further stints in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Las Vegas followed.

Max finds it hard to choose his favourite performer. He said: "I can't pick out one name. I spent time with so many of the greats - Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Gracie Fields.

"I ended up with 31 gold discs so a lot of people must have been buying my albums. They still are, though my songs don't get played on the radio.

"It doesn't compare with today's scene, though. I'm not rich. Elton John and Paul McCartney, those are the ones who are rich. I'm just someone who's been a working entertainer all my life."