TV flop is ready to rock again after £ 1.8m Lotto win
FOR Roger Griffiths, the dream of rock stardom appeared to have died long ago. Back in 1992, the singer’s band FMB were tipped for the top when they featured in the Channel 4 docusoap The Next Big Thing, which followed their attempts to make their breakthrough in the music world.
It never came and the group fell apart. But now – 13 years on – Mr Griffiths’s dream is back on track after the 34-year- old won £1.8million on the National Lottery.
He plans to use his winnings to set up a record label and release a single that he believes will finally help them make it big.
Mr Griffiths said yesterday: ‘We tried our hardest the first time round but the music industry wasn’t ready for us. We were just before our time.
‘But now I’m a millionaire we’re going to produce this great single we had at the time and it’s going to be massive.’ FMB split up a year after the eight-part show was screened but recently got back in touch after years of ‘artistic differences’.
Even before the lottery win the band were being filmed for a followup documentary and now hope to get on screen for a second time. Mr Griffiths, an IT consultant from Wetherby, West Yorkshire, plays Lotto online and found out about his good fortune via an e-mail as he worked from home. He is sharing his winnings with his wife Lara, a 35- year- old teacher, and their one- year- old daughter Ruby.
The money will also help cover video and promotion costs for the single, called James ( Such a James Thing To Do).
Mr Griffiths, FMB’s lead singer, is also relishing the prospect of telling the other four members of the band about the windfall.
He said: ‘ The beautiful thing is the boys don’t know about it yet, so I’m going to phone them later and say, “Let’s rock!”.
‘This is an opportunity that has come up that we’d be foolish not to take advantage of. I love the guys.
‘I love being in a band and that’s just what I want to do. I was born to be a rocker.’
While backing her husband’s rekindled ambitions, his wife also has goals of her own. These include a move from their modest semi to a detached house and another baby in the near future.
‘ Roger was born to rock, but I may have to control the chequebook from now on,’ she said.