Burnham told ‘you’re a musician’ after playing steel drum in Caribbean

WorldPolitics
4 Nov 2026 • 11:07 PM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

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Burnham told ‘you’re a musician’ after playing steel drum in Caribbean

Andy Burnham tried his hand at playing the steel drum during his trip to the Caribbean.

The Prime Minister played Mary Had A Little Lamb while in Antigua for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.

Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, left, joined the Prime Minister on the steel drum (Kin Cheung/Press Association) (PA Wire)

After his performance of the nursery rhyme, he was told by director Khan Cordice of the Hell’s Gate steel orchestra “you’re a musician”, to which Mr Burnham modestly replied: “I play a little music.”

He was later joined by Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband for a duet of the nursery rhyme.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham on the guitar during his trip to Kyiv (Henry Nicholls/PA) (PA Wire)

Mr Burnham said: “It’s a great way of getting people together.”

The pair arrived to the orchestra playing the William Tell overture by Rossini.

Mr Burnham has previously shown off his musical skills on the guitar, including playing a song by The Smiths after being handed an instrument by a Ukrainian soldier on a visit to Kyiv.

Andy Burnham and Feargal Sharkey played Teenage Kicks together in 2009 (Peter Byrne/PA) (PA Wire)

While he was Greater Manchester mayor, he played a few chords during a chat with former Stone Roses and Simply Red guitarist Aziz Ibrahim.

And during his time as culture secretary, he played Teenage Kicks with the Undertones singer Feargal Sharkey.

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