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*PLEASE NOTE THAT FROM NOW ON ALL NEW ARTICLES WILL BE PLACED AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE!*
Article from CapitalFM.com
Pop Idol winner Will Young has launched the festive celebrations in the run-up to Christmas by switching on London's Regent
Street lights.
Fans packed the shopper's haven to watch his guest appearance.
The star entertained the crowds by singing You And I and Don't Let Me Down from his new double A-side single recorded in aid
of BBC's Children In Need.
As he pulled the switch, fake snow and coloured ticker tape fluttered into the street.
Dressed in a long brown coat and green trousers, Will, who shot to fame this year in ITV1's talent contest Pop Idol, thanked
the public for their support.
Speaking from a specially created stage at the junction of New Burlington Street and Regent Street, he said he had enjoyed
creating his new single for Children In Need, adding: "It's been brilliant and I've done lots of stuff with the show.
"It's just been wonderful I do think the show tomorrow will be fantastic."
After switching on the lights, he sang a short rendition of Walking In A Winter Wonderland. The crowd, waving lights, swayed
along to the music.
DJ Mark Goodier compered the free street party and the band United Colours of Sound supported Will.
Verity Hars, 18, and her mother Jill, from Basildon, Essex, attended the event especially to see the Pop Idol singer. "He's
just fantastic and really handsome and lovely," said Verity.
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Coldplay, Ms Dynamite and Will Young each up for three TOTP awards-ananova.com
Coldplay, Ms Dynamite and Will Young lead the way in this year's Top Of The Pops Award nominations.
Ms Dynamite is up for top newcomer, top album and top R'n'B artist, while Will is nominated for top newcomer, top single and
top pop.
Coldplay are nominated for top rock, top tour and top album.
Gareth Gates is up against Will in two categories - top newcomer along with The Streets, Holly Valance, and Ms Dynamite, and
top pop, against Atomic Kitten, Blue and Sugababes.
Ronan Keating will host the ceremony at the Manchester Evening News Arena on November 29, with performances from Kylie, Ms
Dynamite, Will Young, Gareth Gates, Craig David, Blue and Moby.
It will be shown on BBC1 on Saturday November 30.
Fans can vote in all the categories by visiting www.bbc.co.uk/totp.
POP THE QUESTION
Starsign:Capricorn
Fav Animal:Cheetah
Fav Drink:Barkspears Bitter
Fav Food:Bacon Sarnies
Fav Film:Remains of the day
Fav Song:Long and Affection by Joan Armatrading
Fav TV Show:Eastenders
Fav Pop Idol Judge:Foxy-he makes me laugh
Fav International Pop Idol:Lauren Hill
Last Book you read:The Black Prince by Iris Murdoch
Last Time you cried:When Hayley left
Last time you got angry:A few weeks ago-I was angry at myself
Last time you got frightened:Leaving the studios last weekend with girls screaming at me
Last person you kissed:My dog Bentely
Who is your best mate?Adam and Camilla and of course the gang here
Biggest Phobia:Heights
Last thing you do at night:Brush my teeth
Something about you people don't know:I captained the school atheletics team
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Winner Will Speaks,his first interview,Heat Mag
The look on Will's Face said it all. When Ant announced that the 23-year-old had been voted the winner of Pop Idol, his jaw
dropped in amazement. He was stunned. After all, Will's rival Gareth Gates had been the the bookies' favourite since the very
early stages and many believed the final result was a foregone conclusion in the 17 -year-old's favour.
But as Will launched into an emotional version of Evergreen moments later, the star quality that made him a worthy winner
shone through. He now faces an amazing future business with a guaranteed Number One hit when his single is released on the
25th February.
So here it is, the first magazine interview with the winner…
How do you feel? [Grinning] I am absolutely ecstatic. I’ve always wanted to do this and throughout the competition it felt
more and more right. I am so ready for it. I am just up for it massively.
What was going through your mind just before Ant announced the result? Well he said what the votes were and I thought, “I
am second and I have lost by that much”. I just though, “Oh well, that’s not bad.” I promise that’s what I thought. I felt
isolated- then when I heard I’d won it was like I suddenly woke up. [Laughs] It felt like I’d been hit. I could not believe
it.
At what point in the competition did you actually stop and think, “I could win this”? I suppose getting to the last ten. I
don’t think you would enter a competition like this unless you thought you could win it. But there’s a difference between
proving you can win it and thinking you can win it.
What’s the moment in the series that you’re most proud of? It was during the heats, when I spoke my mind to Simon. That was
good.
Was there any moment when you thought, “I could do better”? I cringe at my first audition [Will performed a song and dance
routine to Blame It On The Boogie] but I’m still kind of proud of it. Just for walking in that room if nothing else. That
was so scary.
Yet few people can actually remember you getting through the initial stages. Yeah, I was in the “maybe” room [to get into
the final 50]. We had to wait three-and-a-half hours. We heard the other two rooms cheering and I was thinking, “There’s no
way I’m through”. Then Simon came in and said “I’m sorry…” [big dramatic pause] “…to keep you waiting.” I just thought, “You’re
evil!” And I burst into tears.
What was the moment when you most surprised yourself during the series? Again, I think it was standing up to Simon. I suppose
I was lucky because I’ve been trained to disagree with people in a polite way, having done politics at university. I think
I was surprised how it came out because I forgot what I said until I watched it back and then I was like, “Ooh yes! I like
that!”
Are you planning to make any changes to your image now you’re a bona fide pop idol? I haven’t been to the gym for quite a
while and I’d like to get fit again. When I was at college I was dancing every other day so I do feel a bit unfit. I swim
once a week at the moment, which is a bit bad. I normally run but I can’t stand running in the winter.
Of all of the songs that you sang in the final ten shows, which do you think you could have a Number One hit with? Probably
the Bill Withers track Ain’t No Sunshine. I’d like to think Light My Fire (the song will sang in the show) but it’d probably
be the Bill Withers.
That was a great version though. [Laughs] Yeah, I don’t know what happened with that really. Everything just sort of took
over.
What are you going to buy with your first million? I’m going to get a new Mini! [Laughs] My first car was a Mini and I absolutely
love them.
Are you prepared for how much your life is going to change now? Whatever bad times and good times are coming my way, I am
ready for them.
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Winner Will is Posh Idol,The Sun,12th Feb
Britain's newest pop heart-throb Will Young is having to come to terms with fame – but he is no stranger to fortune.
The 23-year-old who won the Pop Idol final on Saturday night is set to earn millions from his music career. But we can reveal
that Will has already enjoyed a life of luxury — unlike his working-class Pop Idol rival Gareth Gates, who lives in a Bradford
terrace and whose dad is a postman.
Will and his twin brother Rupert boarded at posh Horris Hill prep school from the age of eight until they were 13.
The red-brick building, which sits in secluded Berkshire countryside just south of Newbury, currently charges fees of £13,000
a year.
Headmaster Nigel Chapman recalled: “Will was a good all-rounder and head chorister while he was here.”
After Horris Hill, Will went to one of the most prestigious public schools in the country — Wellington College in nearby Crowthorne
— whose old boys include TV comedian Rory Bremner.
The college’s annual fee for boarders is nearly £18,000, which means that unless Will won a scholarship, his wealthy dad Robin
has paid out £155,000 for his schooling, at current prices.
Wellington College’s imposing 150-year-old building is a far cry from the glitz of Pop Idol.
The pupils — 750 boys and just 50 girls — wear regulation blazers and ties as they enter the college through a grand courtyard.
Rackets and rugby are the order of the day, while the music being promoted in the college reception is cello playing and classical
compositions.
Will himself started learning the piano when he was nine and stuck at it for four years.
Apart from music, he was also very keen on art, photography and dance and enjoyed biology at school.
He has said: “Music is my No1 passion but if it doesn’t work out I’d like to become a zoologist.”
Despite Will’s top-notch education, dad Robin, 51, reckons his Pop Idol son was no glittering academic. He said: “He wasn’t
interested in passing exams — he was more interested in experimentation. “He was very disappointed with his A-level grades
and he enrolled to re-take them at Oxford sixth-form college. “He got himself a restaurant job in Oxford. He set himself a
target and that’s what he wanted to achieve. He’s a man who sets his own objectives and went for it.”
After taking his exams again, Will went to Exeter University where he read politics, then studied drama at a college in West
London.
His dad’s wealth comes from an engineering company which he owns in Lambourn, Berks, and a part-share in a pub, the Pheasant
Inn at nearby Shefford Woodlands.
He is married to Annabel, 49, a nursery gardener, and counts former Conservative Cabinet minister David Mellor among his friends.
A pal said: “Robin tends to play down his wealth and success but he has done well for himself.”
In fact, Robin’s business brain has provided his family with a £500,000 home in the beautiful Berkshire countryside and allowed
his two sons their privileged upbringing.
Before Will’s Pop Idol win, Robin said: “I’ll support him in his decision as long as it doesn’t interfere with our lives too
much.
“It really hit us how much things had changed when we were called up by firm recently offering us advice on security, should
Will become famous.”
Meanwhile, mum Annabel is keen to maintain her privacy in the face of her lad’s fame. She said: “It’s William’s thing. We’re
really not keen to be involved.”
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Will's the winner (but Simon would have preferred Gareth),Now Mag, 20th Feb
Some weeks back, before Pop Idol judge Pete Waterman lost the plot and come out with things ‘I’m going to throw a Spaniard
in the works’ and ‘I’m British and I love you,’ he told an amazed Will Young: ‘The bad news is that you’re no Pop Idol, son.
The good news is you’re a superstar.’
Simon Cowell tends to agree. On the show, he congratulated the winner Will, admitting that in the past he’d been wrong about
him and that he was a superstar. But afterwards the man whose company will release Will’s first double A-sided single said:
‘the final vote has been irrelevant. Gareth is THE major Pop Idol to come out of the show. He’ll become a star as sure as
night follows day and I’ve always known it.’
On Saturday night, 15 million viewers tuned in to see the final between bookies’ favourite Gareth Gates, the baby-faced Bradford
lad with the stammer, and Exeter University graduate Will Young. The phone votes poured in and, although the lead changed
several times, by the final cut-off Will had 4.6 million votes to Gareth’s 4.1 million.
It was an emotional moment when Ant and Dec made the announcement. Will clasped his hands to his face as tears sprang from
his eyes. Gareth looked stunned, but recovered to give his friend and rival a hug and haltingly describe him as ‘awesome’.
