IT'S five years to the day since the death of David Bowie.

The singer, one of the most respected, influential and revered artists the UK has produced, performed at the Gaumont in Worcester on his Ziggy Stardust tour on June 5, 1973.

Worcester News reporter Mike Pryce was there. And this is what he saw

"All the he-men’, ‘she-men’ and ‘in-between’ men descended on Worcester last night to see their hero David Bowie.

"He landed at Worcester Gaumont from his planet far away, as part of his latest Ziggy Stardust and Aladdin Sane tour.

Listen to the gig here

"I’ve covered loads of rock concerts at the Gaumont, from Jimi Hendrix to The Seekers by way of Cliff Richard and The Faces, but never has there been an audience like Bowie’s.

"It’s as if a box has been opened and all these weirdly dressed people climbed out.

"Where are they all in the daytime? Do they dress like that working the lathes at Heenan’s or is it their dark secret?

"Bowie is the strangest dressed rock star I’ve ever met, outside of pantomime.

"I’ve never met a man wearing so much female make-up and sporting such strange clothes, but he is disturbingly beautiful for a man.

"It’s a look his fans try to replicate, with mixed success, and the queue outside the Gaumont seemed to comprise of travellers from a charabanc spaceship from Planet Zog.

"Musically, it was a great night though. With the aid of the excellent Mick Ronson and the rest of The Spiders From Mars, Bowie powered his way through his back catalogue from Space Oddity to Ziggy Stardust.

"There was also a rendition of All The Young Dudes, which he wrote for Herefordshire group Mott The Hoople, plus new songs from the recently released Aladdin Sane album.

"Bowie (or is it Ziggy? It’s difficult to see a difference these days), performed throughout with huge energy.

"He puts on a show, not a rock concert, with numerous costume changes. He jumped on the speakers, performed an ‘exotic’ strobe-lit solo with Ronson, and even climbed up the ornate embellishments of the Gaumont walls.

"He finished with Chuck Berry’s Around and Around, and then he was gone, leaving us with ears ringing from the volume, back to whatever planet he comes from."