My girl fell for me when I was broke, says star
HE is one of the brightest stars in the pop world, with a Brit award and now a number one album.
But Scots singer-songwriter Tom Walker has revealed that his fiancee fell for him when he was unemployed, aimless and broke.
On Friday, the 27-year old Glaswegian replaced US singer Ariana Grande at the top of the charts with his debut album, What A Time To Be Alive.
Walker even beat industry heavyweight Bryan Adams, whose new album went straight in at No2.
It caps a whirlwind spell for Walker, who has become a hot property in recent weeks.
Last month he collected a Brit award for best breakthrough artist. His songs had already notched up 500 million online streams and three million sales. They include Top 10 singles Leave A Light On and Just You And I, the latter having been written for his girlfriend, NHS worker Annie Watson-Foulds.
Walker says their love for each other began when he was a struggling musician.
He told The Scottish Mail on Sunday: ‘When I met Annie I didn’t have a job. I was busking in London and I had no money. So she has seen the journey of me getting signed and my not even being in the music industry in any way to winning a Brit.
‘So she totally gets it. She liked me when I was achieving nothing at all, so she’s a diamond.’
Walker was living in London when he met Miss WatsonFoulds, then a student in Sheffield. He said: ‘When we met we were in a long-distance relationship for two years.
‘She was getting the Megabus to London, I was driving back and forth, for such a long time. Sometimes we would go for weeks without seeing each other then spend a weekend together.
‘Having a long-distance relationship for so long has lined us up for me being on tour. When I go on tour it doesn’t make it easy, but I am used to Annie and I being apart for a few weeks and seeing each other again.’
On the single, Walker said: ‘I wrote Just You And I for Annie three-and-a-half years ago and released an acoustic version.
‘Leading into the album, I wanted to re-release it to celebrate our engagement. A lot of people have used it for first dances and proposals – it’s a pretty special song for me and for a lot of people.
‘The song is about the weekends we did get to spend together. When you don’t spend a lot of time together and you do get to see each other, you make the most of it. It’s about travelling back and forth and going out and getting messy with the drink. It’s a bit of a nostalgic song for me.’
Walker proposed while the couple holidayed in Sri Lanka last August.
‘I had a nice ring made and it all went well. She said, “Yes”, which was good because if she had said, “No”, it would have been a bit awkward for the rest of the holiday. It was a bit of gamble.’
Although the couple have yet to set a date for the wedding, Walker insists they will make plans soon.
‘We know the wedding is going to be in the next two years,’ he said. ‘Annie has just started a job as a health adviser and she’s getting into that at the moment.
‘I’ve been so busy with the Brit Awards, the album release and flying to Scotland, France, Germany and Italy for performances and promotional work, so I haven’t had too much time.
‘Now that the album is out we are going to sit down and make some decisions.’
‘I am used to us being apart for a few weeks’