It's shaping up to be one of the biggest reunions in Australia's entertainment industry, and veteran Wollongong performer Scott Radburn can't wait.
Stalwarts of the Australian live performance circuit since 1962, The Four Kinsmen, once a household name, called it quits in 2009. Scott was the last member of the group to join. That was more than 20 years earlier.
Prior to that, in England during the 1960s, they supported comedian Dave Allen for a three-month booking and worked with legends of the British music scene, including Engelbert Humperdink, Des O'Connor, Val Doonican and comedian Benny Hill.
In 1975, The Kinsmen won the first of 25 Mo Awards, which celebrated the best of the best in Australia's live entertainment industry. They still hold the record for the most Mo wins in the awards' history.
Over the years there were lineup changes and in 1986 the last original member George Fay left, to be replaced by Scott Radburn.
He vividly recalls the phone call from Four Kinsmen member Graham Wilson, another Wollongong performer, who invited Scott to audition in Figtree.
When the group played a prank on a nervous Scott with a "bloody big snake", he realised he'd be in for "plenty of fun and games" as the latest addition to The Four Kinsmen.
For more than two decades the group set a cracking pace, sometimes performing twice daily. "We probably did 2000 to 3000 shows over all those years," Scott said.
He has fond memories of breaking into the American live entertainment scene, playing across 27 states, including two years in Las Vegas where "they gave us a chance at one of the big casinos".
Despite their globe-trotting life on the road, Scott said "we always called Australia home."
While he and his wife Cheryl relocated to the Gold Coast temporarily when The Kinsmen had a long stint at Jupiter's Casino, "Wollongong always drew us back.
"We always knew we'd be back. Wollongong is a big city but in many ways it feels like a small community village, where everyone looks after each other."
Scott said The Four Kinsmen always had a soft spot for the Illawarra and he has "so many great memories" performing at the opening of the WIN Entertainment Centre, and dozens of shows at IPAC, Woonona Bulli RSL, Dapto and Shellharbour Leagues Clubs, to name a few.
Scott credits a very special evening at Wollongong's Centro nightspot about two years ago for bringing about the The Four Kinsmen's reunion.
"We'd lost our dear friend and colleague Graham Wilson a few years earlier and George (Harvey) and Robert (Pearson) were performing together on stage. I was just there in the centre of the audience with Cheryl, having dinner and enjoying the show when out of the blue they invited me on to the stage.
"Coincidentally it was Graham's birthday and so the three of us sang happy birthday to him and there were so many fans of The Four Kinsmen in the audience, everyone joined in.
"That was very special for all of us, and then I was asked what was a special song for Graham that we might sing together. I didn't hesitate saying, 'Wet Wet Wet's Love is All Around.'
"The next minute we started the song, and through the wonders of technology Graham joined us on the Centro big screen and the four of us were suddenly back together again. We all got very emotional and it's fair to say there wasn't a dry eye in the place."
Scott said the next morning the three of them caught up for breakfast.
"We looked at each other and agreed the feeling last night being back on stage together was unbelievable and that's when we agreed to get back together."
The plan is to continue to include Graham in the show performing virtually.
"And the really good thing is we won't have to pay him," Scott laughed.
"This has all come as a great surprise to me and we're all really excited."
Scott hopes there will be plenty of Kinsmen fans coming back to enjoy a nostalgic new show with a few surprises. He said, over the years, the group had always attracted new audiences and he hopes that will be the case again when they go back on the road.
The first reunion show has been confirmed for the Penrith Panthers Leagues Club on 1 March 2026 and Scott is hopeful, just like the good old days, there will be plenty of other gigs across the country. "And we'll definitely back in Wollongong," he said.
