♫  Overconfident, vain, scrappy  ♫

A Manc singer with a voice as big as his head.

Mick is a fair and attractive young man. He has long light blond hair that brushes over his ears and brow line, which he claims as his own iconic hairstyle. He has sky-blue eyes, shiny teeth, and a prominent freckle on his right cheek (and it's not a mole, he will have you know!). He is on the thinner side thanks to his upbringing, which he can be a little flustered about. He loves wearing nice clothes, especially tailor-made suits, eager to show off his wealth and his more cultured side. His favourite outfit is a grey pinstripe suit he bought before the release of the band's first LP, and he is rarely seen without it in photographs. He always wears shoes with heels to give a boost to his height. Typically, he is seen in black Beatle boots, or Chelsea boots with Cuban heels. Although Mick has long legs and a lanky frame, he only measures 5'4".

Mick is an enthusiastic, restless young man, who wants to be part of anything energetic and exciting. In fact, he's not even a stranger to fighting if things escalate. A lover of the spotlight, Mick doesn't often stray far away from the public, and thrives in social events. He's barely ever seen alone, and would never be seen without someone to chat with. Mick is a very light-hearted person, and doesn't like drama, discourse, or anything else that brings the mood down. When situations head south, he is the kind to either fight or leave. Mick may be from a working-class family, but it doesn't stop him from coming off as pompous and full of himself. He's extremely prideful of both himself and his upbringing. If anyone brings up the North in the slightest sense, he has to butt in and proclaim his love for his hometown. Mick likes to be on top of everything, and always wants to be in the know. Even though he seems to be on top of the world, with his records reaching chart levels he wouldn't have dreamed of before he left home, there might be more behind his egotistical appearance than he lets on.

Mick's story takes place in the mid-60's in London (specifically 1964). It's the Swinging 60's, and Mick is a nationwide star, ready to break out in America and beyond.

Mick was born in Manchester to a working class family on November 21st, 1944. His father, John, was a factory worker, and his mother, Faith, was a home-keeper. He has three siblings and is the youngest of them. His eldest brother, David, was born in 1939, his eldest sister, Catherine, was born in 1940, and his elder sister Judith was born in 1942. The family relied on their father's wages to get by, and typically lived day-to-day. Though it was a tough time, the family were very close, and generally enjoyed each other's companies. The family had firm roots in Labour views, especially with Mick's father being an industrial worker. The Allen family was Christian, and Mick was brought up under the Church of England. Music was a big part of the family. Sure, there was the choir music in church, but Mick preferred the radio they had at home, where he'd hear Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, and the Andrews Sisters. From a young age, he loved to dance and sing to music with his siblings.

Mick was a very active child and loved to play with anything and anyone he could get his hands on. His parents saw him as sort of a miracle after the war had ended- after all, Manchester had been a target for bombings for years, and Mick was born half a year prior to VE Day. His parents were very encouraging of him as a result, and Mick would often get himself into trouble, exploring ruins of buildings and picking fights with other boys.

As Mick grew up and entered school, his rambunctious personality only grew. As a child of a working class family, he was always a little rough at the edges, and wasn't a stranger to being teased. To put up with this, Mick would usually retaliate by lying, saying he was actually very well-off and spoiled... or, just give his bullies a punch or two. For this, Mick was used to getting a rap or two over the knuckles.

Mick's scrappy behaviour lasted well past primary school. Though still a fighter at heart when he entered into secondary school, he learned to compose himself more. He tried to act more posh than he truly was. He thought that this would make him seem more well brought-up than his classmates, some of whom were much wealthier than his family was. He wasn't quite intelligent enough to brag about his marks, and he wasn't athletic enough to show off on the field, so he tried to make up for both by being extroverted, flirtatious, and overconfident. Most of his teenage years were spent dancing to the radio after school, and trying to seduce the girls in his year. His liaisons would be short-lived, and often would result in Mick fighting with other boys, hoping to either impress the boys or win over the girls. Love never really worked out in his favour at this point in time. Neither did his marks, where he barely scraped by with passing O-levels in his English Language, History, and Chemistry GCEs.