Former Pop Idol finalists stormed the stage and Darius Danesh, who was voted out of the show last week, bore Will aloft on
his shoulders. In his first interview, Will – whose huge, trademark smile was stretched to record-breaking width – said: ‘I’m
getting as drunk as a skunk tonight. I’ve hardly had a drink while I’ve been on the show, but tonight I’m going to make up
for it. I’ll have a huge hangover by the time you read this.
‘I find it amazing that people have picked up phone and voted for me. I’d never set foot in a recording studio before Pop
Idol and I’ve absolutely loved it. It’s what I’ve always wanted to do and it’s just amazing because it feels so right. I can’t
believe what’s happened to me- It’s a dream come true. I’m still shaking. It’s unbelievable.'
Will told how he almost didn’t fill in the Pop Idol entry form after seeing it in a national newspaper.
‘I didn’t fill it in at first because I didn’t think I had a chance of winning. But the paper stayed there through Sunday
and Monday and I kept thinking: “Shall I or shan’t I?” In the end, I grabbed a pen, filled it in and sent it off. ‘I had to
do it quickly or my nerve would have failed me and I’d have screwed it up and thrown it in the bin.’
Will’s grin widened as he remembered another form he once filled in. ‘The university sent me a form asking about my ambitions.
I said jokingly that it was to play at Wembley.’
Next month, he’ll star at Wembley Arena with the other finalists from the show. ‘It’s so far from what I’m used to that I
have to pinch myself,’ he said.
For the final show, both Will and Gareth sang Evergreen and Anything Is Possible. The two songs will now be released as a
double A-side featuring Will.
The Pop Idol judges were even-handed in their praise for both finalists. Even Simon Cowell, who’d expressed reservations about
Will in the past, told him: ‘I was wrong earlier and I’m totally happy to admit it. You deserve your place here. You’re a
superstar. Congratulations.’
By the time Ant and Dec returned to announce the winner two hours later, the tension was unbearable.
Will said: ‘When Ant and Dec said that it was really close, I just thought: “Oh well, I’ve come second. At least I haven’t
lost by that much.” But when they said I’d won, there was this feeling of being totally isolated.
‘I could feel my legs turn to jelly. They’re still wobbly now. When I realised it was me who’d won it took probably a second
to sink in, but it seemed like minutes.
‘Ant and Dec grabbed me to say congratulations. That was a good think because if they hadn’t, I’d have slipped to the floor
in shock.’
Speaking of his rival Gareth, Will said: ‘I want to say that Gareth was fantastic tonight. He’s got so much talent and I’m
sure we’ll be seeing a lot of him in the future.
‘We became good friends in the closing weeks of Pop Idol, as we kept seeing others voted off and realised it was getting very
close between us. We’re definitely going to stay in contact. I wish him all the very best in the world.’
Although people are already talking about the millions Will is going to make, for the present he still lives with his mates
in typical student style in Exeter. He says that, during the past weeks, his friends have at least has a break from his constant
singing in the shower.
He’s determined to stay grounded. ‘I know they say money changes you as a person, but I’m not going to go down that road.
I’m surrounded by a brilliant family and group of friends. Being a millionaire will never change the way I am to these people.’
But last week Will wanted a new toothbrush and was amazed when one of his entourage said: ‘Don’t worry, I’ll get it for you.’
He’s not really adjusted to the idea that he can’t nip into Boots without being mobbed by fans. Like most superstars, he’s
about to find out that fame is a double-edged sword.
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Queen asks Will to party at the Palace, 27th Feb,The Sun
POP Idol Will Young will head the Queen’s jubilee pop festival after a special request by the Royal Family.
Will’s dream invite came as it was confirmed his debut single shifted an amazing 385,483 copies in just one day.
The double A-side Anything Is Possible/Evergreen is now a dead cert for No1 this week.
Will was also overjoyed last night after learning he is to perform at Buckingham Palace’s first rock event.
He said: “It is a huge honor and I’m sure it will be an unbelievable experience. I said during Pop Idol that I had always
wanted tea with the Queen — it may not have happened yet but maybe it’s getting closer.”
Others who have agreed to celebrate her 50-year reign include Sir Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Sir Elton John, Tom Jones,
Aretha Franklin, S Club 7 and Beach Boy’s legend Brian Wilson.
Keeper of the Privy Purse Sir Michael Peat said: “Princes William and Harry are both very excited about the pop concert.”
More than 60million TV viewers will tune into the three-hour Party in the Palace in Buckingham Palace gardens on June 3.
Two days before the Queen will host a classical concert on the same stage, which will also be broadcast, live by the BBC.
THE 12,000 tickets for the two concerts are free and will be allocated by a draw.
To enter call 0900 1952 2002. A maximum of two tickets per call are available.
More than 3,000 phone lines have been opened and will remain active until midnight on March 17. Calls cost £1 each.
Money raised, including from sales of the rights to show the concerts overseas, will go towards the Queen’s Jubilee Fund.
Apply online at www.bbc.co.uk/queensconcerts
The Palace will contact successful applicants by April 19.
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Will Interview, CosmoGirl, March 2002
When he grins the world grins with him, when he sings it's goose pimples all over! He's the sensitive sweetie with a style
all of his own.
So Will, Pop Idol - how was it for you?
The whole experience was overwhelming. I thoroughly enjoyed everything about it and couldn't wait for Saturday to come around.
But now I'm excited about the future.
Where there any downsides to the experience?
An acne outbreak which I had to deal with for the last five weeks of the competition! Call it stress or a late teen bloom,
either way it was very strange.
What do you really think of Simon Cowell?
He's a funny chap, isn't he? With Simon there was always an element of cabaret, he was playing a role and playing it well.
But he really wasn't that nasty towards the end. After his holiday, he was far more chilled out. But he is strange and I've
told him that to his face. I can normally work people out but not him.
Now, your twin brother Rupert. Is he a budding singer too?
Yeah, he's not bad but he's not interested. Believe me you will never see us dueting. Even when times are tough and I need
a gimmick! No danger of us being the new Bros!
How's your car doing these days?
Someone bashed into me the other day! Is victimising Will and his car the new national sport?! I'm actually quite a safe driver,
it's when I'm stationary that problems occur. I did a radio interview the other day on my mobile and the meter wasn't working
so I had to sit in my car fending off traffic wardens while I was talking!
Will you be the poshest person in pop?
[Laughs] I don't known if I'm posh because that denotes a little snobbery and I'm not a snob in any definition of the word.
I'd say I was well spoken and have good manners...unless you're a traffic warden!
Where's the weirdest place you've ever been recognised?
At a urinal while I was peeing! This man leant over and said, "You're on TV, aren't you?" He could have waited until
I'd finished - I was mid flow! He told me he'd voted for me eleven times in one week.
Have you had any saucy propositions?
I've had one letter from this lady who was, rather sweetly, convinced we ought to be together. It was flattering but weird
she could think that without meeting me. It's okay in theory but I'm sure the reality would be a big disappointment.
So you're still single?
Yep but I'm a little busy for love at the mo and I'm also rubbish at chatting people up. I always end up saying something
like, "Cotton wool, it's really underrated, don't you think?" It's definitely something I need to work on.
What if pop-stardom doesn't pan out?
If it goes to pot then I'd like to write. I've been writing with a friend of mine who's a great actor and we've got an idea
for a film. A talent show, ten people...No, I'm joking!
And finally Will, was it all a fix?
I bloody hope not because I'll be livid if I find out it was!
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TOTP ban on Will's No1 single-The Sun - Monday 4th March 2002
POP Idol winner Will Young shot to Number One with his debut single yesterday — but has been banned from singing it live on
Top Of The Pops.
The 23-year-old politics graduate cruised to the top spot with more than 1.1million sales of his double A-side disc Anything
Is Possible and Evergreen.
But his record company BMG have refused to let him appear on TOTP after producers of the BBC1 show turned down their demands
to let him perform both songs.
TV chiefs said that would mean dedicating a quarter of the show to Will, which they are not prepared to do. They will now
show his video instead.
TOTP producer Michael Kelpie said: “This is a very sad moment in Top Of The Pops history. “The door is still open to Will
and we would love to have him on the show as long as the record company change their unreasonable demands.”
TOTP was due to have the exclusive first showing of Will’s video last week and the first live performance of his single this
Friday.
But talks broke down when TOTP said it was rare for them to show a debut act before they hit the charts.
And they almost never let acts perform more than one song unless it is for a special one-off show.
A TOTP insider said: “In our 38-year history we’ve featured the likes of Michael Jackson, Prince, Jennifer Lopez and Madonna.
Their record companies made no such demands.
“It is a real shame as I know it has been Will’s lifelong dream to perform on the show. We cannot let record companies start
dictating to us how much coverage their artists get.”
A spokesman for Will refused to comment on the stand-off last night.
The golden-voiced singer, from Hungerford, Berks, won the hearts of the nation when he beat rival Gareth Gates to be crowned
winner of the Pop Idol talent search three weeks ago.
His single has smashed every record set by a debut music act.
He will now be entered in The Guinness Book of Hit Singles as the biggest-selling debut act over a week and for first-day
sales.
Delighted Will, who appeared on London’s Capital Radio yesterday, said last night: “I can’t express how happy I am. It’s an
amazing feeling to have a No1 hit. Everything I’ve experienced over the last couple of months is just beginning to sink in.
“To have broken records with my debut single is incredible. All I can say is the biggest thank you to everyone who voted for
me and everyone who’s bought the single. I thought it couldn’t get better, but it just has.”
Will’s single sold 385,483 on its first day of release last week. Its total for the week was 1,108, 269 — just 1,731 short
of going double platinum.
The previous biggest-selling debut act was Hear’Say from ITV’s Popstars show last year. First week sales of their debut single
hit 550,000 copies.
David Roberts, Editor of the Guinness Book of British Hit Singles, was astonished by the reaction to Will.
He said: “Every day this week Will was on the way to new records. He has broken the one million barrier in his first week.
It’s something special.”
The biggest and fastest-selling single yet was Sir Elton John’s Candle in the Wind tribute to Princess Diana. It sold more
than five million, including 1.5million in the first week.
