CLIFF’S BACK!
Perfecting new tour and belting out his biggest hits, the news fans have been waiting for...
IT’S the response that millions of fans have been praying for: a trademark pose, a cheeky grin for the camera – and an eagerly awaited return to live performing.
Sir Cliff Richard has endured a miserable 12 months, hit by the death of close friends, a controversial police raid that left him feeling ‘violated’, and a high-profile investigation into historic abuse claims that he vigorously denies.
Yet as these exclusive pictures show, the veteran entertainer is back on form as he prepares for a month-long tour to celebrate his 75th birthday in October.
Concert dates – including those in Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Glasgow – sold out within hours, encouraging Sir Cliff’s team to add another date to London’s Royal Albert Hall, where he wraps up with a six-night run, finishing on October 18. He has also been recording a new album in Nashville.
Yesterday, dressed i n jeans and a T-shirt, Sir Cliff appeared upbeat and relaxed as he rehearsed with his band and back-up team at the INEC i n Killarney, Co Kerry, a 3,000-seater auditorium within a l avish hotel complex where the tour kicks off next Saturday.
When the team arrived to photograph Sir Cliff, rehearsing in one of the smaller function rooms, he belted out numbers including Great Balls Of Fire, Move It and Devil Woman. He danced along with his backing singers and at one point led a conga line as they wound around the solo saxophonist.
At this point, the mood was casual as they worked on the songs – styling, hair and make-up for the concerts will come later.
The room is adjacent to the hotel’s spa complex and Sir Cliff’s rehearsals drew keen interest from female guests, who tried to snatch peeks of him through the hall curtains. Friends say the excitement of the tour has helped him rebuild his energy and buoyed his spirits after a period which left him ‘distraught’.
‘He is so moved that his fans are coming out in their thousands to support him on the tour,’ said a source close to the singer. ‘He may be 75 this year, but he does not look it or act it. His faith, his fans and those close to him have kept h im going and he is determined the coming shows will be among the best he has ever performed.
‘He has got his old energy back and it is good to see.’
Sir Cliff had stepped back from concerts and personal appearances since the investigation, which began in a blaze of publicity when the BBC broadcast live footage of a raid on his £3.1million home in Sunningdale, Berkshire. The raid happened without his knowledge.
Telling friends he was sickened by the incident, he put the house up for sale. Sir Cliff even missed Wimbledon – usually his favourite event of the year – and his first public appearance in months was attending the funeral of close friend Cilla Black in Liverpool last month, where he performed an emotional tribute to the singer.
His mood has been lifted, in part, by the release of a new song, Golden – described by a record company spokesman as ‘a tribute to his army of fans for the support they have shown during his stellar career’.
The song is receiving significant radio airplay and comes from his new album, 75 At 75, released on Rhino Records. It is a triple-disc collection of Sir Cliff’s greatest hits featuring 12 No1 singles, including Living Doll, The Young Ones, Summer Holiday, We Don’t Talk Anymore and the Christmas classic Mistletoe And Wine.
Golden was written by the star’s longstanding friend Chris Eaton, who also penned his hit Saviour’s Day.
Sir Cliff will celebrate his birthday on October 14, in the middle of the tour.
A close friend said it was hoped the tour would provide a triumphant end to what has been a terrible 12 months. ‘The past year has been awful for him and you can imagine the pain he has felt. But it’s so terrific that Cliff is now doing what he does best with his band. His fans have been writing to him, urging him to get back up there, and he has been touched by their loyalty.’
The Operation Yewtree investigation was prompted by an allegation that the singer sexually assaulted a teenage boy at a rally for evangelical Christians organised by the American preacher Billy Graham in Sheffield in 1985. The claim is absolutely denied by Sir Cliff. The investigation continues although there is no sign of charges.
South Yorkshire Police came under heavy criticism for a deal with the BBC that allowed the Corporation to film the search. A report on the episode by former Chief Constable Andy Trotter later questioned the justification for the broadcast. It found that it had caused unnecessary distress to Sir Cliff, who should ‘not have been informed of the allegations through the media’.
In an exclusive serialisation of his new autobiography in The Mail on Sunday, veteran DJ Paul Gambaccini recently attacked Operation Yewtree for mounting a ‘witch- hunt’ against him, accusing officers of trawling for evidence even though there was no indication of wrongdoing.
A difficult year for Sir Cliff got worse with the deaths of three people in his closest circle: Cilla Black, his former manager David Bryce, and a young member of his own family.
Sir Cliff has admitted that he never imagined his career would go on so long – he marked 50 years in the business in 2008 – but has said he now wants to embrace it more actively while he can.