| TV Hits Interviews 2 |
| Yearbook 2001 |
| THIS IS OUR LIFE! Chill out with pop�s brightest new stars as we get close to the boys in Blue� COVER STORY! It�s 9.30 am on a drizzly Monday morning when we arrive at a photo studio in North London. Dark clouds fill the sky and it looks like the sun�s never coming out again. But the whole room brightens up immediately when Antony and Lee Blue walk in � even if they are still half asleep! �I feel like I�ve had no kip,� declared Ant. �We�ve been rushed off our feet for the last month. It�s mad!� But the hectic schedule hasn�t dampened the lads� enthusiasm� �Is it hard work?� says Lee. �Of course it is! But we�ve all wanted this to happen so we wouldn�t change it for the world. It�s a crazy life living out of suitcases but at least we got to go home last night. It was cool to see my mum � I haven�t seen her for ages!� Bless! When Duncan and Simon arrive, it�s hugs all round for the Blue boys! You can see the lads all enjoy each other�s company and they�re loving their new lives as fully-fledged popsters. The gang sit down on a sofa and although they�ve only been apart for a few hours they find loads to catch up on just like you�d expect bezzie mates to. �We�ve really grown close as a band,� explains Simon. �We�re like brothers. We know when to take the mickey and when to lay off.� But how much do they know about each other? Do they know all their mad stories from school? The tales from the past? We sit the lads down, one by one, and get them to open up about their lives. Welcome to the story of Blue in their very own words� DUNCAN The beginning� �My life began on 7 April 1979 in Oddstock Hospital in Salisbury, Wiltshire � so I�m an Aries lad. I�m an only child to my proud mum. �I�m a typical Aries. They�re very confident and headstrong. They can get quite bossy sometimes but underneath it all they�re caring and loyal. That kinda sums me up really! �Overall I was a very good kid. I was naughty at times but who isn�t when they�re young?! Anyway, I got away with murder cos I�ve got an angelic face � I�ve been quite lucky!� School daze! �My granddad was a music teacher at a private school so I went there from the age of four to nine. I cried my eyes out on the first day, I was finger-painting and kicking up a huge fuss. �I did alright at school. All my reports said I was a good student, very polite and everything � but academically it would�ve been good if I�d put my mind to school work. I didn�t concentrate much!� Boys will be boys! �We used to have wrestling fights in the Close where I lived. They were huge WWF matches and I was only seven but I used to take on all the younger kids and do my moves on them! It was a but cruel but they all used to queue up to wrestle so I couldn�t have been that harsh! �Another game me and my mates used to play involved a ruler and a bag of wet tissues. Basically, you get the wet tissue and flick it onto windows really loudly and leg it down the road! One day we did it and this old man chased us down the road with his stick! We ran into a mate�s house and hid behind the sofa!� Movin� on� �Secondary school was great! Me and my best mate, BJ, used to get into so much trouble. It�s when I first started experimenting with girls, up on the classroom floor at lunchtime. Kissing them and getting up to mischief! We used to get into trouble throwing rotten apples at windows! �I�ve always been into music but at school I wanted to be an actor more than anything. My favourite class was Drama and I was in all the school plays.� Earning a crust� �After my Drama A-Level I found I had an alright voice, so I went for a job at a Haven holiday resort I was a red coat when I was 18 and had a great time, but my heart got set on a pop career � so I joined a few bands before I met Ant and started Blue. Who�d have thought we�d get so far? LEE ON DUNCAN What did you think when you met Duncan for the first time? I met Duncan and Simon at the same time. We were at an audition and he came over and started chatting. I thought he was a pretty good bloke from the start! Describe Duncan�s personality in five words� Smooth, slick, hyperactive, sensitive, thoughtful. He�s definitely the most sensitive lad in the band! So, what wouldn�t he want you to tell me about him? (Laughing) He�s very popular with the laydeez! Ha ha! Actually, I think he might be well happy if I tell you that. Erm�he goes for brunettes. Will that do? Anything else? Duncan and me always get up to loads of mischief. Whenever we go away and stuff we end up running around hotels naked! We just get naked for a laugh and run around � and often get caught too. Oh, and we�re always up for a bit of skinny dipping. SIMON Back to basics! �I was born on Thursday 30 March 1979 at 8.30 am in Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Manchester. I�m the son of Marlene Webb! �I had a great childhood. I�d be in the park every day, building tree houses, playing footie � home for dinner at six o�clock, then out again for another hour. That was the life!