Mick Foster and Tony Allen are looking forward to 2015, with a string of adventures that would test the stamina of many of the young folk emerging on the scene.

It has been an amazing four decades for the duo, who joined forces back in 1975. From Rambles of Spring to topping the charts in Britain and Australia, they have stood the test of time in remarkable fashion.

“I suppose there is an enduring appeal to the kind of music we do and that has been at the heart of our success,” reflects Tony Allen. “Most of our songs find a place in the hearts of audiences, from Canada to South Africa. People always love to join in and sing along with the classics.”

The lads have always enjoyed phenomenal popularity in Britain, where they have charted on numerous occasions.

Their current album, Gold and Silver Days, made the British top 40 in its first week of release.

“UK audiences are brilliant and we love playing the theatres over there. Next Sunday [21 December] we are live with Terry Wogan, between 11am and 1pm, for his show on BBC Radio 2. It has a huge audience. We did it last year and are delighted to be invited back again this time.

“BBC Radio 2 will do a special 40th anniversary show about us in 2015. Plans are already well advanced and it will also feature The Chieftains, Shayne Ward, the tenor Alfie Boe and others,” says Tony.

St Valentine’s night will see Foster and Allen perform in Sri Lanka.

“A lot [of people] will be amazed to hear this, but they have been onto us for some years to make the trip. It’s a huge theatre and we are delighted to have accepted the invitation. We are really looking forward to that show.”

They head off to South Africa in March, Scotland in April and New Zealand in May. Somewhere in between they will record a new album as well.

On Thursday, 18 December, they will co-present the Foster & Allen special on Midlands 103, from 8pm until 10pm. On 20 December, they will be among the guests on Donncha O’Dulaing’s Failte Isteach on RTE Radio 1 – along with PJ Murrihy, Brendan Shine and Moira Frazer. They also have a Christmas show on TG4, as well as a repeat series on Irish TV Sky 191.

On top of all that is the Christmas concert tour, which starts in the Armagh City Hotel on 27 December and concludes in the Carlton Shearwater in Ballinasloe on 10 January. Dates in between include Mullingar, Ennis, Charleville, Clonmel, Wexford, Lough Rynn Castle, Trim and Portlaoise.

Happy 40th anniversary, Mick and Tony.