There was one good thing about Mick's secondary education, being when he met Brian Waltham. The two passed each other one day on the school grounds, where Mick noticed Brian holding an armful of records. Mick asked what he had, and was promptly dazzled by all the musicians he didn't recognise. The two got to know each other quite well over the course of time, even if Brian was a year his senior and they didn't share any classes. They bonded over their shared love of music, and Brian made a large impression on Mick by introducing him to African American blues and rock musicians like Chuck Berry and Lightnin' Hopkins. Brian told Mick that he wanted to be a Mod, something completely alien yet enticing to Mick. The two agreed that they were both going to be Mods. Maybe the only two in all of Manchester.

After learning about such incredible music, Mick had his sights set on being alongside them in terms of talent. Brian's father owned a music shop, and so Mick would frequently go with his friend to the shop to try and master the guitar- or bass, or drums, or anything, for that matter. But no luck. He couldn't get the hang of anything, despite having a good knack for rhythm and singing. Upon realising this, he changed his mind and began to hone his singing skills. He discovered that he had a real passion for singing. There was no real need to practice, he had the freedom to move around and dance- and, of course- he got so much attention. He would sing constantly, so much so that his parents would yell at him to quiet down... more than they ever had before!

Brian and Mick were nearly inseparable by the time they were seventeen. Brian had become quite skilled at the guitar by this point. The two would try and mimic the songs they loved, or even try to make up their own. They had played little skiffle gigs here and there, and impressed many of their peers. A few times, they even went and played little tunes at local pubs. Though usually ignored by the patrons, they did feel more confident about their skills. The two decided that they should move away to London, the big city, and make their own band- that would be where they could get the most success. And so, at the age of seventeen, Mick moved away from Manchester to London to make his dreams a reality, and to become a real, cosmopolitan Mod.

Once in London, the two took up badly-paying jobs to make ends meet, and lived together in a crummy flat that was constantly leaking. They would look to hip places in London for hope and inspiration, and would pool their money to go to the clubs and watch other bands (many of whom were in their early stages)- or, be really cool and go to the coveted jazz clubs. Brian enjoyed the jazz music more so than Mick, who idolised local bands like the High Numbers and the Small Faces, or the Beatles and Stones songs playing over the radio, knowing that that was what he wanted to be. They started hanging out with the musicians after shows, jamming with them at home, and making friends. Through this, the two became especially close with John Derrick, recruiting him into the band, and eventually acquired young Pete Dalston after putting an ad out in the papers. This newly formed band slowly formed into The Worthies, a name suggested by Mick for how worthy they were of stardom.

Their first shots at fame were playing short shows at pubs and cafes, which gained them some attention as upcoming artists- mostly for their catchy, bluesy rhythms, and Mick's natural knack for dancing (especially in the way that it got girls quite excited). They were eventually scouted out and met a record company executive, who offered them money for a single. The band gleefully agreed and put out "Saturday Is Ours" / "Love in the Making" (both songs that Mick and Brian had co-wrote years prior) in August 1964. Though not a smash success, it got airplay, and Mick was ecstatic. Mick also started to experiment with drugs around this time, and discovered a newfound love for amphetamines. He thought they made his dancing even better.

Life only improved from there. The Worthies got contracts for more singles, they played more shows, and gained more local fame. Mick met girls left and right, danced throughout the night (often with the help of his pep pills), and could buy anything he wanted to. He gained the nickname "Mancunian Mick"- him being a Northerner was oftentimes quite a charming trait of his when down in London. He was experiencing joys he never had access to before. And, of course, he knows he's now a real Mod, buying more and more suits as his love of Italian culture becomes more prevalent. The Worthies even got their first self titled LP, released in late 1964, to hit the charts. Where could the Worthies' success bring them next?