From East Riding to West End star
TODAY WE FEATURE LOCAL SINGER DENISE DANIELLE
ALTHOUGH, very much regarded as a Hull girl, Denise Vickers was actually born in Scunthorpe, later moving to study in London and then to Hull when she was in her teens.
“My parents were David and
Dorothy Wilkie who met when they both worked at Scunthorpe Steelworks and, as I recall, none of my close family were involved in entertainment,” she said.
“My dad had a real passion for music and would always have records from the likes of Shirley Bassey, Frank Sinatra and his favourite, Judy
Garland, playing on the gramophone in the living room. So, as a kid, I grew up listening to good music, and from a young age I would try to mimic the singers.
“When I was six we went on a family holiday to Scarborough and it was there that I had my first taste of performing on stage.
“I entered my first talent contest at the Spa Theatre and went onto win the final singing Somewhere Over
The Rainbow, which is still one of my favourite songs.”
With a new-found interest in singing, when she was 12 years old she auditioned at the Leeds City of Varieties for a part in the new theatre production of the musical Annie. Having passed the preliminary audition, Denise was invited onto the next audition stages at the London Palace Theatre and was eventually given the part as understudy, which gave her the chance to play Annie on a West End stage.
While in London, Denise attended the Italia Conti School of Arts in the West End where she studied until she was 14. Denise returned to her home and, following further auditions, she got an acting role with the Great Eastern Stage Group, playing the lead role in the production of the play A
Day in the Death of Joe Egg. It enjoyed great reviews and gave Denise the chance to travel and tour theatres across England for a year with the production.
When the tour ended, Denise went onto work on the clubland circuit. She said: “Because I was still of school age I had to be off stage by 10pm every night. My parents had to have a licence for me to perform, but I gained valuable experience working live for around four years in some of the top clubs supporting the likes of Marti Cane, Bobby Knutt and Cannon & Ball.”
At the age of 18, Denise fronted her first band called the Love Bombs and their success took them on tours of Germany and, after a couple of years, Denise returned to the entertainment circuit in and around Hull under the stage name of Denise Danielle.
At the time the band Blondie with vocalist Debbie Harry were doing big things in the charts and with a more than passing resemblance to the star, Denise formed a Blondie tribute band called Heart of Glass with Jonah Lacey Hatton on drums, Pete Cox on guitar, John Todd on bass and Ryan Johnson on keys.
“I met my husband Lee when I started performing as Denise Danielle in the 1980s. He was a butcher at the time before becoming my sound engineer and we had our daughter, Amber Rose, in 1993.
“I went into labour while doing my last number at a show at the now closed Cavalier Club, in Endyke Lane, and it was quite a moment to be rushed to hospital in my sequinned stage outfit and see the faces of the doctors and nurses as she arrived.
“My daughter is now 27 and we have two beautiful grandchildren, Alfie, 5, and Olivia, 4, who is already showing signs of becoming a singer.
“I’m looking forward giving up some spare time to teach her the ropes. I have been in the business 45 years this week and I plan to be in show business for a few more years yet. I have no intention of retiring.
“I’ve enjoyed my travels but I always say that Hull will always be my home – it’s where my heart is.