Elaine Paige: More songs to sing for ‘First Lady of Musicals’

With one of the most successful radio shows the BBC has ever broadcast, it might be thought that Elaine Paige has decided to put her feet up as a singing star.

Nothing could be further from the truth. The toast of Broadway, London’s West End and just about everywhere else, Elaine has never ruled out more concerts and more albums.

“Never say never – I know that saying has been a bit overused but I mean it,” said Elaine. “I get people sometimes asking me about retirement. Retirement? What’s that? I don’t know what the word means. How can you retire from life? I could never give up working, whether it is radio, singing, acting, whatever. That is what I get up each day for.”

Elaine is, of course, a megastar, with a massive number of awards and accolades, yet she is a very down-to-earth lady.

“I never forget where I came from,” she said. “I was born in Barnet, my mother did a bit of singing but she was also a milliner and I still have one of her hats.

“My dad was an estate agent. He was never a professional musician but he played drums and there was always music in the house, whether it was the wireless or records. They liked jazz especially but I was brought up listening to quite a mix.

“One of my first loves was playing tennis and that is what I really wanted to do as a career. Unfortunately, one of my teachers at school laughed when I said I wanted to play tennis because I was – and still am – quite short.

“‘They’ll never see you over the net,’ she said. She was probably right but I didn’t want to hear that. I was quite good at tennis, though, I love it still both as a player and as a spectator.

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“I’ll sit up all night watching tennis on TV if there is a live broadcast from a big tournament somewhere else in the world. I like to go to Wimbledon too – and not just for the strawberries.

“I don’t know what I would have done if I had not become a singer and actress.

“As it happened, my music teacher at school was a great help. In the playground I used to get a group of friends together and we would sing the latest hit record.

“I used to organise plays too. I wasn’t that keen on the academic side of school, but sport and performing was a different matter, I couldn’t get enough of either.

“At secondary school our music teacher, Mrs Hill, must have spotted my interests and she was very encouraging, especially with my singing.

“I joined her choir and she gave me some solo spots. One night I was singing and I decided to break down and cry at the end of the rather sad song. The audience didn’t realise I was acting and were very concerned.

“My dad was in the audience and knew me well enough to know that I was playing to the gallery. To my surprise he suggested that I joined a drama school – and that is really how it all started.”

It certainly was the start of something big. Elaine went to the Aida Foster Drama School, learned a great deal, and in 1964 at the age of 16, she landed her first part, appearing alongside Anthony Newley in The Roar Of The Greasepaint – The Smell Of The Crowd. It was a touring show, but not long after, she made her West End debut in Hair.

Since then, Elaine has become an international star, with acclaim both in the West End and on Broadway.

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“It really all took off when Andrew Lloyd Webber gave me the chance to play Eva Peron in the wonderful Evita,” said Elaine.

“It took the West End by storm and the songs were so beautiful, they almost made me want to cry while I was singing them.

“I suddenly found that I was in demand for interviews everywhere, there were huge stars knocking on my dressing room door and asking if they could come in.

“I didn’t believe what was happening and I still don’t really. In those early days I found it very difficult to deal with because I’m rather shy by nature and I don’t really enjoy being in the public eye too much.

“I’ve learned how to deal with it of course, but in those early days I wasn’t seeking stardom, all I wanted to be was a good working actress and have some marvellous parts to play.

“I laughed when I heard someone call me the ‘First Lady of Musicals’. It made me sound so old. There are so many fantastic singers out there that I don’t think I deserve a title like that.”

The secret of being a great singer is being able to act out the song as well as sing it, and that is where Elaine excels.

“I have always loved acting and it doesn’t have to be in a musical. I have been in a number of dramas and always enjoy the challenge.”

Back in 1978 she acted in a film called Adventures Of A Plumber’s Mate and was paid £260.

“That was a lot of money to me then – it’s a lot of money now, of course, but circumstances change. It is not about money, it is about doing something you love, entertaining and making people happy or, sometimes, sad because you are singing a very emotional song which just gets to them. It gets to me too.

“I still get nervous before performing, even when I am doing my Radio 2 show on Sundays, I get a bit wound up beforehand. Once we start I’m fine.

“One of my most nervous times was when I took over the role of Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard. I saw Glenn Close in the role and was spellbound. I nearly got on the first plane home because I thought I could never get anywhere near a performance like that. On my first night I was terrified but it went well and I was very relieved.”

A few years ago, Elaine celebrated her 50th anniversary as a performer and to mark it she had a sell-out farewell tour. It wasn’t farewell to performing though.

“It was a kind of farewell because I didn’t expect to be touring one-nighters again,” she said. “The trouble is that I love to be busy, I love to sing and to meet people and I just can’t stop working. I don’t think there will ever be a complete farewell tour because I can’t resist just one more time.

“I really enjoy the radio show. It was a bit of a departure for me when it started but I have been doing it for some years now and love every minute of it.

“I think that sums everything up really. I have had a wonderful career which I am still enjoying.”