:: This article originally appeared on the Express & Star website on December 18th 2008 ::
They say there is no place like home, and one glance around the dressing room of showbiz star Paul Nicholas shows how apt that saying can be.
He may be more than two hours away from his Highgate home in north London, but the legendary performer has taken a bit of everything with him to Wolverhampton.
From the Kellogg’s Cornflakes to the apples, the rows of neatly assembled Christmas cards from his family and enough winter clothing to keep himself set for a while, his home for the next few weeks will be a tiny dressing room at the Grand Theatre.
The 63-year old, who lives a stone’s throw from Arsenal’s Emirates stadium, is starring at the Grand Theatre in the Peter Pan pantomime as the booable Captain Hook.
He admits that he does miss his family when he is away on tour, but his second wife Linzi, aged 59, does not complain when he is away.
His six grown up children have all moved out of the family home, leaving his wife in freedom while he dons the eye catching costume and entertains thousands.
He laughs: “Very rarely, if ever, has my family told me they don’t want me to go. They are probably keen to see the back of me.
“Seriously, I am only 2 hours 20 minutes from my home and I always make sure I travel back on a Sunday and stay until the Monday, before coming back up to Wolverhampton.
“I am staying in a hotel in the city and to be honest, because we have two shows a day there isn’t much time to do much else.
“The dressing room is very small but that is the kind of thing we get used to. The people at the Grand Theatre are great to get along with.
“Performing is what I do and my family understand that, it’s part of who I am. I like being here to be honest, it keeps me busy and the crowds have been superb so far.”
Mr Nicholas has done it all in his career - starred in the West End, appeared on TV dramas including hit BBC sitcom Just Good Friends, directed plays and played in a rock band.
His latest role in Peter Pan has seen him team up with comedy duo The Krankies, something he says he will not be forgetting in a hurry.
He said: “The show opened last week and typically, I probably had the worst cold of all time, it was streaming all down my face.
“But I still went out there and performed, and having people like The Krankies with me helped. They are great comedians, but unlike many duos out there they are not too greedy.
“Some shows I do are supposed to last two hours, but they end up lasting two hours twenty minutes because the comedy actors take it too far.
“The Krankies are not like that. They are very professional and of course very funny. I have to say I get on really well with them.
“I’m over my illness now and looking forward to the shows ahead. The cast are excellent so we are confident of putting on a real performance.”
Mr Nicholas, who was born in Peterborough, also reckons that despite spending so much time at the Grand Theatre, up until now he has seen very little of the actual city.
He said: “Someone has told me that there is an excellent Italian restaurant in the city, so I want to go there.
“I do want to see more - I was driving the other day and reversed around and found myself by the Wolves ground, it looks great. I don’t follow football much but I heard that they were doing well.
“I like it here and the crowds at the actual theatre have been very welcoming, which always helps.”
Peter Pan runs until January 25. Tickets cost between £9.50 and £23.50 and are available from the box office on 01902 429212.
Showing posts with label paul nicholas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label paul nicholas. Show all posts
Friday, 19 December 2008
Monday, 27 October 2008
Versatile star hooked on showbiz
:: This article first appeared on the Express & Star's website on June 13th 2008 ::
It is hard to think of Paul Nicholas as a veteran. But at 62, the actor is relishing the wide variety of roles that maturity and experience brings.
He has done it all – starred in the West End, appeared on TV dramas, directed plays, played in a rock band, appeared in the UK charts and even played the part of a demented killer in a classic horror film – since his career started in the late 1960s. Where most people would recognise him from is playing the part of Vince in the BAFTA Award-winning BBC TV series Just Good Friends, but even that is a drop in the ocean of his incredibly long career.
Now he is preparing to wow the city by playing the classic baddie Captain Hook in the Grand Theatre’s Peter Pan pantomime this winter – just the kind of stage he loves.
“You’re right, I’ve done a lot,” he said. “I haven’t got a favourite out of the stage, television or films, but out of them all, I just love being able to perform in front of a crowd. That’s what I did when I started off as a teenager in Paul Dean & The Dreamers, and that’s what I’m doing now; I’m going out and showing people what I can do. With TV there is a lot of hanging around, so while I enjoy doing it, the stage has been good to me in a very different way. I get a great buzz from performing live.”
Born in Peterborough, he said growing up in the 1950s, with black and white TVs and everything closed on a Sunday was what convinced him to try to make a career out of showbiz. Growing up in Watford, his band travelled the country to support The Savages, who were the backing band for the rockers Screaming Lord Sutch. It was the start of a career that saw him release a series of singles before getting into stage performing. His big chance came and he grabbed it, winning the main role in the original production of Jesus Christ Superstar, which led to roles in dozens of plays.
