THIS youngster is just one step away from a national award after making the final courtesy of his guitar-playing skills.

Callum Williams, 12, from Crosskeys, is in the final five of the Young Guitarist of the Year competition, run by Guitarist magazine.

The Cwmcarn High School pupil was only 11 when he entered and will battle it out in the final, held at London Music Festival on June 4.

To get to this stage, he had to create an original piece, called Guitars on Fire, and burned it on to a CD before judges picked their favourite five from across the UK.

Callum started playing the guitar three years ago after he was encouraged to start playing by his father, Paul.

He is a rock and blues fan whose idols include Slash, Joe Satriani, Jimi Hendrix and Steve Vai.

Callum said: “It means a lot to be in the finals and I’m looking forward to performing.”

  • To see Callum play, go to www.youtube.com and type in Bladez765