A former Woking News & Mail journalist has blasted off into a new role as a rock star with a space-themed band.

Tim Masters worked as a reporter on the Woking News & Mail from 1983-86 under the editorship of the late Tony L'Estrange.

Tim said: “It was my first job out of college and I loved it - especially writing the weekly rock and pop column, Soundscene.

“Anyway, after a long career in journalism - including 32 years at the BBC - I've now retired and formed a rock band!

“Based in Oxford, we are called Lunar Kites and our debut LP has just been released on vinyl, CD and digital. We're playing a lot of gigs - including the O2 Oxford - and the band is really starting to take off.

“A friend of mine recently bought me a copy of the Woking News & Mail and I was delighted to see it's still going strong.”

Lunar Kites, pictured from left, are Roger Bowley (bass), Jason Foster (guitar), Antonio Serrano (vocals and samples), Andrew Findlay (drums) and Tim Masters (guitar and synths).

Their first LP is called The DoomStar Chronicles, and its eight tracks - Interstellar Shout, Space Wizard, Rivers, Epilogue, Pink Lounge, The Final Voyage of the P7E, Heavy Air and Avoid All Droids - take listeners on a rock journey through space.

Or as the band describes it: “Lunar Kites weaves cosmic storytelling with guitar-driven melodies and intricate bass lines, grooves anchored by chill rhythms, an accentuated voice bringing theatrical intensity, and synthy architectural arrangements exploring space exploration, dystopian futures, distant moons and Earth-bound pollution.

“There are immersive textures, transcendent themes, the beauty found in the void. Come aboard - the engines are humming.”

The band’s videos can be seen on its YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/@lunarkites and more information is available on its website at https://lunarkites.com