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Will Breaks Records In South Africa-NME Website-
WILL YOUNG is not just breaking records in the UK - he’s doing the same in SOUTH AFRICA. A massive 53,000 copies of the 'Pop
Idol' winner's first single were snapped up last week.
Young’s 'Evergreen' / 'Anything Is Possible' outstripped first week sales of Elton John’s Princess Diana tribute 'Candle In
the Wind', according to his record label BMG.
The double A-side single was only due to be released on Monday (March 11), but a retailer’s promotional campaign saw his label
push the release date forward a week to coincide with the final episode of UK 'Pop Idol', which ended its run on South Africa’s
pay channel, M-Net, last Sunday (March 3).
"By midweek we were rush pressing another 20,000 (copies), but that wasn’t enough." says a BMG spokesman. "Everyone
in the business misread the market. We were expecting to shift 50,000, but thought it would take at least several weeks. The
CD single market was virtually dead in this country until Will and 'Pop Idol' came along. Now there’s no reason why we can’t
move 100,000."
Expectations are that Gareth Gates’ cover of 'Unchained Melody', due for released in South Africa on March 25, will outsell
Will’s single.
Now that retailers have cottoned on to the mania, they will be queuing up to place ads on 'Idols', the South African franchise
of UK 'Pop Idol', which debuted on Sunday (March 10).
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Will's Amazing Rise to the top-Heat Mag
As his debut single heads to Number One in the charts, heat's Paige Schuppan charts Will Young's incredible journey from schoolboy
to pop star
Not even in his wildest dreams did he think it would happen. Pop Idol winner Will Young has a major record deal, a sure-fire
hit single under his belt and is set to become a millionaire - and all before his 24th birthday. Despite his privileged upbringing,
it's still something few of his classmates at public school would have predicted for the popular and outgoing youngster. So
how exactly did Will Young go from being a posh pupil to being a pop idol?
The Early Years
Will was raised by his parents - dad, Robin, a company director, and housewife mum, Annabel - in the leafy countryside of
Hungerford, Berkshire. But things didn't start too smoothly. Performing in front of Simon Cowell was nothing compared to his
traumatic introduction to the world when he and his twin Rupert were born six weeks prematurely.
These days, Will, the elder twin by ten minutes, is really close to his brother - Rupert was caught on camera cheering on
Will's Pop Idol performances - but it wasn't always like that. Will's father remembers how they were "constantly scrapping"
as kids.
And although we may know Will as a polite, well-spoken young man, as a child he was definitely no angel. Will's parents couldn't
believe it when the youngster developed an unnerving taste for the family dog's pet food. But his dad's greatest memory of
the twins is from when they were about four years old: "We were outside their room listening to them open Christmas presents,"
recalls Robin, "Out of the blue came Will's remark: 'That ------- Santa didn't bring me any Lego'."
And it seems Simon Cowell wasn't the first person to come up against Will; the young man has always spoken his mind. Robin
also remembers the time a surgeon wanted to break and reset Will's crooked jaw. "He refused. There was no arguing with
him."
School Days
At the age of eight, the twins were shipped off to the posh Horris Hill Prep School, just south of Newbury, where they boarded
for five years. The regime was pretty austere and Edwardian - surnames only, unheated dorms, furiously competitive compulsory
games and limited parental access - but it did give Will a taste for music. In his second year, he took up playing the piano
and stuck with it for four years. Headmaster Nigel Chapman remembers him as a "good all-rounder and head chorister".
After Horris Hill, Will and Rupert went on to one of the most prestigious public schools in the country, Wellington College.
Here, Will may have been captain of athletics and head of his house, but he was a bit of a naughty boy when it came to his
studies and wasn't universally popular with the teachers. One of his school reports says: "My heart sank when I learnt
William was in my class."
Bright-spark Will managed to sail through ten GCSEs, but his mucking about caught up with him when he got disappointing A-Level
results - time for retakes at a sixth-form college in Oxford. Not one to sponge off the family, he got a part-time job serving
posh coffee at Oxford's swanky Grand Café to support himself. "He was one of those people that everyone knew," one
of co-workers recalls, "really easy-going and would chat to anybody."
Uni High Life
Eventually, Will's hard slog paid off. With two A's and a B, in Politics, Ancient History and English, he got in to Exeter
University and soon established himself a reputation as a bit of a joker. In his second and third years, Will lived in a flat
on Well Street with a group of friends. Best mate Adam Jones remembers how, "He put all the furniture from my first-floor
flat into a ground floor one once after a drunken night out, then dangled me out of the window." But even though Will
partied hard, he worked hard too and graduated with a second-class degree in Politics.
But Will's number one priority all along was his music. According to his personal tutor and politics teacher Dr Larbi Sadiki,
"If he missed class it was because of his music. He never lied about it. We understood and gave him a bit of leeway."
Even his fellow students recognised Will's star quality. "I remember some of the students saying before classes, 'This
guy's going to be a star'," says Sadiki.
Stardom Beckons
Ironically, Will met Simon Cowell long before Pop Idol, when the latter judged a competition on This Morning to find a boy
band. Will won a place in the line-up and, although the band later flopped, it gave him his first taste of stardom. The aspiring
singer sooner joined a theatre group called Footlights where he eventually won the lead role of Curly in a production of Oklahoma!.
"That's where I got my confidence from," he says. "It was just brilliant."
In the autumn of 2001, Will enrolled in The Arts Educational School in Chiswick, west London. "When I left university
I thought, 'I want to go and sing,' but I didn't want to be that naive person without any training," he says. But during
his first term at the school, Will was simultaneously auditioning for Pop Idol and he started to doubt the direction his career
was taking. "As soon as I was in the last 50, I realised that musical theatre wasn't for me." So he put his training
on hold and decided to concentrate on Pop Idol.
When Will graduated, Robin sat him down for a father-son chat. "I did the fatherly, 'Get a proper job,' thing and advised
him against following a singing career. I thought I'd persuaded him," Robin says. The conversation obviously played on
Will's mind because he decided not to tell his family he'd entered Pop Idol.
"We had no idea he was even on the show until he mentioned it. We switched on an episode when the judges were deciding
who should be in the final 50 - and there he was," explains twin Rupert. "But that was so typical of him."
Over the next few months Will would stand up to Simon, deliver the performances of his life, play to a 7,000-strong crowd
at an S Club 7 concert, record a hit single and, ultimately, win the biggest talent show ever.
The Future
A team of top stylists have dramatically transformed Will from a scruffy public schoolboy into a modern day Armani-suited
heart-throb. But the upside of fame - having people at your beck-and-call 24/7 - are taking some getting used to. "I've
been trying to buy a toothbrush and people around me keep saying, 'Don't worry, we'll get it for you'," says Will. But
he's determined to keep his feet on the ground. "I'll never lose sight of the fact that I'm surrounded by a brilliant
family and group of friends. Being a millionaire will never change the way I am to these people." And no one is prouder
of him than his dad, "I was humbled when I first saw him on the show. I'd underestimated his ability and strength of
character. I'm so glad he ignored my advice."
So it seems Will not only has a fantastic singing voice he's also got an educated brain, good looks and above all, ambition.
A powerful cocktail which many stars would give their eye teeth for. He won the biggest talent competition we have ever seen
and this boy is here to stay. Robbie Williams be afraid, be very afraid....
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Will: I'm gay-(News of the World) - Sunday 10th March 2002
POP Idol winner Will Young has fame, fortune, adulation—and the courage of a lion.
And last night, after hearing the news that his first record—the fastest selling debut single in history — had sold an astonishing
1.4 million copies, he opened up that brave heart to announce: "I feel it's time to tell my fans I'm gay."
In an amazingly frank exclusive interview with the News of the World he insisted: "It's totally no big deal, just part
of who I am.
"For me it's normal and nothing to be ashamed about.
I'm gay and I'm comfortable with that.
"I really don't know what the fuss is about. I always try to be honest with myself and truthful with everyone.
Support
"I'm sure this will not come as a surprise to many people, although I've aways been discreet and I'm not a campaigner
when it comes to my sexuality."
Many of the biggest names in showbiz and public life are homosexual and feel forced to live a lie.
But last night Will — the former politics student who endeared himself to all Britain with his talent, guts and the widest
of wide grins—won total support from friends and colleagues for his honesty.
"Some other media pressure has led me to talk about my private life," he told us. "I always try and be honest
and true to myself and not to take life too seriously.
"My family and friends have known ever since I have. They've always been there for me. And my management have been fantastic.
I had a long conversation with the boss Simon Fuller last night and told him about my decision to come out publicly.
"He was totally relaxed and supportive and left it up to me to decide when, or if, I wanted to talk about it. Now is
that time.
"But I don't wish to talk about it any further—and I hope people will respect that. My private life is my private life."
A Pop Iol source told us: "Will's had lots of speculation about his private life. He is gay but is very discreet and
not some gay rights fanatic.
"He's only ever had two close relationships and is now really too busy to have a partner. He's totally focused on his
career at the moment.
He wanted to come out in the News of the World because that's where this all began when saw the entry form in the paper.
"He's just happy that it's out and he can carry on working."
It is a bold move, for the pop record industry is still firmly targeted at selling to young female fans.
And business experts predict a £5million pay packet for Will in his first year alone. Will himself is well aware of his appeal.
In one early round of the 20-week TV talent contest he laughed off a jibe from Mr Nasty panellist Simon Cowell and hit back:
"I get fan mail from six-year-old girls to 65-year-old aunties. It's amazing!"
And the nice guy from Hungerford, Berkshire, went on to win the big one—bagging an astonishing 4.6 million phone votes, 53.1
per cent of all those cast, plus a lucrative deal with record company BMG and 19
Management
When his first record, the double A-side Anything Is Possible/Evergreen, was released on February 25 he notched up more than
a million sales in one week and went straight into the chart at Number 1.
It even eclipsed the massive first week success of Band Aid's historic Do They Know It's Christmas? release in 1984.
But instant glory has not gone to his head.
Even when Will first walked off the Pop Idol stage after learning he'd beaten his rival, hot favourite Gareth Gates, it was
the News of the World he saluted for printing the contest entry coupon that clinched him fame and fortune. "I wouldn't
be here without you," he said.
Dreams
Millions watched that final with Will and Gareth going head-to-head.
Both sang their hearts out with Evergreen and Anything Is Possible—the songs that have now made Will top of the pops.
"Never in my wildest dreams did I think it would sell this many," admitted Will. "It's unbelievable."
