CHLOE-MARIE Aston used to busk with a guitar, but when she found her fingers hurting through hours of strumming, she and her dad, Lee, came up with a novel solution.

They invented a piano-on-a-bike, which has made Chloe-Marie an increasingly popular entertainer throughout the Southwest, with a full engagement book for the rest of the year,

Based in Ilfracombe, Chloe-Marie was busy in West Somerset last weekend, playing and singing on Saturday and Sunday at the Minehead Steam Punk Festival and on Bank Holiday Monday at Watchet Esplanade and then at Torre Cider farm near Washford.

Chloe-Marie and Lee dreamed up and built the highly unusual form of transport in 2019. It comes with a built-in mixer, amplifier and headset.

A bystander at Watchet said: “She played a really entertaining mix of her own and standard songs. We had a real treat. Her unique piano combined with push bike certainly makes her stand out!”

Chloe-Marie, now 20, says: “I am studying a music performance course in further education while releasing videos of my songs, but I still love busking with my piano bike.”