Alfie doesn’t drink so I do it for him. He eats... TV treats of the week and I put the weight on

Alfie Boe and Michael Ball have joined forces for an album, tour and TV special. But despite their harmonious voices, the pair couldn’t be more different, as JEANANNE CRAIG finds out

ASELF-DESCRIBED “miserable northerner”, Alfie Boe groans as he describes fellow singer Michael Ball’s pre-performance routine.

“Oh my goodness. It’s like some sort of cult ceremony when you go on before a show with him,” the tenor says, in his slow Lancashire drawl.

“He does these hand clap things he’s roped me into doing, and if we slip up a little bit, like if we don’t make full contact with our hands, we’ll have to do it again.”

The pair are sharing the bill on a nationwide tour (and have a new album, Together, out too), and while there’s no doubt they gel on stage, they are very different people away from it.

“I always try and put a positive spin on stuff and keep people’s spirits high, and Alfie is a dementor,” says the irrepressibly cheerful Michael,hael, before they both crack up laughing. hing.

They’re chalk and cheese – but it works. Alfie, who’s achieved UK album sales of over a million and four top 10 albums, describes Michael as “a wonderful colleague on stage, and a great friend off stage”.

“It’s mutual respect, I think,” he says. “We like each other, we’ve known one another a longng time now.”

“We have fun,” adds Michael l,a, a double Olivier Award winner.

“We like the music we’re doing, and we’re thrilled with the reaction we’re getting to the album and the tour. It’s all feeling really rather nice.”

This week they’ll appear in a TV National Opera Studio, avoids watching his own work on screen.

“You can’t do anything about it once it’s recorded, and it’s going to be broadcast.

“If there’s something better on the other side, I’d sooner watch that.

“I don’t watch myself on TV. I do watch Crimewatch, just in case I’m on there...”

They usually share a dressing room and eat together, but before a gig, Michael will have a quick lie-down, while Alfie strums on his guitar.

Downtime is spent recharging their batteries – so no wild nights or TVs thrown out of hotel room windows...

“It’s really about just gathering your strength and indulging yourself a little bit on your days off. I think hilarious,”hilariou says Michael, who was awardedawar an OBE in 2015 for his servicesser to musical theatre. Can we ask what stars will appear?a “No, you can’t. It’s a surprise.”s They’ll be on stage the nightn it airs, but Michael planspl to watch it on catch-upcatc and “try to look at it as a th third person and be objective”.objectiv He does confess he will always question certaince camera angles, however, “because I now look enormous”. Alfie, who worked as a mechanic before honing his music skills at the Royal College of Music and the special on ITV, with songs from the album and some very special guests.

“It’s funny, it’s got the music, and some fab live guests who are