Damian Lewis, star of Homeland and Band of Brothers is to sing the national anthem ahead of Sunday's British Grand Prix.

Curiously, the press release announcing the news refers to Lewis as a "singer-songwriter" though most know of him as an actor, who has starred in countless movies and TV series such as Band of Brothers, Homeland and Billions.

Of course, by a strange coincidence this weekend's Grand Prix sees filming of the Brad Pitt F1 movie get underway, with the production very much involved in the actual race weekend.

Amidst talk of cars from the movie taking part in the formation lap, sharp-eyed fans have noted garages at the circuit marked out for Pitt's character Sonny Hayes and that of his teammate, Joshua Pearce who will be played by the British-Nigerian actor Damson Idris.

With this is mind, would we be wide of the mark in assuming that Lewis isn't only performing the anthem at the weekend but in fact has a role in the movie, possibly as a team boss who has dreams of being a rock star... EJ anyone?

Lewis recently took his first formal steps into music with the release of his debut album 'Mission Creep' and has played sold out shows in London at The Omeara, Tabernacle and Hoxton Hall as well as at Wilderness, Cheltenham Jazz and Black Deer festivals.

'Mission Creep', we are told, is a thoughtful collection of rootsy, rock and jazz-tinged songs that reveals a deep love of music and showcases Lewis' song-writing which is poetic, poignant and deeply personal.

He most recently starred in and executive produced ITVX's 'A Spy Among Friends' and will soon make a highly anticipated return to Showtime's 'Billions'.

"Never in a million years did I think I'd be singing the National Anthem or playing a gig with my band at the British Grand Prix," said Lewis. "It's so special, with a unique festival atmosphere and I'm honoured to have been asked."

Our dream is the Foo Fighters or Queens of the Stone Age singing the Star Spangled Banner in Vegas though it will probably be Adele, Lady Gaga or Lizzo.

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by F1nerd, 07/07/2023 22:25

"It would be a much better and more appropriate to have it played by the Royal Marines Band."

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2. Posted by Defiant, 06/07/2023 16:44

"EVERYTHING about this actually makes me mad. Fiberty and all of it's utterly stupid and HATEFUL American traditions can go *$%# themselves. "

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3. Posted by kenji, 06/07/2023 12:56

" dear oh dear.....I guess that there's a first time for everything...."

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4. Posted by Defiant, 06/07/2023 3:27

"What a truly appalling idea. Why are they trying to americanise the UK? Absolutely dreadful"

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5. Posted by kenji, 06/07/2023 2:57 (moderated by an Adminstrator, 06/07/2023 7:37)

"This comment was removed by an administrator as it was judged to have broken the site's posting rules and etiquette."

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6. Posted by Pawsche, 05/07/2023 23:29

"It's the British Grand Prix not the feckin' Indy 500!!"

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7. Posted by trackrecords, 05/07/2023 20:22 (moderated by an Adminstrator, 06/07/2023 7:37)

"That revelation is best combined with the memory of when the actor chaired "Have I Got News For You", and a baffled Ian Hislop quizzed, 'Who are you?'... "

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8. Posted by Burton, 05/07/2023 12:47

"QOTSA being hired to play the anthem but instead jumping into Feel Good Hit of the Summer would mayyybe save the Vegas GP."

Actor Damian Lewis to sing national anthem at Silverstone

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