Jessie Ware on the 'hyper-surreal' high of her first arena tour

Straddling a bookies' tip to be the next James Bond like a bucking bronco is certainly one way to grab people's attention.

And that's exactly what Jessie Ware did last month in the music video for Ride, starring Happy Valley actor James Norton.

The single is from her upcoming album Superbloom, which is the singer's sixth studio record.

But Ware tells BBC Newsbeat it feels "hyper-surreal, majestic and mad" to also be announcing a new first for her - a UK arena tour.

The singer-songwriter will play London's O2, The Hydro in Glasgow and Manchester's Co-op Live at the end of 2026.

"I love the journey that I've been on," says Ware, whose debut album Devotion is now 14 years old.

"I just think it shows how long it can take to build a community.

"I'm on my sixth record and the fact we're still getting bigger and better is really exciting."

Ware's audience expects to dance, with her early material offering an opportunity to catch a breath between the choreography, effervescence and glitz.

It's a balance she hopes to strike in some of the UK's biggest indoor venues later this year, citing Lady Gaga as an "amazing" inspiration.

"Gaga connects in arenas," she says.

"Maybe I'm going to have to have a B-stage or get into the crowd, but I'll find a way.

"I will try and bring that intimacy, vocals, pizzazz - all of it."

When Newsbeat mentions Manchester's Co-op Live's capacity is 23,500, Ware's eyes widen.

"Look, babe," she replies, shrugging it off, "I'll just get all my family from Manchester to fill the seats."

Margot Robbie, Reese Witherspoon and even Sir Keir Starmer accepted Ware’s invitations onto Table Manners, her hit food podcast featuring her mum Lennie.

But the singer says she learned to keep up with fans’ appetite by serving them a varied musical diet.

"I would look at the crowd at my shows and think 'I need to give you some tempo'," Ware tells Newsbeat.

"My fans have given me this confidence to feel free and push things.

"I thought 'I've given them my vocal, I've given them mid-tempo, now I need to give them tempo'."

Superbloom's lead single I Could Get Used To This saw Ware's new era blossom over flourishing panpipes and funky guitar riffs.

Ride, its follow-up, is a darker dose of disco, punctuated with cracking whips and the thundering footfall of wild horses.

It samples the signature whistle of the Western classic The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, but Ware admits that's where her knowledge of the movie genre ends.

"I've never seen that film in my life," she laughs.

"I whistled it because we were making a cowboy song and I wanted the drop to not be my vocal."

Ware needed permission from composer Ennio Morricone's estate to include the sample, which she was relieved to receive quickly.