| New Bonnie Interview | |
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Jacqueline 11:09 pm UTC 02/01/17 |
| Botox user Bonnie Tyler says ‘don’t go mad on fillers or you’ll look like a puppet’ BONNIE Tyler is in New Zealand, where she’s just toured with Icehouse and the Alan Parsons Project. It turns out the Welsh singer, best known for Total Eclipse Of the Heart, Holding Out For a Hero, It’s a Heartache and Lost In France, includes New Zealand as part of her extensive global real estate portfolio. “Myself and my husband own a 217 hectare farm we bought in 1988 as an Angora production farm, but the bottom went out of that business. We lease it now to a dairy farmer. It’s a beautiful farm. It’s an investment for my old age darling. We’ve got a shop in the town too, don’t ask me what it is, we just own the property.” Does she visit the farm when she’s on tour in New Zealand? “I’ve seen it before. Once you’ve seen it a few times a farm is a farm really, isn’t it?” What other properties do you own? My husband Robert is good at investing. We’ve got a quarry in South Wales, most of the roads come from that. We’ve got 65 stables outside of London but I don’t know anything about horses, we just rent the yard out. We’ve got a beautiful house in Portugal, but my home is in South Wales. Is real estate more lucrative than music? Bricks and mortar, you can’t go wrong. Meat Loaf released an album last year that was full of old Jim Steinman songs. One of them, Skull of Your Country, features the line ‘Turn around bright eyes’ Steinman would later use on Total Eclipse of the Heart. What’s your knowledge of the history of that song? Jim told me he started writing Total Eclipse of the Heart with Meat Loaf in mind. But in the end he didn’t give it to Meat Loaf he gave it to me! I’m very happy about that, as you can imagine. The story goes Jim Steinman summonsed you to his apartment in New York to hear Total Eclipse of the Heart. What are your memories of that day. Oh my God! Yes he played it to me in the offices of his manager at the time, in New York. I remember thinking ‘He’s going to give me this song? This is amazing’. It was a really big turning point in my career. I’d already had hits in America with country rock, It’s a Heartache was huge over there. I did two albums with Jim, the second wasn’t a massive hit but the first one, with Total Eclipse, was. There’s claims Jim wrote Total Eclipse of the Heart as a ‘vampire love song’. I never quite understand that interpretation of it. I just think it’s about real true love. It’s just a beautiful love song as far as I’m concerned. Have you seen the literal Total Eclipse of the Heart video? It’s so funny. The Lego one is brilliant too. I’m on top of the balcony with my hands all waving and my head falls off. he original video was filmed in an old asylum wasn’t it? That’s right. It took two days to film it, it was an incredible video. I hate making videos. I could never be an actor. Hurry up and wait. I can’t stand it. The video was nominated for a Grammy but I lost to Michael Jackson which can’t be too bad. Another urban myth — you were meant to duet with Meat Loaf on his version of your hit Loving You’s a Dirty Job (But Someone’s Gotta Do It) on his new album. I’d heard through the grapevine he said he’d like to duet with me, but he didn’t get in touch. I might have done it if he had, but he didn’t ask. Random question — did you ever see Meat Loaf’s AFL Grand Final performance? No. Why? It wasn’t his finest vocal moment. He hasn’t been able to tour Australia since. Oh. I’ve been told his voice has just gone. Maybe in the studio he’d be fine. Most people don’t know you recorded The Best a year before Tina Turner had a hit with it. We do it in my concerts. A lot of people are shocked, they didn’t know I did it first. The way I put it in my show is one of my all time favourite songs is River Deep Mountain High. I used to sing that in my bedroom with a hairbrush as a microphone. What goes around comes around, here’s me as a kid singing Tina Turner songs then she recorded one of my songs. Our versions are slightly different. Songs can have lives of their own ... I was absolutely sure that song was a hit record. And Tina only proved me right, but it wasn’t meant to be for me, unfortunately. I’ve got to admit her version is fantastic, I love it. What did you think of Rod Stewart covering It’s a Heartache? That was great. My ex-manager Ronnie Scott, he wrote it. He’s dead now God love him but he would have been over the moon about that. It’s great for Ronnie Scott’s daughter and publishing. You didn’t write Total Eclipse of the Heart obviously, can you control where it’s used on TV or in movies at all? I can’t control it. It’s used everywhere. I don’t mind. I did an advert for it for a credit card in New Zealand. Bit of a piss-take of myself it was to be honest! I was dressed as a bloody big angel on a crane in the air. You wouldn’t believe how many adverts in the UK use that song. You’d think people would be fed up with it by now. It’s not always me singing it, mind. There’s one on at the moment with a rugby team singing it. Have you been offered a book deal to write your autobiography? I’ve been offered so many times. I’m not going to do that. I’m not interested. I can’t be dealing with all that. Maybe when I’m 90. There’s no real scandal there though? No drug hell? No controversy? I suppose as rock stars go, not that I class myself as one, it’s been a quiet life. I enjoy being successful but not mega mega successful. I can have a life. What about offers to do reality TV shows? I get them all the time. I’d never do them. They must have asked me five times to do I’m a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here!, Celebrity Big Brother, Strictly Come Dancing. No chance. I don’t need it. I’m not going to make a fool of myself. Besides, I could never go to the jungle, I can’t stand creepy crawlies, there’s no bloody way I could eat one! You are one of the handful of celebrities who is honest about getting Botox regularly ... why is it such a secret still? I don’t get it. I go twice a year, same as the dentist. I don’t think I know many girls who haven’t had it done. Everyone’s having it now. I only get it twice a year. Don’t go mad on fillers and things like that, you end up looking like a puppet. Nothing wrong with a bit of Botox on the forehead and on the crow’s-feet, that’s fine. You turned 65 last year but still tour regularly ... I’m getting more work than ever. I love to be on stage, but I also love to spend time on my boat in Portugal. I have got a band, I don’t keep them on a retainer but I work a lot and they’re always there for me. We rock. The band are fantastic. We make a lot of noise. I love touring. The travel is a pain in the neck but it makes a difference when you’re in first class. My boys are not, bless them, they’re in economy. They don’t mind, except for one of them who has legs up to the roof! Are you recording new music? I’m trying something out with Johnny Carter Cash, we’re working in Johnny Cash’s old cabin in Nashville. They’re country flavoured, more like country rock. You were one of the many celebrities painted by Rolf Harris. You never owned the painting and the owner tried, unsuccessfully, to sell it at auction a few years ago. Oh god. I never liked it anyway, it was bloody awful. The way he did painting was not very flattering, but that’s his style. I was quite amazed when I was told it was worth $50,000 pounds. I don’t think it’d be worth anything now he’s in jail. | |
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