� Growing up� �I was always good at sports and was the captain of the football team. I was always kicking a ball and thought that was what I�d do when I grew up,. I loved pop stars like Michael Jackson but I never imagined I�d be doing this! �I got signed to footie teams like Port Vale and Stoke � and played for England in football tournaments against Ireland and Scotland. The team flew to Aberdeen when we were 14 wearing matching tracksuits and it was just wicked. We stayed in a hotel and everything and there were loads of girls around too!� It�s a girl thing! �Hmm�That brings me on to girls! I was nine when I had my first kiss. I was in the bushes with this girl and it was great. But my first French kiss was much more amazing! I was 11 or 12 at the time and ir was so good I had to make her my girlfriend! You see, I used to go swimming every Sunday and she used to go too. Her name was Lisa and I sent my friend over to say, �my mate likes you�. She liked me too, so went round the corner from the pool and snogged! �Then my first proper relationship was when I was 15. I�d known her since I was seven and she said she�d never go out with me so I made it my mission life! We got on really well over time and I just went for it one day and asked her out at the park!� Model lad! �What else? Oh yeah � I was a male model for a while! You see, I won Pride magazine�s competition for The Face of �98. A mate entered me and I was completely gobsmacked when I won! I went to loads of celeb parties after I won and met stars like P. Diddy. It gave me a taste of the good life! I decided to go for it an audition for bands � that�s how I met these guys!� ANT ON SIMON What did you think when you first met Si? I thought this lad�s got a bit of style! He was a good lookin� lad who was wearing this white top with weird holes in it. When I heard he was a model it all made sense! Describe him in five words� I can�t! Er, funny, laid-back, easy to talk to, good with advice and stylish. Is that OK?! What wouldn�t he want you to tell us? His middle name! He hates it. (Looks at Si) Can I tell �em? (Simon says no!) It begins with S and ends in N. I�m sorry, he�ll kill me if I tell ya! Anything else? He�s very clean! He takes his time with everything he does. I rush around a lot, sweating � and he�s always telling me to take it easy! He�s the chill-meister, man! And he takes his pillow wherever he goes! Airports, roadshows � everywhere! ANTONY Day one� �I was born in Edgware General Hospital in Middlesex on 23 June 1981 at 12.30 pm!� On the move� �I moved around quite a bit when I was young. I originally grew up in Edgware, just outside London, but when I was six I moved to a place called Mill Hill. I went to quite a posh, strict school there and it was tough! �I moved to Cyprus when I was seven. My dad�s a Greek Cypriot and we packed everything up in boxed and shipped it out. But once we got there it was like a holiday � hot all year and school finished at 2 pm. How cool�s that?! I spent all my spare time chilling on the beach � I loved it!� �We moved back to London in 1991 and I went to Hendon Secondary School. Big-up to anyone from there! �I was a hard-worker at school but very cheeky at the same time. I always got away with stuff cos I�d always say �it wasn�t me!� I used to sit at the back of class and be a bit of a troublemaker.� �I was 12 when I had my first kiss. Me, my mate Michael and four girls were playing spin the bottle and it span to Kelly Ridge! I bet she reads this, actually � and finds out she was my first girl! We snogged under the table � the good ol� days, eh?! �I used to love flirting with girls at school. I had a few girlfriends but I didn�t make much effort to get them. �Actually, this is bad but I used to get a buzz out of two-timing girls. �Last year I was seeing this girl and one night I made sure she wasn�t going to this club me and my mates were going to. We were in the queue when these gorgeous girls walked past. Well, we chatted �em up and I ended up snogging one of them. Guess who was standing behind me? My girlfriend! She slapped me in front of everyone and it was so humiliating. She forgave me � but I regretted it. I learned my lesson that night � you won�t catch me doing that again.� The fame game �My first taste of fame was when I was 13. It�s embarrassing cos my mum set me up to be on Surprise Surprise with Cilla Black! Grease was on stage in London�s West End and I really wanted to be in it. So Cilla sorted it out and I went down to a TV studio to sing with one of the stars. It was great � especially as I sang on telly! It was my big break cos after that got parts on Grange Hill, The Bill and another TV show, Chalk. Did you spot me? �I used to love singing and was in all the school musicals like Cabaret and Grease but I thought I was going to be an actor when I grew up. I liked the idea of being a pop star but I didn�t think I�d make it until I met Duncan at auditions. He convinced me I was good enough and the rest, as they say, is history!