Will Young

Will Young was a shock winner of the 2002 Pop Idol TV reality show over hot favourite Gareth Gates, a far more obvious candidate for pop stardom. A gay man from a comfortable family background, Young graduated from the University of Exeter with a politics degree before pursuing his dream of becoming a singer. His debut single Anything Is Possible backed with a cover of Westlife's Evergreen, was the fastest-selling debut in UK chart history but he soon expanded his horizons with more mature records like Leave Right Now and Your Game and working with dance music producers such as Groove Armada and Gregg Alexander. His stage collaborations have also included artists as disparate as legendary songwriter/arranger Burt Bacharach. Elton John and the godfather of soul, James Brown, with whom he duetted on Papa's Got A Brand New Bag at the Live 8 concert in Edinburgh. Young is also an actor, appearing in the 2005 film Mrs Henderson Presents.