Son of ‘Rats’ member to sing in church

CHOIR singing and the Boomtown Rats rarely go hand in hand, but the son of one of the band members is set to sing for the royal couple in Westminster Abbey today.

Luciano Cusack, son of former Rat bass player, Pete Briquette, and one of the 32 pupils at the exclusive Westminster Abbey Choir School, will be part of the choir singing for Prince William and Kate Middleton as they walk up the aisle.

Speaking on RTÉ radio, Pete, originally from county Cavan but living in west London, said his 12-year-old has been working hard in preparation for today’s event.

“Music is priority in the school and the choir have been rehearsing intensely in the run-up to the wedding. They were rehearsing in the Abbey last week when Kate and William arrived, along with Kate’s dad, and the couple walked up the aisle while the choir were singing.”

Pete said his son had shown promise very early on in his life, and at seven years old Luciano asked if he could go to a school where he could sing.

“Luciano was very lucky — he went to voice trials at Westminster Abbey and they seemed happy with him, so he joined the school about four years ago.”

However while Pete said that his son is feeling somewhat “star struck” about performing at what is set to be the wedding of the year, it will not be the first time Luciano has performed for the royal family.

“Luciano has performed at a lot of events — he even did queen’s birthday last week — but this will be the biggest thing he’s done. It should be a wonderful occasion with many celebrities rubbing shoulders, so he is very aware of how momentous it is. I’ve been trying to find out what songs they will be singing but Luciano said he was told to say he was very excited, and not say any more.”