Celebrity
As he prepares to embark on a new UK tour, singer Michael Ball insists that lying on the sofa and watching endless TV is actually his idea of heaven
Michael Ball is currently rehearsing hard for his upcoming UK tour. When that finishes, he’ll be adding the finishing touches to the paperback version of his memoir, and then there’s talk of recording a new album with his good friend and fellow performer Alfie Boe.
He’s one of the hardestworking performers around, but surprisingly, when he doesn’t have a project on the go, Michael is reassuringly just like the rest of us.
‘I know it doesn’t sound like it, but I love watching Doctor Who. I saw it was the 60th anniversary and I’ve always been a fan so I went back to watch it literally from the start and – stone me – I’m now on Series 5!’
Michael lives in south-west London with his partner of 34 years, former Ready, Steady, Go! presenter Cathy McGowan. The couple met when she was a TV reporter and interviewed him during rehearsals for the stage musical Aspects of Love. So how does she feel about his obsession with time travel and Daleks?
‘She says, “What are you doing? You just sit there watching blobs that form and then kill people,”’ he laughs. ‘I’m not allowed to watch it with her in the room. I’m on my iPad with my headphones in, in my sad little world, as she calls it!’
Frank and warm, and with a hilariously self-deprecating sense of humour, Michael is someone who likes to see the funny side of life.
Our Zoom video call grinds to a halt several times, first because Michael can’t find the sound button, second when Cathy calls him on his mobile and it cuts out the signal, and third when he drops his earphones on the floor and his dog attempts to eat them. ‘Wilbur – go! Daddy’s busy!’ he chuckles affectionately to his pet.
‘I really love technology!’
It’s hard to believe that this is the same man who suffered panic attacks and stage fright so badly during his time in the West End cast of Les Misérables that he had to quit the show. He has recently admitted that anxiety can still take hold, but insists that he has no worries about his upcoming tour, suitably titled On with the Show.
‘I’ll be absolutely fine,’ he says firmly. ‘I’m going out to friends – that’s how I now feel about an audience. People going there want to have a good time. I want to have a good time.’
‘As long as I keep myself fit and well, happy and healthy and rehearsed, I really think that’s all dealt with – one hopes.’
Britain’s