“It was a great time,” he said. “Suddenly, there I was, having this great career and having fun. The Savages had this act where a band member played Jack the Ripper on stage and pretended to rip my heart out. It was so theatrical, but it really summed up what I was all about, and when I started to star in theatre shows, I loved it. Even in that horror film Blind Terror I enjoyed myself, even though in the film all you can see for most of it is my feet. It has me chasing this girl and you only see my face right at the end of it. With the stage work, the TV and the music, it was an incredible time really.”
His pop career produced three top 10 singles in the 1970s, but he wanted to land a high-profile TV role to take his career to the next level. In 1983, BBC TV sitcom Just Good Friends was looking for a suitable actor to play a wisecracking bookmaker who had an on-off relationship with a girl called Jan. He got the role as Vince, and even sang the theme tune. It made him a household name and led to numerous more TV roles and stage performances in the West End.
He said: “It was a good show. I still like it, and the great thing about Just Good Friends is that the writing was so good. When the writing is that good, it makes it so much easier for the actors.”
Now living with his 59-year old wife Linzi in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, he says all of his six children have moved out, including the youngest, 22-year old Carmen. “Being in showbiz, you quickly realise it means time away from your family but I’m hoping to commute while I am here in Wolverhampton. It’s a great place because I remember being here last year for 42nd Street, but because we work late and need to prepare in the daytime, it doesn’t give us much time apart from the morning to see it. I’ll be looking around the place but I want to get home and see my wife too.”
Joining him for the Peter Pan panto are comedy duo The Krankies, who are playing sidekicks Captain and Mate, while Peter Pan is played by Jack Montgomery, the youthful star of Torchwood and Primeval. More than 38,000 tickets have been sold for Peter Pan, which runs from December 6 to January 25.
It is hard to think of Paul Nicholas as a veteran. But at 62, the actor is relishing the wide variety of roles that maturity and experience brings.
He has done it all – starred in the West End, appeared on TV dramas, directed plays, played in a rock band, appeared in the UK charts and even played the part of a demented killer in a classic horror film – since his career started in the late 1960s. Where most people would recognise him from is playing the part of Vince in the BAFTA Award-winning BBC TV series Just Good Friends, but even that is a drop in the ocean of his incredibly long career.
Now he is preparing to wow the city by playing the classic baddie Captain Hook in the Grand Theatre’s Peter Pan pantomime this winter – just the kind of stage he loves.
“You’re right, I’ve done a lot,” he said. “I haven’t got a favourite out of the stage, television or films, but out of them all, I just love being able to perform in front of a crowd. That’s what I did when I started off as a teenager in Paul Dean & The Dreamers, and that’s what I’m doing now; I’m going out and showing people what I can do. With TV there is a lot of hanging around, so while I enjoy doing it, the stage has been good to me in a very different way. I get a great buzz from performing live.”
Born in Peterborough, he said growing up in the 1950s, with black and white TVs and everything closed on a Sunday was what convinced him to try to make a career out of showbiz. Growing up in Watford, his band travelled the country to support The Savages, who were the backing band for the rockers Screaming Lord Sutch. It was the start of a career that saw him release a series of singles before getting into stage performing. His big chance came and he grabbed it, winning the main role in the original production of Jesus Christ Superstar, which led to roles in dozens of plays.
“It was a great time,” he said. “Suddenly, there I was, having this great career and having fun. The Savages had this act where a band member played Jack the Ripper on stage and pretended to rip my heart out. It was so theatrical, but it really summed up what I was all about, and when I started to star in theatre shows, I loved it. Even in that horror film Blind Terror I enjoyed myself, even though in the film all you can see for most of it is my feet. It has me chasing this girl and you only see my face right at the end of it. With the stage work, the TV and the music, it was an incredible time really.”
His pop career produced three top 10 singles in the 1970s, but he wanted to land a high-profile TV role to take his career to the next level. In 1983, BBC TV sitcom Just Good Friends was looking for a suitable actor to play a wisecracking bookmaker who had an on-off relationship with a girl called Jan. He got the role as Vince, and even sang the theme tune. It made him a household name and led to numerous more TV roles and stage performances in the West End.
He said: “It was a good show. I still like it, and the great thing about Just Good Friends is that the writing was so good. When the writing is that good, it makes it so much easier for the actors.”
Now living with his 59-year old wife Linzi in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, he says all of his six children have moved out, including the youngest, 22-year old Carmen. “Being in showbiz, you quickly realise it means time away from your family but I’m hoping to commute while I am here in Wolverhampton. It’s a great place because I remember being here last year for 42nd Street, but because we work late and need to prepare in the daytime, it doesn’t give us much time apart from the morning to see it. I’ll be looking around the place but I want to get home and see my wife too.”
Joining him for the Peter Pan panto are comedy duo The Krankies, who are playing sidekicks Captain and Mate, while Peter Pan is played by Jack Montgomery, the youthful star of Torchwood and Primeval. More than 38,000 tickets have been sold for Peter Pan, which runs from December 6 to January 25.
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