� SIMON ON ANT! What did you think when you first met Ant? I thought he looked like a young Robert De Niro! I knew straight away he was gonna be a laugh cos he was a complete geezer! And I also thought we�d look good together as a band. Describe Ant�s personality in just five words� Funny, cheeky, spontaneous, a charmer � and a ladies man. Oops � I think that�s a few more than five words! Can you tell us a secret about Ant? He wouldn�t like me to tell you what�s underneath his T-shirt! Well, strictly between you and me � he doesn�t like his hairy chest. But it�s cool, like a teddy bear! Anything else? Ant�s the joker of the group! When everything gets a bit serious he�s the one who�ll turn around and make a joke. If we get tired and ratty he�s always the one who chills the atmosphere. And then we always remember that we�re in this to have fun! LEE Starters orders! �I was born on 17 June 1983 � and my parent�s names are Mum and Dad! I was a bit hyperactive when I was younger � always running around the place. My earliest memory is of playing knock down ginger!� Teacher trouble! �I went to loads of different secondary schools so my mates were always changing. I hated school � I was always in detention and I actually got expelled four times! �I used to get bored easily in class cos of my dyslexia but my teachers never really helped me much at all. They thought I was always causing trouble but I wasn�t.� Stage school �I went to two stage schools I went to Italia Conti first, when I was 13, but I had to leave because my grades weren�t high enough. I was really good at all the practical stuff but you have to get really high marks in the rest of your classes, like Maths and English � that�s what let me down. �So I moved to the Sylvia Young Theatre School for a while. I did loads of theatre work there but none of it really interested me. I always wanted to be a singer and nothing else! When I got bored in classes I�d start singing � and that�s what used to get me chucked out a lot of the time! I�d sing anything � Your Song by Elton John�Loads of tracks! The problem was, my teachers weren�t too happy!� Gals galore! �I�ve always been interested in girls and I always had a girlfriend at school. I used to go out with the fittest girl in the second year when I was only in the first year. Her name was Carla Erwin and she was my first love. �We split up after I walked into a room and saw a bloke with his hand on her leg! She went crying to my mum but there was nothing she could do. It was over.� Fame and fortune! �My first big break was on the TV show, This Morning. They were putting a boy band together so I went to the auditions where I met Antony. I won a place in the band and was supposed to get a recording contract, but it never happened. I was gutted cos I thought I�d made it. �It was cool, though � cos I got to meet Antony. Then when they asked me to join the band I was well up for it. And it�s been wicked!� DUNCAN ON LEE What did you think of Lee when you first met him? Hmm�I met Lee was at an audition. He was playing pool and he cracked a joke. I knew he was gonna be a god laugh! And he really knew how to make me chuckle! Describe him in five words� Lee is Cockney, cocky, confident, cocksure and totally crazy! What wouldn�t Lee want you to tell us? He�s pretty open about everything, so I don�t think there�s anything he wouldn�t tell you himself. No, wait a minute�His table manners are really bad! He eats with his mouth open, helps himself to other people�s food. It�s terrible! Anything else? Lee is the crazy guy in the band � the nutter! He�s a Gemini, so he�s got a split personality and he just flips at times. It�s wicked having him around cos you never know what he�s gonna do next! |
| January 2002 |
| NOT SUCH AN INNOCENT BOY Lee Blue may have the face of a cherub and the voice of an angel � but don�t be fooled! COVER STORY! We�re thrilled to finally get one of the Blue boys for our cover � and Lee�s just as pleased to be on it! �I can�t believe I�m on the cover on my own,� he laughs. �That�s mad!