On Wednesday Will and the rest of the Pop Idol stars hit the road, kicking off a nationwide tour at Wembley Arena.
And it's already a massive sell-out. "I can't wait to get back on stage and start performing again," said Will.
"I'm really looking forward to being out there with the fans. I'm determined to give them a great show.
"I just love being up there on stage—that's when I'm happiest!"
Will has always yearned to be singing star. Even at university in Exeter he won over fans with a role in the stage musical
Oklahoma!
And last week Will vowed to get in shape for the big round-Britain trek by quitting the booze after a series of heavy celebration
sessions.
"I just can't drink any more for a while," he confessed. "I've overdone it, especially after filming my video
in Cuba. I went on a huge bender there, and I've been on a few more since."
But Will has one of the best organisations in the business to advise and support him.
He has pop svengali Simon Fuller—the man who created the Spice Girls—along with Nicki Chapman who co-manages the star. On
the PR side he relies on the great team at Henry's House where Julian Henry and Charlotte Hickson have masterminded his media
coverage along with BMG's Simon Cowell, Nigel Sweeney and Sonny Takhar.
A close friend said: "Will's over the moon about the success but he doesn't let it go to his head.
"He knows that it's easy to get carried away and he wants to be in this business for a long time. And believe me he will
be."
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Now it's Garethgate-The Sun - Friday 22nd March
POP IDOL record boss Ged Doherty has penned an open letter to The Sun insisting that Gareth Gates is not being promoted at
Will Young’s expense.
He wrote in answer to the Garethgate scandal after we revealed that show host Declan Donnelly and many fans believed programme
chiefs preferred runner-up Gareth to winner Will.
Ged, the managing director of BMG Records, which has signed both Gareth, 17, and Will, 23, exclusively told us: “There is
no conspiracy.”
His letter said: “I’d like to put your mind at rest. There is no conspiracy behind Will and Gareth.
“Dec is a great TV personality and is entitled to give his opinion but he is wrong to say that we have been unfair on Will.
“We’ve been knocked out by the amazing level of support for both Will and Gareth and we’re delighted to have two hugely talented
and entertaining new stars with our company. The TV show Pop Idol was clearly a competition with a winner and that winner
was Will Young.
“That fact is not open to dispute. The public made sure of that by voting in such huge numbers.
“BMG have signed both Will and Gareth and we are working very hard to help make them both as successful as possible.
“This has to be great news for the British music industry — which has been revitalised — as well as for the millions of people
who love pop music and who are buying their records and going to their concerts.
“Both Will and Gareth are very special talents and I’m sure you will see both of them develop and mature in different ways
over the next few years, but there was only one winner of the Pop Idol TV show.
“On a personal note, I can tell you that my family’s votes were equally split between Will and Gareth as mirrored in most
families up and down the land.”
Dec, 26, said he believed Gareth has been promoted more heavily than Will and that Gareth’s single should not have come out
just three weeks after the Pop Idol winner’s.
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Will congratulates Gareth- Sunday 24th March 2002 (from ananova.com)
Pop Idol winner Will Young has congratulated Gareth Gates on his number one success.
Will and Gareth are currently on a tour of the country with the other eight finalists from Pop Idol.
Will called Gareth onto the stage at the NEC in Birmingham in front of 12,500 fans to make a special presentation.
Will said: "I have in my hand a very special award from the Guinness Book of Hit Singles with the record for the youngest
and biggest selling solo British artist."
Accepting the award Gareth said: "It has always been my dream to have a number one hit and to be living it here, on stage,
in front of some of the people who have made it possible, as well as all the other Pop Idol finalists, is an amazing feeling."
News that Gareth had wrestled top spot from the Pop Idol winner came as little surprise to those at tonight's show.
Danni James, 16, of Loughborough Road, Coventry, said: "I thought he would get it and it's really good. I bought Will's
single when it came out and then I bought Gareth's."
Hazel and Claire Hopewell, of Gordon Lane, Birmingham, brought with them to the concert a double-sided banner - one side devoted
to Will and the other to Gareth.
Hazel said: "I wanted to come last night but we couldn't get in I am really glad we were here tonight so I could see
him get the award - that was lovely of Will."
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Pop Will's plea over Milly, Sat 30th March, The Sun
POP Idol star Will Young last night made an emotional TV plea to missing Milly Dowler.
Minutes before going on stage at a sell-out show, the schoolgirl’s singing hero said in his appeal on ITN: “Milly, you’re
not in trouble.
“Your friends and family love you very much. You are greatly missed. If you’re watching, please simply call a friend or any
family member to let them know you are safe.”
Holding up a poster picturing 13-year-old Milly, he added: “We are appealing to anyone with any information. No matter how
trivial you may think it is, it may make all the difference. The number to call is 01372 471212.”
Will, 23, then joined runner-up Gareth Gates and the rest of the Pop Idol line-up on stage at the 12,000-seat Sheffield Arena.
Milly saw the tour in London two days before she vanished.
A Surrey Police spokeswoman said: “Milly is a huge Will fan. We asked him if he would make an appeal and he agreed straightaway.
We are extremely grateful.”
Yesterday detectives probed dozens of leads sparked by over 250 calls to BBC TV’s Crimewatch on Thursday night.
It reconstructed Milly’s last steps after she got off a train with school pals in her home town of Walton-on-Thames nine days
ago.
Supt Alan Sharp, leading the hunt, said: “We are extremely pleased we have received so many calls, many of them significant.”
One witness told cops he had seen a middle-aged man acting suspiciously in a car near the station on the day she went missing
— and the day before.
Yesterday 15 police officers continued combing the family’s four-bedroom house.
They downloaded emails from a computer, but say nothing found so far indicates she had secret friends.
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Macca snubs duet with Will,Bizzare Column,The Sun,Sat 6th April
SIR PAUL McCARTNEY has given a huge snub to WILL YOUNG – refusing point-blank to a duet at Buckingham Palace. Will’s 19 Management,
headed by SIMON FULLER, were confident Macca would sing with the POP IDOL winner at the Party In The Palace celebrating the
Queen’s Golden Jubilee this summer.But the former Beatle turned them down flat.A concert insider told The Sun: “Will is a
big Fab Four fan and was thrilled when Simon had the idea of them singing together.“They went to Paul’s people expecting to
get the green light — after all, Will has just won the biggest search for a star contest ever launched in this country.“But
his management came back and said Sir Paul was dead against it.”Sources say the rejection came straight from Macca, who is
on tour in the US but due back for the June 3 bash in London. He has told pals he does not believe in Pop Idol and wants nothing
to do with it. The star recently said he hated today’s charts, complaining it was mostly “synthetic music, boy bands and a
lot of girls not wearing much”.Ironically Sir Paul is set to make as much as £1million from the TV talent show’s huge success.He
owns the publishing rights to runner-up GARETH GATES’s No1 — THE RIGHTEOUS BROTHERS’s Unchained Melody — and is quids in every
time the song is played.Meanwhile, Will, Gareth and fellow Pop Idol finalist Darius Danesh have been made ambassadors for
the Prince's Trust to work on youth causes.
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Joan Collins and Martin Kemp to present Bafta TV awards,Ananova-18th April
Joan Collins, Martin Kemp and Davina McCall are among stars announcing winners at this year's Bafta TV awards.
The ceremony takes place at London's Theatre Royal on Sunday.
Pop Idol winner Will Young has confirmed he will be attending.
Fay Ripley, James Nesbitt, Amanda Holden, Richard Blackwood, Meera Syal and Ioan Gruffudd will also be presenting awards.
Organisers have arranged for members of the public to catch a glimpse of their favourite stars in a special public gallery
outside the Theatre Royal on Wellington Street.
The gallery will open at 4pm and stars will begin to arrive from 5pm onwards.
The Bafta TV Awards will be hosted by Chris Tarrant and will be broadcast on ITV1 on Monday April 22 at 8.30pm.
This year's nominees include:
Best Single Drama: My Beautiful Son, The Navigators, Othello, When I Was 12.
Best Drama Series: At Home With The Braithwaites, Clocking Off, Cold Feet, Tales From Pleasure Beach.
Best Sitcom: Gimme, Gimme, Gimme, Happiness, The Office, Spaced II.
Best Comedy Programme/Series: Brass Eye Special, Bremner, Bird and Fortune, The Kumars At No 42, The Sketch Show.
Best Presenter: Michael Parkinson - Parkinson. Jeremy Paxman - Newsnight. Simon Schama - A History Of Britain. Louis Theroux
- When Louis Met...
Best Soap: Coronation Street, EastEnders, Doctors, Hollyoaks.
Best Entertainment Performance: Ant and Dec - Pop Idol, John Bird and John Fortune - Bremner, Bird and Fortune, Paul Merton
- Have I Got News For You, Graham Norton - So Graham Norton.
Best Comedy: Kathy Burke - Gimme, Gimme, Gimme, Ricky Gervais - The Office, Robert Lindsay - My Family, Joanna Lumley - Absolutely
Fabulous.
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Radio 1 launches its summer gig line-up,Fri 19th April,Ananova
Radio 1 has launched its summer schedule of outdoor gigs.
The four One Big Sundays will be headlined by Will Young, Gareth Gates, Blue, Mis-teeq and Kosheen.The first festival takes
place in Swansea on June 16.
It will be followed by events in Manchester on July 14, Falkirk on August 11 - yet to be confirmed - and Leicester on September
8.
Which acts play at which dates has not yet been announced.
The station is also planning three one-off dance events, featuring Pete Tong, Judge Jules, Seb Fontaine and Dave Pearce, on
June 21, July 20 and August 18 in city centre locations to be announced.
Radio 1 will be hosting dance tents at Ozzfest, Homelands, Glastonbury, London's Mardi Gras, T In The Park, Reading and Leeds
festivals and Creamfields.
Its One Live week will take place on October 24 to 30 in an as-yet-undisclosed city in the UK.This year's DJs will include
Jo Whiley, Fabio and Grooverider, Trevor Nelson, Steve Lamacq, Mary Anne Hobbs, John Peel and Gilles Peterson.
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Pop Idol trio earn £3m for new tour - Sat 20th April 02,The Sun
POP Idols WILL YOUNG, GARETH GATES and ZOE BIRKETT are to make £1million EACH from their own joint UK shows.
The trio are about to join music’s big earners after announcing a 14-date tour called Will and Gareth.
