charlotte-church-interview tvradio interviews Virgin Media
Famed for her drinking and smoking as much as for her singing, the wild Welsh warbler who last year landed her own TV show returns with a second series. With millions in the bank, a rugby player boyfriend and a recent comedy award, the girl who has it all tells us about her life in the spotlight. Plus, view Charlotte's life in pictures.
VM: "The first series of The Charlotte Church Show was your first foray into TV. How did you find it?"
Charlotte: "I didn't really know what to expect, because I'd never really done anything like that before but I loved it! It was really hard work. I love stand-up comedy and learning how to deliver jokes and stuff was really interesting to me. It was a lot of fun and I love the people I work with - all the writers and producers, and I really enjoyed the guests I had on there."
VM: "Do you write much of the material?"
Charlotte: "No. Basically I just get a script, which is three times as thick as when we're going to record it, so I'll edit bits out. Whatever I don't think is funny basically gets the chop."
VM: "You've been performing since you were 12, but did you get nervous when you had to go and film your first ever TV show?"
Charlotte: "Incredibly nervous. But I have been more nervous once, when I was doing Have I Got News For You when I was 17. My mic was on my chest and I thought "They're going to hear my heart!" It was literally jumping out of my skin it was beating so hard. It was the same with this show; there was a lot of pressure to try and get everything right."
VM: "Did Gavin (Charlotte's boyfriend) come and watch the recordings?"
Charlotte: "Yeah he came to all of them, bless him. So I'd always say "What do you think, then?" And he was always really honest with me, because he can't be any other way, which is a real pain in the arse. So after the first one he said "Look, it was really good, but during the interview you're not listening to what they're saying." And he was right. Gavin said "They'll say something really funny and you'll just carry on with a completely different question. You're not reacting to what they say."
VM: "Which bits from the last series are you most proud of?"
Charlotte: "A lot of it, really. Where I'm going undercover, I find that really hard to do. Simply because I'm quite a nice person and I don't like lying or making other people feel uncomfortable for comedy. But it is funny. I do like the hidden camera stuff."
VM: "Do people ever react badly to it?"
Charlotte: "No, they're always absolutely fine. But being filmed is the last thing they ever expect, so sometimes, when I come in, they're all so confused already that they don't even know how to react. They're just trying to work out what's going on."
VM: "Who did you enjoy singing with on the last series?"
Charlotte: "Nelly Furtado, The Feeling, Orson, - everyone, really. Nerina Pallot, The Brand New Heavies - she had an amazing voice, brilliant sound. Who else? Aleesha Dixon, she was lovely, really good voice. I was quite surprised at her. Amy Winehouse was wild, very different and really nice. She was lovely, a little sweetheart."
VM: "Does the press intrusion bother you?"
Charlotte: "Yeah, it does really. We went for a weekend away recently, we thought we'd got away with it but we were followed. And they followed us to every bar and club we went to. Obviously I didn't have ten sambucas, because I would've been dead. I had two! But we really just thought we'd had a nice weekend away, and it was all over the papers."
VM: "What about members of the public, what are they like?"
Charlotte: "People are lovely. They're really, really nice. The only thing is that when we do go out there are a lot of people trying to take pictures on the sly, and that really annoys Gavin. I always say "Look, love, if you want a picture, come up to me, I will have my picture taken with you. Don't try and get a picture of me looking dodgy."
VM: "Who would be an ideal guest on your show?"
Charlotte: "Lee Evans. But apparently he doesn't really like appearing on TV, he's really focused on his comedy. And it's not like he needs the exposure. I'd also love to sing with Sting or Prince, or that guy Mika, he's really good."
The Charlotte Church Show returns to Channel 4 on Friday 23th February at 10pm.
Read our interview with Celeb Big Brother star Jermaine Jackson
21st February 2007