� We�re speaking to our cover-star on the phone, cos the lads are in New Zealand trying to break the Blue name over there! It�s the middle of the night in UK � and the crack of dawn Down Under. Lee�s pretty perky, though, as are the other lads, who spend the entire interview trying to make our lad giggle by shouting rude answers to our questions! He�s not phased though� Okay then, Lee � let�s get cracking! First up, would you say that you�re angelic? Yeah! (giggles manically for about an hour!) Well, maybe�I dunno � I�ll let you decide for yourself! C�mon � you can do better than that! Do you have any dark secrets that you can tell us? I�ve got skeletons in the closet, but that�s where they�re staying! I suppose I�m quite secretive in that way. But then, I reckon everyone keeps quiet about their skeletons, don�t they? We�ll get some stories out of you if it kills us! Has your mum ever caught you snogging a girl? Yeah, loads, when I was younger! I�d take a girl home after school, and once I�d introduced her to my parents, I�d take her upstairs to my bedroom. Things would happen � and my mum would always walk in! She�d never knock, either! How embarrassing! It really was sometimes � especially when it happened with a new girlfriend. She didn�t normally get too cross though � although it depended on what we were doing, if you know what I mean! Okay, we�ll leave that to our� imagination! So, how old were you when you had your first snog? I was about eight, I think! It was at school � and I stuck my tongue so far down her throat she was sick! She didn�t actually vomit on me, luckily, though! Wow! That�s grim! Did it put you off girls forever? Nah! It didn�t even put me off that girl, actually! We got married about five or six times. Y�know, playground weddings, walking under everyone�s arms�it was sweet. Awh! Did you go out with her for a long time? Erm, no � we got divorced a few times as well! It got a bit rocky later on. I suppose she was my first ever girlfriend, actually. I had �em before but not ones I�d snogged! How old were you when you had your first serious relationship? I can�t really remember � I don�t know when I first told someone I loved them, or anything like that. Is saying �I love you� something you take very seriously? I dunno, really. I mean, I have to really like someone to say those words but I�m not one of those people who wait months and months to say it. It all depends on the situation. You�re single at the moment, aren�t you? What kind of girls get you going? Yeah, I am single right now. The kind of girls I go for are ones with a lot of personality. Someone who�s funny, outgoing, sexy and ladylike! I like a girl with good manners, who I can take to a nice restaurant and know that she�ll know how to behave! What, so they know which fork to use?! Nah, I�m not bothered about stuff like that! If she mucks up that kid of thing, I�ll think it�s funny. What I mean is, I want to be able to take her to a nice restaurant without her getting spun out cos it�s so classy. I suppose she�s just got to be a bit mature. So when was the last time you got saucy with a girl? Ahhh, that�d be telling! It was quite recently, though� Ooo, you cheeky scamp! You must have had a lot more action since you�ve been in Blue� No, not much more � I�d say less, actually. I�ve been getting a lot more spun out about girls since I�ve been in the band. It�s just scary to think that they might sell their story. I�ve had to be a lot more careful. Nothing bad�s happened so far, luckily. So how do you tell if a girl is trustworthy? There�s no real way of knowing. I�d never get involved with a fan though � it�d be a bad sign if they liked us. We�ve had girls who don�t care which one of us they kiss, as long as it�s one of the band! They�re not fussy. I�d never go near anyone like that! Too right! Are you happy playing the field, then? I enjoy going out with someone. I spilt with my last girlfriend fairly recently, which is why I�m single at the moment � not cos I don�t enjoy relationships generally. Do you think you�re a good boyfriend? Yeah, I s�pose. Well, actually, I don�t� know! I can�t really say that about myself, can I? It�s a bit arrogant, isn�t it? Back to the rude stuff, then! Have you ever caught a friend�s parent in the nude? I haven�t actually, which I�m quite pleased about�I can�t lie though � there were a couple of my mates� mums who I wouldn�t have minded seeing with no clothes on! I�d never, ever kiss a friend�s mum, though � that�s a total no-go area, man. What would you do if a mate snogged your mum? I�d knock �em out! I�m not a violent person � I don�t get into fights a lot. But if something as serious as that happened, I wouldn�t be able to stop myself. How many times a day do you think you have rude thoughts? Oop! Just had one now! Oop! And another! (Giggles for a decade) Aren�t guys meant to have a rude thought every six seconds or something? If that�s true, I have one every three seconds, I reckon! Nah, it�s probably more like one every couple of minutes, actually. Which celebrity laydee would you most like to be kissed by? (Thinks for ages) Erm, Donatella Versace! If I kissed her, she�d give me free Versace clothes, and that�d definitely be worth it for just a snog! Eeeyoo! That�s gross! What about someone you�d really like to kiss, for enjoyment alone? Wow, I don�t know. What girl groups are out at the moment? Maybe someone in S Club 