It means they are set to make a fortune from merchandise and record sales on top of earnings from tickets.
Zoe, who came fourth on the TV show and who will support the lads on stage, is yet to release a record — though already
she
looks like becoming a huge star.
But one mystery puzzling Pop Idol fans is: “What the hell happened to DARIUS?”
Despite coming third in the ITV show, he was not even considered for the line-up.
Will and Gareth are signed to SIMON COWELL’s BMG label and Zoe is expected to follow soon.
But Darius has not been taken on by TV’s Mr Nasty, leading many to suggest that is why he is not on the bill.
To celebrate the tour — which kicks off at the London Arena on October 3 — the trio yesterday held a surprise 45-minute
gig
in Covent Garden, central London.
Hundreds of office workers and tourists who were in the famous piazza at 1pm were stunned to see the Pop Idols perform nine
big band numbers — including Get Happy, Mack The Knife and Let’s Face The Music And Dance.
In an exclusive interview just minutes before going on stage yesterday, Will told The Sun: “We’ve only just finished
the full
Pop Idol tour, which was great.
“But this will be just the three of us, so it will be extra special.
“Zoe was brought in for the tour because she received such a great reception last time. There was no clique on the road
but
Gareth, Zoe and I got on that bit better.
“Nothing against any of the others, but we work great together. There wasn’t an inner circle. There are people you
get on
better with but there was no clique.
“It would be great to release a song as a trio but the problem is we’d all be fighting for the microphone.
“We don’t think about the money we’ll earn. We just love to perform.”
Zoe added: “I love working with these guys. We are such good friends and it’s great being on stage with them. I
enjoy being
the only girl. I get treated like royalty and have a dressing room to myself.”
A music industry insider added: “Considering they were complete unknowns a year ago, they have already earned a fortune.”
THE Will Gareth tour dates are October 3/4 – London Arena. October 7/8 - Wembley Arena. October 12/13 – Sheffield
Arena. October
16/17 – Nottingham Arena. October 18 – Manchester Evening News Arena. October 21/22 – Birmingham NEC. October
25 – Newcastle
Telewest Arena. October 28/29 – Glasgow SECC.
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It's Ant 'n Dec v Will,Bizzare Column,The Sun,Thurs 25th April
IT’S the World Cup battle that will have everyone on the edge of their seats.
But forget England v Argentina — the big one is between Pop Idol hosts ANT McPARTLIN and DECLAN DONNELLY who are up against
the show’s winner WILL YOUNG.
The TV duo will go head-to-head with Will when both release new singles on May 27 — four days before the first match of the
World Cup kicks off.
In the Sony Records team are Ant and Dec, with their official England World Cup theme We’re On The Ball — a re-working of
an old Arsenal song.
Playing for BMG Records is Will with his version of the DOORS classic Light My Fire.
It has nothing to do with the World Cup but is expected to provide stiff competition in the charts after the enormous success
of his debut single Anything Is Possible/Evergreen.
A record industry insider said: “This is going to be a massive battle, with the popularity of Will going up against that of
the presenters who helped make him.
“Everyone is going to want to have a copy of the England World Cup song but Will has a huge fan-base and his last song smashed
all sorts of records.”
Ant and Dec will officially unveil their FA-approved song, which features running commentary by BBC legend JOHN MOTSON, at
a Press conference today.
Ant and Dec recorded the song two months ago but it has only just been rubber-stamped as the England theme.
A Sony spokesman said: “We are certain it will become a classic football song. It is perfect for radio and will have everyone
dancing at their barbecues.
“We chose Ant and Dec because they are quite simply the hottest entertainers around.”
Apart from Will, the duo also face stiff competition from a load more footie fans bringing out unofficial anthems.
FAT LES, who had a 1998 World Cup hit with Vindaloo, have recorded the tune Who Invented Fish & Chips?
And BELL & SPURLING are re-releasing the Sven Song, with the B-side Golden Balls about Beckham.
Even BUBBLE and DEAN from Big Brother have had a go at a World Cup tune.
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Pop idol Will's first love is Leo lookalike-News Of The World
A LEONARDO DiCaprio lookalike broke Will Young's heart when he told the besotted Pop Idol: "Sorry, my friend, I'm not gay."
Will, then just 19, had fallen for gorgeous Adam Jones—nicknamed Little Leo because of his likeness to the Titanic heart-throb—while
they shared a student flat in Exeter.
They grew closer as they spent time pursuing their common love of the stage at Exeter University's Footlights club.
For months Will hid his true feelings from drama student Adam, who knew his flatmate was gay.
A friend said: "Will grew more and more depressed about his feelings for Adam. Bottling it up for so long made things worse
and worse.
Straight
"After six months Will took Adam aside and told him how he felt, but Adam just couldn't handle it. He told Will he was not
attracted to men—he was straight.
"Will was really upset. It was as if Adam had broken his heart by rejecting him."
Within days Will had moved out of the £54-a-week flat which he and Adam shared with three girls.
The friend said: "Will felt it was best if he left. It was typical of Will, he wouldn't want to cause any further upset. It
took everyone by surprise when it emerged he had a massive crush on Adam.
"Adam was adored by every girl who knew him. He was young, handsome, intelligent and funny. He was everything any girl would
want."
After winning Pop Idol and having a huge hit with his first single Evergreen, Will, 23, chose to go public about his sexuality
exclusively to the News of the World.
But his friends had known he was gay for years. While he was studying politics at Exeter he confided to a close female friend
that he'd experienced homosexual feelings from the age of 12. He also revealed that he had bedded a girl while he was at sixth-form
college—and deeply regretted it.
"Never, not once, had he given any indication through his behaviour that he was homosexual," added the friend.
"He just came out with it and took us totally by surprise. It was a very emotional time for us all, especially Will. He has
an amazing sense of pride and dignity and I think it took a considerable amount of courage to come out.
"We all vowed to treat him no differently and none of us ever did. No one wanted to see him harmed."
News that Will was gay spread through the Exeter campus—upsetting many of the girls. The friend said: "In reality he
broke
a few girls' hearts. They all loved him to bits.
"Coming out didn't change Will a bit and our attitude towards him never altered either. He excelled at sport and was extremely
good at running and rugby."
But it was his off-the-field student antics that he will be remembered for.
"Whenever there was a drink to be had Will was always there," added his pal. "He was a real live-wire. One time we were playing
rugby near a river and lost the ball in the water. Next thing Will was stripping off and jumping in to get it.
Warmth
"He was mad like that, always very impulsive. From day one at Exeter he was a hit with everyone. He wasn't the most astute
student, but his personality and his warmth made people love him instantly.
"And he would have us all mesmerised with his voice."
Will also knew how to laugh at himself—even dressing up in drag for a university ball.
The friend said: "Everyone got dressed up but Will went for it—big style. He wore a sarong and a sleeveless silver number.
"But the truth is he was one of the worst drag queens ever. Will just doesn't know how to camp things up."
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Web chatroom appeals could provide Milly clues-Ananova-29/4/02
Detectives believe teenagers using internet chatrooms could provide a breakthrough in the search for missing Amanda Dowler.
Surrey Police say the websites have agreed to place pop-up messages appealing for information about the disappearance of the
13-year-old, who chatted on-line on her home computer.
The messages are now appearing on a number of chatrooms used by Amanda, known as Milly.
They include ones dedicated to pop music she listened to and one devoted to Pop Idol Will Young, her favourite pop star.
Superintendent Alan Sharp said: "We want to hear from anyone who communicated with Milly in chatrooms or has any information
that will help."
The message will pop up as soon as somebody new enters the chatroom and then every 20 minutes during the chat conversation
from early afternoon to 10pm.
Milly vanished while walking home from the train station in Walton-on-Thames on March 21.
A police spokeswoman said: "It is likely that there are still things we don't know about Milly and we are encouraging people
to come forward, anonymously if necessary."
Teenagers with information are being urged to contact police on 01372 471212 or speak to Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800
555 111.
Meanwhile, detectives are still awaiting results from forensic tests of a purse similar to Milly's which was found by a member
of the public
Jessica Garlick says she's grown to love her surname-Ananova
Jessica Garlick says she's grown to love her surname over the years because 'it's so unusual.'
But she says she was teased at school about it.
The Pop Idol singer is representing Britain in this year's Eurovision Song Contest which takes place in Estonia on May 25.
She told OK! magazine: "Though I did get hassled about it at school, it has never really bothered me that much and, over the
years, I have grown to love it as it's so unusual."
And she says Will Young has been giving her advice on coping with fame game.
"We talk a lot, especially now I'm promoting my first single and with Eurovision coming up. He is definitely the person I
turn to for advice. I also became close to his family after I was eliminated from Pop Idol - they are lovely."
Will is all fired up-The Sun - Mon 6th May 02
WILL YOUNG has spoken for the first time about Light My Fire going up against ANT & DEC’s England World Cup song in the charts
– and he is not impressed.
He told me: “I find it impossible to believe that they are releasing a song linked to football.
“Having seen their atrocious football skills the phrase two left feet comes to mind.
"Still, let the battle commence when the songs come out on May 27.”
Will Young in the Park-Official Site-Wed 8th May
Will Young will join the all-star line-up in Hyde Park on Sunday,15th September for the popular CBBC Prom in the Park .CBBC's
Fearne Cotton and Blue Peter's Simon Thomas host event.The gates open at 12.30pm and the afternoon 's entertainment is from
2.00pm.
The concert will be broadcast live on the CBBC Digital Channel and highlights will appear later on CBBC.
Tickets are available online via the website www.bbc.co.uk/proms or by phone on 0870 899 8001 (24 hours,bkg fee).£11.00 (adults),£7
(children3-16,under 3's free).
Will Webchat,Official Webbie,WED 8TH May
Will has just been confirmed for a webchat with Top of The Pops this Thursday evening at 6pm. Will is at Top of The Pops to
record an acoustic version of 'Light My Fire' which will be broadcast on Top of The Pops this Friday.
Will will sing live backed by a 5 piece string section, acoustic bass, acoustic guitar and percussion. Don't miss the chance
to chat live with Will. Visit www.bbc.co.uk/totp to submit your questions now and then return on Thursday at 6pm to take part
in the live chat.
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Transcript of Will Interview with Chris Moyles!(Old Interview-Feb 2002)
Will Young, one of the 2 Pop Idol finalists stopped off on his tour of the country to drum up support for his campaign...
and ended up nicking Lara Croft from the offices of Radio 1!
