Guitar legend Eric Clapton to play in Hunter

Guitar great Eric Clapton will be the first to perform at the Hunter Region's largest amphitheatre.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member, whose solo hits include Layla and Tears in Heaven, will perform one of his three Australian shows at the new venue at Hope Estate winery, Pokolbin, on March 7.

The amphitheatre seats 19,000 people, making it the largest of the region.

Owner Michael Hope said when he bought the former Rothbury Estate site from Foster's in 2006, he wanted to breathe new life into it.

Clapton, who shot to fame in the 1960s with John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and Cream, will also perform in Sydney and Melbourne in March.

Tickets for Clapton's Hunter and Sydney shows are due to go on sale on October 24 through Ticketmaster.