7�Oh no, Louise! She�s beautiful. She�s married though � do you reckon you could take her hubby, Jamie Redknapp? Oh yeah, no problem! I could beat him at football an� all! Maybe. No, actually, I wouldn�t ever do that to another bloke. Louise would have to be single first. I�m trustworthy like that. So, have you broken any laws? You must�ve gone over the speed limit in your car? No, I don�t drive � and I don�t think I ever will! I�d be a danger to everyone. I just don�t trust myself on the road. Even though it�d be nice to drive around behind the wheel of a swanky car, I know I�d just smash it up in five minutes. You�ll have to rely on chauffeurs to get you around, then? Nah, man � I�ll catch a bus! That�s what we like to see � a star with his feet on the ground. What about other laws � have you ever stolen anything? No way, that�s awful! Well, OK, I might have taken a Snickers bar when I was younger. Luckily I didn�t get caught: I ate the evidence way too quickly � and the wrapper as well! I�ve never stolen anything serious, though. And a law that everyone�s broken � making mix tapes from albums! I didn�t really ever get into doing those. I�ll tell you what I did do. I�d go into the supermarket with some blank tapes, right. I�d get a CD that I wanted and put it in one of the shopping centre�s stereos that were on sale, put a cassette in the tape deck, press record � and go shopping! By the time I�d got all my food, the album would be taped! Wow! That�s so naughty mate! Finally, what�s the most embarrassing thing you�ve ever done? Actually, I�m pretty lucky like that, cos there isn�t one thing in particular. Most people have a story about when they fell over somewhere really bad, but I�m always doing things like that! I�m really clumsy. I�ll tell ya, it takes a lot more than tripping up to get me embarrassed! It�d take something really bad to make me blush! Who�s the Blue boy for you? Take our top quiz to find out which of the lush lads is your perfect match! 1 The boy of your dreams sits down next to you in a caf�. What�s the most attractive thing about him? A His soulful eyes. B His cheeky grin C His fantastic clothes D His honest face 2 Dinner�s over and it�s on to the next thing! Where does he take you? A It�s off to the local Superbowl! This guy wants to take you to meet his mates � and you have a fab time! Coolo! B Your cab drops you at the local cinema � for a screening of the latest hilarious comedy flick. Your lad guffaws all the way through, bless �im! C You�ve been talking all night and he doesn�t want it to stop! It�s off to the river for a moonlit walk � hand in hand, obv! D Get on the dancefloor! This bloke is nicer-than-nice � and he can shake his booty like a pro as well. Worra mover! 3 Soon, he�s joined by his mates and they start chatting. What kind of personality does he have? A He�s very confident � almost cocky. The centre of attention B This guy�s a true joker and has everyone in stitches. C His honest advice has got the respect of his mates � and he�s pretty funny, too. D He�s pretty quiet, but when he does speak, everyone listens. 4 Yay! Somehow, you�ve wangled yerself a date with the dreamboat! What�s he wearing? A Mmm � a trendy black top and jeans that he�s customized. B He�s well into denim and is wearing jeans and a jacket with some cool Adidas trainers. C This guy�s big into fashion. He�s wearing an all-in-one boiler suit! D A lovely fitted shirt over jeans � nothing too attention-seeking but he looks gorgeous! 5 You�ve had a great night, but it�s time to go home. What�s been your favourite thing about your date? A He was so tactile � always holding your hand or putting his arm round you! Awh! B Even though he was a clearly a bit famous, he acted normal � this lad�s feet are still firmly on the ground. C He didn�t give everything away! Your boy was so mysterious, you�re dying to see him again! D Conversation didn�t stop. He was enthusiastic about everything � the chemistry between you was perfect! Mostly A�s�LEE Lucky you! You�ve picked Blue�s golden boy! He�ll be a good boyfriend � but watch that you don�t get too needy, cos this lad will defo want to spend a few nights a week with his mates! Mostly B�s�ANT Hold on to yer hat! A date with Antony is sure to be packed with fun � but who knows whether or not he can be serious when it comes to love? Laugh at his jokes and you�ll be well on your way to finding out! Mostly C�s�SIMON Phwoar! With the gorgeous Simon on your arm, you can�t go far wrong. He�s clean, funny and a good listener. Just be careful that he doesn�t spend more time looking in the mirror than at you! Mostly D�s�DUNCAN Awh! You�ve picked the sensitive soul. If you love a boy who will stare lovingly into your eyes for hours on end, whispering sweet nothings into your ear til sunset, you�ve hit on a good �un! |
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