Before that though, Chris started off by asking how Will was feeling in the run up to the big final...
"Are you very excited?"
"I am." replies Will. "As you can probably see, it's a bit strange coming into the studio and meeting you... I've done so
many things over the last few days that I've watched or listened to and now I'm actually there!"
"We phoned you on the air..."
"We were listening to it! And I got a really nice message from Lizzie!"
"We said if you know any of their phone numbers, give us a call, and we got a load of fake phone numbers, but we knew we'd
got yours when we heard your voice on the answerphone!"
"You know what I was doing when you rang? I was getting rid of my message and on the other line you were ringing in, while
I was trying to erase the message!"
"Would you have answered it?" asks Moyles. "Cos we thought your goons would have got to you and gone 'Don't speak to him,
he's the anti-christ!'"
"Actually, they said 'If you want to answer it, answer it', but I was a bit scared. So I thought I'd just let it ring."
then Chris starts a conversation which ends up in him losing something from the office...
"You were telling me about how you and Gareth did this thing where you nick things?"
"Yeah, it's brilliant... we've got a competition going. We've got to find the best free blag... any famous autographs you
can lend us?" asks Will.
"We've got those free Aeros that we got sent the other day" chips in Dave.
"That's not cool" shouts Chris, "...there's that life size Lara Croft model that we got."
And Will adds that to his "nicked" list - as you can see him here, making off with it, onto his bus at the end of the interview!
Then Moyles gets down to the money (and the Porsche Boxter) as always...
"Do you get expenses for appearing on the show?"
"Yeah, we get expenses but the thing is - I haven't spent any money. The only money I spend is on Saturday night if I go out
with my friends afterwards. So at least my overdraft's gone down a bit."
"You can't go to the pub and just have a drink" asks Chris in disbelief...
"Yeah - we had the afternoon off on Sunday. It was the first one we'd had off for 2 weeks."
"Do you get mobbed?"
"You know what? It was alright, it wasn't bad. You just do a few, but they all say nice things, I think that's the good thing
about the show - people are so involved in it."
With a round of Karaoke coming up, Chris asks about the plush hotel the Pop Idols have all been hidden away at for the last
few months, and tries to find out what it's like.
"Have you got a kitchen in there?"
"Got a kitchen, sitting room..."
"Who was the best cook who was in there?"
"I think Darius actually. He is a very good cook. He takes it very seriously."
"He takes everything very seriously though, doesn't he!" says Chris.
"He's a big thinker. He's a very intelligent guy. He's so ambitious, I have absolutely no doubts that he's going to do well."
Dave agrees: "I think he's done fantastically well bearing in mind he was this joke character after Popstars, and he's rebuilt
himself, and come through this and into the last three... well done to him!"
And after a bit of Stars In Their Eyes Karaoke, Will picks up Lara Croft and is off to his battle bus and is away! Will Will
win? It's your choice!
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Will Young single expected to debut at the top spot, Tues 28th May 02,www.ananova.com
Will Young's new single should debut at the top of the charts this Sunday, according to an HMV spokesman.
His cover of The Doors' Light My Fire should displace Eminem's Without Me.
Ant and Dec's official World Cup anthem We're On The Ball is expected to enter the charts at number three.
The Sex Pistols re-released God Save the Queen should also be a contender for the top 10 in this Jubilee week.
HMV 's chart expert Gennaro Castaldo told BBC News this was a "potentially huge week for the singles chart".
He added: "Our confident expectation is that Will Young will sell around 200,000 singles to comfortably go straight in at
number one and take over from Eminem.
"Ant and Dec's We're on the Ball should make the top three, and of the other football releases DJ Otzi's re-release of Hey
Baby probably has the best chance of chart success.
"The Sex Pistols re-release of God Save the Queen will be difficult to call given nobody really knows who their fanbase is
likely to be - it might just sneak into the top 10."
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SUN ARTICLE-SAT 1ST JUNE
Will aims to party just like Beckham
WILL YOUNG reckons he is music’s answer to David Beckham and plans to lift the nation just like the England skipper.
The Pop Idol agrees with Becks’ rallying cry of “Let’s party” and said: “This weekend is going to be the biggest knees-up
in history.”
Will is on the bill for Monday’s Golden Jubilee concert at Buckingham Palace and is determined to make sure things go off
with a bang.
The country is already on a high after Goldenballs Beckham announced he is fit to play against Sweden in the World Cup tomorrow.
And Will, who is a dead cert to notch up his second No1 single tomorrow with his cover of Light My Fire, plans to add to the
party spirit the following day.
Phoning from pre-concert rehearsals, he told me: “Beckham’s right. This is going to be a great weekend and people should definitely
get involved.
“There is already a feeling of excitement around the country with the World Cup starting and I hope to add to that.”
Will is just as nervous about performing in front of his music heroes as he is of shaking hands with royalty.
He said: “I walked into rehearsals and there was Phil Collins with his drum kit. You can’t ask for more than that.
“I am very excited but I’m also very nervous – more than I have ever been before.
“It’s amazing to think that this time last year I was doing my university exams and now I’m singing in front of millions of
people, not to mention the Queen.
“Although I’ve not got any revision to do, I’ve still got to remember my lines.
“The Royal Family are great and we should all get into the spirit of things this long weekend.”
ANANOVA ARTICLE
Will Young fails to top Irish singles chart,Sun 2nd June
Will Young has failed to top the Irish singles chart for a second time.
His cover version of The Doors' Light My Fire only debuted at number five this week.
Eminem's Without Me held the top spot for a second week.
Will's first single, Evergreen, is the fastest selling UK single of all time.
He is hot favourite to debut at the top of the UK singles chart on Sunday.
ANANOVA ARTICLE-SUN 2ND JUNE
Will beats Ant and Dec to No1
The second single by Will Young has entered the charts at number one.
It beat Ant and Dec's World Cup song, We're on the Ball, into third slot.
Will took the number one spot with his cover version of The Doors' song Light My Fire, pushing Without Me by Eminem, into
second place.
Other football songs which entered the charts as England began their World Cup campaign included DJ Otzi's Hey Baby which
went in at number 10.
Goldenballs (Mr Beckham to You) by Bell and Spurling, and Go England by the England Boys went in at numbers 25 and 26 respectively.
Golden Jubilee concerts go to DVD-ANANOVA.COM
The Queen's Golden Jubilee concerts are to be released on DVD.
The Prom At The Palace and Party At The Palace will be available in the first week of July.
BBC Worldwide will donate proceeds from the Jubilee concert DVDs to The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Trust.
The Party At The Palace will be broadcast in the US on VH1 at 9pm on June 9.
Featured artists included chart stars such as Atomic Kitten, Blue, The Corrs, Mis-Teeq, Ricky Martin, S Club 7, and Will Young.
Rock and pop veterans such as Ozzy Osbourne, Elton John, Paul McCartney, Queen and Rod Stewart also appeared.
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100,000 out for Hyde Park pop concert-Ananova-7th July 2002
Grey skies failed to dampen spirits of thousands of music fans as they turned out to watch some of the biggest names in pop
at this year's Party In The Park.
Around 100,000 people packed London's Hyde Park for Europe's biggest one day pop extravaganza.
Pop Idol Will Young, Atomic Kitten, Wyclef Jean and Shaggy were among the big names entertaining the crowds at the annual
event in aid of the Prince's Trust.
The heavens opened as boy band Blue made a spectacular entrance, abseiling on to the stage to perform their No 1 single All
Rise.
But the skies soon cleared and the sell-out crowd were singing along to some of the biggest chart hits of the past year.
Atomic Kitten's, Natasha Hamilton gave her last performance at the concert before the birth of her son.
The heavily-pregnant star is due in six weeks and the girl band dedicated their hit song Whole Again to her unborn baby, who
she has already named Josh.
Last year the group, who are ambassadors for the Prince's Trust, got the Prince of Wales dancing away in the Royal Box.
The Prince is due to attend the event, sponsored by radio station Capital FM, which last year raised £1 million for his charity.
Canadian rocker Bryan Adams is the headline act at the event and the bill includes Natalie Imbruglia, Popstars reject Liberty
X, Mis-Teeq and the Lighthouse Family.
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The Sun-8th July 2002
ATOMIC KITTEN suffered an identíty crisis at yesterday’s Party In The Park when bungling security guards wouldn’t
let them
on stage.
It wasn’t until fellow performer WILL YOUNG pointed out who the chart-toppers were that the stewards finally relented.
And it wasn’t the only boob of the afternoon. Kitten JENNY FROST wowed the huge crowd for the wrong reasons when her
nipple
popped out during the girl band’s performance.
The afternoon had started badly for Jenny, NATASHA HAMILTON and LIZ McCLARNON. They arrived late for the Capital FM party
in London’s Hyde Park and had to quickly change before dashing towards the stage.
But 100,000 fans in the audience were left staring at an empty space for five minutes while the girls were refused access.
Pop Idol Will who had just finished his slot, told the stewards: “This is Atomic Kitten. They’re probably bigger
pop stars
than me and they’re supposed to be on now. I think you’d better let them through.”
The guards finally let the girls on to play a string of hits, including Whole Again and It’s OK.
After the show, which raises money for the Prince’s Trust, heavily-pregnant Natasha said: “We were rushing around
a bit and
made a quick dash from our changing room to the stage.
“It was only when we tried to bound on that we were stopped in our tracks. They didn’t have a clue who we were.
“I think they thought we were over-zealous fans trying to storm the stage. Luckily Will saved the day.”
During the girls’ raunchy show, Jenny’s nipple was on view for some time before she popped it back in place. She
said later:
“It’s quite embarrassing but I suppose these things happen.”
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Daily Star-16/7/02
Will Young has played at the home of Prince Charles, I can reveal. The singer performed at Highgrove in front of Prince William,
Prince Harry and the heir to the throne. The three princes were joined by 200 VIP guests including Camilla PB for the hush-hush
bash. The secret show was in aid of British Forces Foundation and Will performed after dinner for the select crowd. But William
and Harry skipped the posh feed and just came to watch the Pop Idol star. Rather than play his hits Will followed in the footsteps
of Robbie Williams by performing old-time swing numbers with a military band.The invitation for the exclusive concert on June
28th stunned singer Will especially as he was the only musical performer at the lavish bash.A pal of Will's confessed " It
was a real honour for Will to perform. He felt privileged just to be asked and the concert was a real delight. To be honest
though , he hasn't really spoken too much about it since he performed. That's because he felt it was right to keep the gig
as private as possible" Will's prestigous invitation came after he was rumoured to have made a huge impact on Charles at the
Jubilee concert. The top secret gig shows just how far Will has come since winning Pop Idol. He has so far notched up two
No1 hits and now he has Royal approval."
