Suggs
Interview
Daily Express Magazine
1998
Following world-wide fame in the 80's with pop group Madness,
Suggs 37, has a successful so career: his new single is
from The Avengers soundtrack and he hosts Night Fever. He
lives with his wife Anne and children, Scarlett 16, and
Viva 13, in Camden, North London. Andrew Marshall hears
his kiss-and-tell confessions.
Q: How would you word a lonely hearts ad?
A: Outwardly confident but inwardly shy man, who is remarkably
unscathed despite rollercoaster existence, seeks highly
organised, widely driven but passionate kisser.
Q. Who was the first person you chucked and why?
A: I met my wife when I was 18, so she was the first
person I was really serious about. Up to that point, it
had been very brief encounters, although I'm sure there
will be girls reading this who'll claim to have been chucked
by me, but I don't remember them. Honest.
Q: Have you ever turned down a marriage proposal, or
made one and been turned down?
A: No. My proposal was not only accepted but positively
encouraged! I was 21. After three years, it seemed right.
Q: If you could go back and change one thing in your
lover life, what would it be?
A: More kissing. Once you stop being a teenager, you
give up snogging. It's a shame. At first, you practice
frantically and it's all you do. Sadly, It becomes less
important as you get older.
Q: Could you forgive an infidelity?
A: Yes. People make mistakes, but if you love someone,
you forgive them. I wholeheartedly believe in monogamy,
but also believe you shouldn't end a good relationship
over a thing deeply regretted.
Q: What was your most romantic moment?
A: Anne and I couldn't have a proper honeymoon because
I was working, so we had a couple of nights at the Ritz
in London. Apart from the night together, the most memorable
moment was breakfast. Five blokes arrived pushing this
enormous table with a linen cloth, flowers and champagne.
After they left I jumped out of bed, naked, and marveled
at our treasures - but the door opened again and another
eight men wheeled in the rest of the breakfast. I had
to wrap the tablecloth round me.
Q: Have you ever fallen in love with a friends partner?
A: If there is any chance of a long term relationship,
go for it. It makes life easier and happier to have someone
you love and trust than to keep changing. And don't undo
a good relationship because you are aiming for perfection
all the time.
Q: What are the three qualities in a potential partner?
A: Beauty passion and loyalty. It's what I thought at
18 and I haven't changed my mind.
Q: What nationality makes the best lovers? How do you
know?
A: Irish. My wife has classic Irish looks: auburn hair
and green eyes to match a fiery temper. I've also heard
that men who live in Camden are not half bad either!
Q: Have you ever had sex outside?
A: In the sea on the beach. It was a bit salty, gritty
and the sand gets into the most extraordinary places.
There was no danger of us upstaging Deborah Kerr and Burt
Lancaster.
Q: Have you ever had a holiday romance?
A: I have a holiday romance with my wife every time I
go on holiday. We don't actively go out looking for a
second honeymoon, but with fewer distractions it is easier
to rediscover each other.
Q. Have you ever had a one-night stand?
A: Yes, when I was younger.
Q: What's the most useful thing you could tell your child
about sex or relationships?
A: I was reading Scarlett's magazines. They're a torrent
of advice, so I'm learning myself, but perhaps it would
be, "Don't believe everything you read."
Q: Where were you when you lost your virginity?
A: There were a few fumbled half attempts, but I think
it was really with my wife.
Q: Have you ever watched a porn film, or been to a sex
shop?
A: I've never been to a sex shop. On tour, I've seen
a bit of porn in European Hotel rooms but it does nothing
for me. It's the grateous detail of the close-up I don't
like.
Q: Do you believe in platonic friendships?
A: Yes, but there is an ambiguous sexual frisson in the
atmosphere all the time.
Q: Do you kiss with your eyes open or closed?
A: Sometimes I want to share my feelings through my eyes,
while at other times I want to lose myself in the experience
without being distracted.
Q: Have you ever been in requited love, or been the object
of it?
A: Appropriately enough, as my new single is from the
'The Avengers' movie Diana Rigg as Emma Peel. I think
Uma Thurman is my ideal of a modern-version Emma Peel
- only mistake is that they should've had me as Steed
rather than Ralph Fiennes.
