I met Gemma, my wife, when she was 12. She had a schoolgirl crush on me and her dad had arranged for her to meet me. Later, she started coming to my concerts, but I only got to know her well after her mother died. I rang to see how she was, and that's how it started.

I would never take part in one of those Eighties nostalgia tours, although I've been asked many times, because it's like admitting you have nothing new to offer. As long as I can keep making music I'm happy with, and people want to come to my gigs to hear it, I'll carry on.

Before breaking into music, I had various jobs: forklift driver, driving a courier. But I was forced into working rather than doing it off my own bat because that was my dad's way: you got a job and paid your way.

I wouldn't say I'm vain - I'm just in a job where the way you look is important. Well, at least the facelift wasn't vanity, but the hair was.

Latin America's economies are organized in a way that concentrates wealth in a few hands but then leaves it untaxed, depriving governments of the resources needed to invest in their citizens' human capital.

As an artist development platform, we've proven that all the work done behind the scenes at American Idol, along with surviving the rigors of the intense live shows, can properly prepare a winner for a real-world music career opportunity.

I knew exactly what I wanted to do since I could remember. As a kid, if my friends came round after school for dinner, I'd put on shows; I'd write plays and charge the parents £1.50 for a ticket for sweetie money."

It's a great meeting place, community center, art gallery, singles bar, music venue. The record store really covers a lot of ground.