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A Message From Will-Offish site- Tues 23rd July 02
"I have been working really hard since Pop Idol and it¹s great to know that I have fans who are as passionate about what I
do, as I am!
I want to reassure them that I am very happy and that they needn't worry. I appreciate their concerns, but the plans for my
career are very exciting and I can't wait to release the album.
Gareth and I are genuinely good friends and enjoy all sorts of music, but our styles are very different. The duet which we
are releasing on Sept 23rd sounds fantastic! After the great response we got to it on the show and as a thank you to all our
fans, we felt it would be a great track to celebrate a great year. After this, both Gareth and I will move on and take the
very different routes of music we both want to follow.
Since Pop Idol, I have wanted to spend as much time as possible writing and co-writing with some great singers/song writers
in the studio, rather than recording new tracks for immediate release, which will hopefully mean that my first album will
be as good as it possibly can be, and will get a great response.
On the album there will be plenty of original, self written and co-written material. I know there's a huge demand from my
fans to hear some original Will songs, which is hugely flattering, and I am as keen to get them released as you are! I just
want to make sure that when I do release them, I am really proud of them.
Thank you to every fan who has taken the time and interest in my career to contact The Sun and please believe me when I say
that I am extremely happy with how things are going and everything my new job has brought with it. Your emails and comments
mean a great deal to me and have given me the motivation to go back into the studio and work even harder on the album so that
you're not disappointed! Fingers crossed!
Take care, Will"
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Pop Idol winners to take part in World Idol-Ananova-27th July
Will Young looks set to take part in a special edition of Pop Idol involving winners from different countries competing against
each other.
Will's manager Simon Fuller, who came up with the idea for Pop Idol, says he's planning to launch World Idol.
He hopes the show will have enable viewers from around the world to vote for their favourite.
"We'll work the voting system so that the population of the country will be fair and proportional to the votes the contestants
receive," Fuller tells Billboard.
Pop Idol has already been a huge hit in the UK, Poland, and South Africa.
The show will expand to Germany and France by the end of the year says Fuller.
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Long and Winding Road Details- Wed 14th Aug 02,Offish Site
As previously announced Will and Gareth will release the duet The Long and Winding Road/ Suspicious Minds on 23rd Sept.
Fresh from their record breaking solo releases, the UK's brightest young solo artists have joined forces to record a track
together which will be released as part of a Double A side on September 23rd.
In celebration of the phenomenal year that both artists have had and due to the massive public response to their rendition
of The Beatles hit, "The Long and Winding Road" on ITV¹s Pop Idol, this release is sure to be one of this years most
eagerly
anticipated hits.
Penned by Paul Mc Cartney and John Lennon in 1970, The Long and Winding Road was The Beatles last US release and their 20th
No 1 hit but was never released as a single in the UK. Now, Will and Gareth will introduce their own version of this classic
track to a new generation of fans with a unique video shot in just ONE take with a completely live vocal!
"It is a real honour to cover a Beatles track I have always been a big fan of theirs. After the brilliant response we
got
to it on the show and as a thank you to all our fans, we felt it would be a great track to celebrate a great year. After this,
both Gareth and I will move on and take the different routes of music we both wish to follow." says Will.
The track will be a Double A side, featuring Gareth on Suspicious Minds, the soundtrack for the forthcoming Disney animation
Lilo and Stitch.
Will added; "Although I was invited to join Gareth to duet on Suspicious Minds, I was uncomfortable with the track and suggested
he did it solo as it suits his voice well. It sounds fantastic and I hope both tracks go down equally well."
Will's rendition of "I Get The Sweetest Feeling" will feature as an additional track on the single
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Darius says Pop Idol songs were fixed for Gareth- Thurs 15th Aug02,The Sun
Darius Danesh says Pop Idol was biased in favour of Gareth Gates over Will Young.
He claims the tracks Evergreen and Anything Is Possible were chosen to suit Gareth's voice.
Darius says Will even asked for them to be rearranged to give him a better chance.
He told The Sun: "We all recorded Evergreen and Anything Is Possible for the final. I did them too but they weren't even in
my vocal range.
"They were written for Gareth's voice and Will was unhappy with that.
"Will asked Simon Cowell if he could have them rearranged into keys we could all sing and Simon just brushed him off.
"It was clear at the time Simon backed Gareth. He said it publicly afterwards and so I didn't find it surprising."
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Celebs help build world's largest global sculpture- Thurs 15th Aug02,Ananova
Celebrities including Big Brother's Jade, Chris Evans and Will Young are helping to create the world's largest global sculpture.
They have all chosen a shape to add to the internet sculpture at www.iconobloc.com.
According to psychologists, the shape people choose can reveal their true personality.
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IT'S WILL BUNG!-Fri 23rd Aug02-The Sun
POP Idol winner WILL YOUNG’s next single is self-penned – and he is giving away all the profits to charity.
The jazzy ballad Don’t Let Me Down has been chosen as the theme for this year’s Children In Need.
It is his first original track after cover versions of Evergreen, Anything Is Possible, Light My Fire and THE BEATLES’ Long
And Winding Road, which he sang as a duet with runner-up GARETH GATES.
The millions the new single will inevitably make will be given straight to the charity after its release in November.
Will follows in the footsteps of S CLUB 7, who topped the charts with Never Had A Dream Come True and Have You Ever, MARTINE
McCUTCHEON, DENISE VAN OUTEN and JOHNNY VAUGHAN in raising a fortune for the charity.
The song will be performed by Will at the Children In Need telethon on November 15.
He co-wrote the track with songwriters Richard Stannard and Julian Gallagher — and told his bosses that he was opposed to
recording another cover version.
Will told The Sun: “I want to release my very first original track at a very special time.
“I have chosen to do this for Children In Need as I know there is a huge demand for the single, so hopefully I will be able
to raise as much money as possible for such a good cause.
Since Pop Idol, I have wanted to spend as much time as possible writing and co-writing with some great singers/songwriters
in the studio, rather than recording new tracks for immediate release.
“Hopefully it will mean that my first album will be as good as it possibly can be, and will get a great response.
“I know there’s a huge demand from my fans to hear some original Will songs, which is hugely flattering, and I am as keen
to get them released as you are!
“I just want to make sure that when I do release them, I am really proud of them.
And a source close to Will added: “He is determined not to be pigeonholed as a karaoke cover version singer and that is why
fans have had to wait for this song.
“It’s a laid back jazzy ballad and he was adamant that he wanted the money to go to charity.
“It should raise millions and he wants to give something back.”
The track will come out just six weeks after Will and Gareth’s Beatles duet is released.
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High fidelity: Why the pop idols will never be rivals
By rights, Will Young and Gareth Gates should be snarling rivals, but the thrills and spills post Pop Idol have only made
them better friends, finds Kate Thornton
You know you’ve made it when you turn the heads of the jaded crowd at Soho House. But when Will Young and Gareth Gates saunter
into the bar, chatting animatedly, heads whip round, people stare unashamedly and a low buzz fills the room.
It’s the sort of response you’d only expect to be elicited by Charles and Camilla hand in hand; and it’s probably down to
the fact that Young and Gates are consistently pitted against each other in the media. The Sun has been waging a Save Will
campaign, following their A&R man Simon Cowell’s confession that he invests more time in Gates’s career.
In fact, pop’s odd couple are close friends. Even though we have met at the unearthly hour of 8am (the only time they could
squeeze into their busy schedules), they have arrived early to catch up and discuss the events of the previous weekend, when
Gates had been a guest at the Young family home in Hungerford. And you can’t help wondering if their decision to perform a
duet together — they are here to promote their joint cover of The Long and Winding Road — is an attempt to lay the rivalry
rumours to rest.
“That whole Sun campaign thing was quite flattering,” says Young. Gates, meanwhile, looks panic-stricken. “I felt really bad
about all that. People are looking at me, thinking it’s something I’ve done, but it isn’t me at all,” he says, looking at
Young worriedly.
They are the first to admit that, in any other circumstances, they probably would never have been friends. Their backgrounds,
ages (Gates is 18, Young 23), musical tastes and education are completely different. Yet the unique situation into which they
have been pitchforked has left them with a genuine camaraderie. For example, at times Gates’s stutter gets the better of him:
“A combination of being tired and not having enough time with my speech coach,” he sighs. He travels with a pen and notepad,
scribbles down key words to help him when his conversation stalls, apologising profusely and brimming with frustration. The
temptation to finish his sentences for him should be irresistible, but Young knows the ropes and waits until he’s finished,
smiling encouragingly.
Since the show came to an end in February, Gates and Young have become a pop powerhouse. Collectively, they have held the
No1 slot for 12 weeks, even knocking Elvis Presley from the top of the charts. Young’s debut release, Evergreen, became the
fastest-selling single of all time, and Gates’s cover of Unchained Melody outsold George Michael by 850,000 copies when they
went head-to-head.
“I met George not long after that, and when he congratulated me I didn’t know what to say,” Gates says, looking guilty. “So
I just sort of mumbled, ‘Yeah, sorry about that.’ But I really meant it,” he protests. “I mean, who would have thought I’d
beat George Michael? They spent £1m on his video, and along comes the kid with his video filmed in a car park in Florida —
and I get to No1, not him. That’s mad.”
Today, their schedule includes a writing session with the music legend Burt Bacharach (for Young) and a joint photo shoot
with the fashion photographer Nick Knight for Vogue.
“Us? In Vogue? When they called, I was sure they’d made a mistake,” says Young, who is wearing jeans and a T-shirt, and has
two-day stubble.
At present, he is house-hunting in Notting Hill, while Gates has moved into a £1,000-a-week rented apartment in Kensington.
(“It’s well nice.”) It’s hard to believe that a year ago Young was waiting tables for £40 a day to finance his drama-school
studies, and Gates was “just an average schoolboy”, living with his parents and six siblings in their Bradford semi.
