Mark Ritchie was born in the town of Corby, Northamptonshire, on 24th November 1961. By the age of 11yrs he was performing in local bands and playing in the pubs and clubs of Northamptonshire and Leicester.

With the advent of the, then state of the art, cassette backing tracks, he began to perform solo, learning to play the guitar along the way. At about this time his love for Country music was emerging as the old style of Country and Western made way for the likes of John Denver, Glen Campbell and the Eagles.

Throughout the late 70’s and early 80’s he performed at a variety of venues around the UK and in the late 80’s relocated to Mallorca.

For the next five years he played at various bars and restaurants until, in 1992, he moved to Santa Ponsa and the legend of the “Royal Garden” began!

In 2004 Mark was thrilled to make his pilgrimage to Nashville, the spiritual home of Country music, where he enjoyed performing at several of the well- known bars along Lower Broadway’s famous strip. However, even the bright lights of Nashville were not enough to lure Mark away from Mallorca.