Russell Watson

The popular 55-year-old singer tells us how he’s shaking off his nice guy image to play a baddie in the tour of Chicago

● My character in Chicago is the complete opposite of me.

Billy Flynn is very flamboyant and confident with the ladies. Although he makes it appear like he cares about people, all he cares about is financial gain. Fundamentally, he’s a very dark character. There are so many fantastic elements to get my teeth into.

● When I left school, I worked 12-hour night shifts in a factory that made nuts and bolts. It was a production line and it was mindnumbingly boring. I liked the people, but I hated the work.

● The irony is that I worry more about my children now they’re grown up than when they were living at home. My daughters are 21 and 26, but the world is a scary place and I think it’s getting scarier.

● My deep love of classical music comes from my grandad who was a fabulous classical pianist. Then when I was a bit older, I’d sit in my bedroom and sing along to songs on the radio, copying the voices of singers such as Cliff Richard, Elton John and Nat King Cole. As an adult I started singing in clubs, but it was ten years before I released my first album.

● I’m full of positivity now, but my health issues affected my life fundamentally. I had two tumours removed. At the time I was an absolute mess and the recovery period took years, but it was 14 years ago and it’s a distant memory.