“I knew the chances of me making it were slim, and without the show I never would have,” says Gates. “When I auditioned, my
speech really worried me, because I knew they were looking for the whole package. But, in the end, it helped me stand out
from the crowd. All my life it’s been such a negative for me, and for the first time it became a positive thing. That was
nice.”
Young also set a precedent when, just weeks after his win, he came out as gay, seemingly unafraid of the possible repercussions
for his career.
“I didn’t think it was that big a deal. I wasn’t scared. There are more important things that have happened to me,” he shrugs.
“Maybe people like George Michael and Elton John have paved the way and made it a little easier for someone like me. My take
on it was to just say it, get it out of the way and move on. I remember thinking at the time that, if my career plummeted
as a result, then I didn’t want to be a part of it anyway. I would have gone and worked in a dog refuge or something.” So
far, the gamble has paid off spectacularly.
Meanwhile, Gates has become the undisputed king of the teen pop market. “I do love being famous,” he says enthusiastically.
“I love everything about it.” What, the screaming fans, the autograph hunters, the snide gossip in the tabloids? “Everything,”
he says firmly. “I don’t want to waste a moment. I know it’s not going to last for ever.”
And Young? “I’m running for the hills ... ” he jokes. “Actually, I’m quite proud of the way I’ve handled it all. I really
don’t feel famous. You can become paranoid about it, and some people actually start to look for it, you know, to check that
people are looking at them. But I went out in Hampstead last night and not one person recognised me. People don’t recognise
you as much as you’d think.”
Which is perhaps surprising, when you consider how little they have changed their appearance. Gates has held firmly onto his
spiky hairdo — now the most requested haircut in Britain — and has had the last laugh, as it’s netted him a £1m contract with
Wella Shockwaves. Young still sports his collection of natty hats. Among his retail weaknesses are “anything by Armani and
John Smedley”, while Gates has developed a taste for Gucci shoes and tailor-made suits, and he’s still hanging on to the famous
suit first worn by Robbie Williams in his Millennium video.
“Before Pop Idol, my smartest item of clothing was a gold Versace suit my parents bought me to wear on the show. It was really
expensive — £800 — which was hard for them because my dad’s a postman and there was never much money spare,” says Gates, who
plans to repay their kindness with a new house. Although he’s keen to point out that he’s not as flush as has been reported.
“People think that we have millions. It said in the papers I was worth £2.5m, but I haven’t seen anything like that ... yet.”
“It takes so long for the money to come through,” explains Young. “We also have to invest a lot in ourselves.
We pay for half of our videos and recording costs, but I like that because it forces you to stay on top of the business. I
mean, I actually read my record contract.”
“Did you?” asks Gates, incredulously. “My mum and dad read mine. I tried, but I was like, ‘Mum, what does clause 4.1a mean?’
That’s what the lawyers are for.”
They will both release albums later this year, and they plan to tour together in October, which means that their personal
lives have been pushed onto the back burner.
“I really don’t have time for a relationship,” says Gates, who has been romantically linked with the 26-year-old Pop Idol
finalist Hayley Evetts, and concedes that they are “very close”. “I’m single, but happily so,” chirps Young. With that, pop’s
oddest couple finish their breakfasts, thank me politely, and saunter out, side by side, seemingly oblivious to the swivelling
heads.
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Will at TOTP Awards - Sat 14th September02-Offish
Will has just announced that he’ll be playing at this year’s Top Of The Pops Awards on 29th November at the Manchester
Evening
News Arena.
Will is among the first of 12 acts announced to perform at this year’s show, alongside Gareth Gates and Craig David.
There
will be 2 special collaborations that will be kept a closely guarded secret until the night, could Will be taking part?
The categories include Top Pop Act, Top Rock Act, Top Rn’B Act, Top Dance Act and Top Newcomer as well as Top Tour, Top
Album
and Top Single.
During the month of November the categories are voted for by the general public, readers of Top Of The Pops Magazine and by
visiting www.bbc.co.uk/totp. So be sure to remember to vote. The show will be shown on TV shortly after the live event.
Tickets go on sale today and you can get them now www.gigsandtours.com
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Will flat out - Monday 23rd Sep02-The Sun
WILL YOUNG has splashed out £750,000 on an exclusive apartment to win back his privacy.
Pals say Will was getting so much attention from fans he decided to move out of the flat he shared with old school friend
Mary Fellowes in Notting Hill, West London.
One friend was said to have stated: "Will wanted to carry on living with Mary but the pressures of fame have made it hard.
He needs somewhere more private."
Will moved into his plush new pad in central London in the past few days.
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Will and Gareth on course for number one!- Tuesday 24th Sep02-Ananova.com
Will Young and Gareth Gates look set to storm to the number one on Sunday.
They've got the fastest selling single in the country at the moment according to the latest sales figures from Virgin.
If The Long And Winding Road does enter the chart at in the top spot it'll be both singers third number one.
Oasis are currently in second place with Little By Little with Avril Lavigne is expected to make her UK chart debut at number
three.
The current number one, Pink's Just Like A Pill, is in fourth place followed by Atomic Kitten's version of The Tide Is High
at five.
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THE FOLLOWING THREE ARTICLES ARE ALL FROM ANANOVA.COM AND THE OFFISH SITE!
Will and Gareth on course for second week at Number 1 - Wed 2nd Oct-
Will Young and Gareth Gates look set to stay at number one this weekend.
According to midweek sales figures The Long And Winding Road will hold on to the top spot for a second week.
Holly Valance is expected to enter the chart at number two.
A spokeswoman for Virgin Megastores told Ananova: "Will and Gareth are way ahead of Holly".
Avril Lavigne should stay at number three with Complicated.
ARTICLE 2
Will Young plans duet with Kelly Clarkson - Wed 2nd Oct
Will Young is planning to record a duet with American Idol winner Kelly Clarkson.
The pair sang together on the final of the US show last month.
But record boss Simon Cowell says they need to choose an amazing track for it to be a hit.
Cowell told Heat magazine: "I think it will happen, it makes sense. It would have to be something as good as the George Michael
and Aretha Franklin duet I Knew You Were Waiting For Me.
"It has to be amazing, otherwise don't do it."
He adds that him and Will are still "not the best of friends", after he publicly favoured Pop Idol runner-up Gareth Gates.
He adds: "We're not enemies. We respect each other, but he has a much closer relationship with Simon Fuller. I'm like a child,
I want my own way. I'm always saying things I regret."
ARTICLE 3
Will instore signing at hmv- Wed 2nd Oct-offish
Will has confirmed to appear at HMV, 150 Oxford Street, London on Monday 7th October, the day of release of his new album
for an instore signing.
The signing will take place between 12 noon - 2pm. In order to guarantee that you get your copy of the album signed by Will,
you will need to get hold of a wristband for the event. There are 350 wristbands up for grabs. 150 of these are at HMV and
will be handed out on a first come first serve basis at 9am on Monday 7th October. The remainig 200 pairs of tickets will
be given away in pairs on Will's official website.
For more information and a chance to win a ticket head over to Will's official site.
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No luxury suites for Will - Tues 8th Oct-The Sun
WILL YOUNG has banned his management from booking him into luxury hotel suites —for fear of being branded “demanding”.
The Pop Idol winner also doesn’t like wasting money so he insists on small rooms while on the road. He said: “It’s
only me,
I don’t need much space.”
But Will is not as humble as he’d have us believe. He has a make-up artist, stylist and hairdresser for photo shoots.
He admitted:
“I’ve seen horrid shots of me looking rough and spotty, so I attempt to appear suitably groomed.”
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Prince joins crowd for Will and Gareth concert - Thurs 10th October-ananova.com
The Prince of Wales has joined 12,000 screaming fans at a sell-out charity concert by Pop Idols Will Young and Gareth Gates.
The two singers met the Prince backstage at the Wembley Arena venue, before he settled down to enjoy the performance, staged
in aid of the Prince's Trust.
The duo added the extra date, at the north London venue, to their UK tour to raise money for the charity.
It was expected to raise more than £250,000 for the Trust, for which Will and Gareth are both celebrity ambassadors.
Gareth's ripped jeans and studded belt with his name emblazoned on it drew a comment from the Prince, who said: "I must remember
to get my trousers distressed."
Asked by the Prince how he was enjoying chart success, Gareth enthused about his duo with Will, The Long and Winding Road,
being at number one in the singles charts.
Gareth was then whisked off to be secured into a harness ready to be "flown" on to stage for the second half.
Will, who has performed in front of the Prince at Buckingham Palace this summer, as part of the Queen's Golden Jubilee celebrations,
also said how good if felt to be at number one in the album charts with his debut release.
The pair, who are due to perform at venues from London to Glasgow as part of their tour, sang their number one hit plus material
from both their long-awaited albums.
Pop Idol runner-up Zoe Birkett, 17, also sang, in support, at the concert.
Will and Gareth were originally scheduled to meet the Prince in April but that meeting was cancelled when the Queen Mother
died.
Will, Gareth, Kylie and Ronan set for Royal Variety Performance-Wed 16th Oct-ananova.com
Will Young, Gareth Gates, Ronan Keating and Kylie Minogue are among the performers confirmed for this year's Royal Variety
Performance.
They will be joined by Anastacia, Enrique Iglesias, Shania Twain and Shirley Bassey.
Bob Monkhouse, Lee Mack and Omid Djalili will provide the comedy.
The show will also feature performances by the cast of Bombay Dreams and Our House, the new musical based on Madness songs.
The show takes place on December 2 at the Hammersmith Apollo in the presence of Prince Charles.
Press release from BMG-Offish site-Wednesday 16th Oct
Urgent press release from the office of :
Ged Doherty
President, BMG Music Division
I need to correct an erroneous story that has appeared in The Sun concerning the Will Young album, From Now On. I can confirm
that the version of this album currently instore is and will remain the only version. We have no plans whatsoever to re-package
this album.
I should also point out its incredible success to date. The album entered the UK chart at No.1, selling over 187,000 copies
in its first week. This is the highest first-week sale by a debut artist this year! The album looks on course to stay at No.1
this week and we are looking to achieve over 1 million copies by Christmas. We are incredibly proud of the success of this
album and of Will himself.
The story was incorrect, I re-iterate we had no plans to re-package the album, and I'm sad to be having to issue statements
like this in a week where we should be celebrating our No.1 album.
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