'Charlotte Church: 'After Leveson, the facade fell away. I became aware'' diff viewer (0/1)

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Charlotte Church: 'After Leveson, the facade fell away. I became aware'	Charlotte Church: 'After Leveson, the facade fell away. I became aware'
2013-02-24 00:35:08 UTC	2013-10-02 11:20:07 UTC (7 months later)
Charlotte Church turned 27 on 21 February. It feels as though she should be older. She has been part of our collective celebrity consciousness for so long and has packed so much into such a relatively short space of time that you expect her to be a shrivelled shell of a person, exhausted and battle-weary from the effort of it all. This is the woman who was a global superstar at the age of 12, had sold 10m records by the time she was 22, was hosting a prime-time chatshow in her early 20s and was a mother of two by the age of 24. By any normal measurement scale, she would now be reclining in a comfortable armchair, wearing slippers and reminiscing over the good old days. Does she feel older than she is?	Charlotte Church turned 27 on 21 February. It feels as though she should be older. She has been part of our collective celebrity consciousness for so long and has packed so much into such a relatively short space of time that you expect her to be a shrivelled shell of a person, exhausted and battle-weary from the effort of it all. This is the woman who was a global superstar at the age of 12, had sold 10m records by the time she was 22, was hosting a prime-time chatshow in her early 20s and was a mother of two by the age of 24. By any normal measurement scale, she would now be reclining in a comfortable armchair, wearing slippers and reminiscing over the good old days. Does she feel older than she is?
"I don't know because I've never looked into the head of another 27-year-old," Church says evenly, sitting cross-legged on a swivel-chair in the studio she had built next to her large house, half an hour's drive outside Cardiff. "But I've had some wild life experiences. I feel like I've lived a lot."	"I don't know because I've never looked into the head of another 27-year-old," Church says evenly, sitting cross-legged on a swivel-chair in the studio she had built next to her large house, half an hour's drive outside Cardiff. "But I've had some wild life experiences. I feel like I've lived a lot."
She looks, if anything, even younger than her age. She is small and arrives wearing flat black ballet pumps and a girly, floral dress. Her hair is still wet from the shower and scraped back in a ponytail so that her pixie-like features are emphasised: big, cartoonish eyes and a delicately expressive mouth.	She looks, if anything, even younger than her age. She is small and arrives wearing flat black ballet pumps and a girly, floral dress. Her hair is still wet from the shower and scraped back in a ponytail so that her pixie-like features are emphasised: big, cartoonish eyes and a delicately expressive mouth.
Church has been a singing sensation for almost as long as she can remember, jetting around the globe to perform for presidents and pontiffs. But now her music has matured and she's about to release new material. Over the last three years, she has been writing and recording as part of a three-piece band, touring at low-key venues and taking control of her digital distribution. She is currently in the middle of producing a series of five EPs.	Church has been a singing sensation for almost as long as she can remember, jetting around the globe to perform for presidents and pontiffs. But now her music has matured and she's about to release new material. Over the last three years, she has been writing and recording as part of a three-piece band, touring at low-key venues and taking control of her digital distribution. She is currently in the middle of producing a series of five EPs.
EP One came out last September and EP Two is being released next month. Her new single, Glitterbombed, a bonkers orchestral fusion of Kate Bush, Björk and Radiohead, was recently premiered for free on an online music magazine. Curiously, it was pretty easy to listen to.	EP One came out last September and EP Two is being released next month. Her new single, Glitterbombed, a bonkers orchestral fusion of Kate Bush, Björk and Radiohead, was recently premiered for free on an online music magazine. Curiously, it was pretty easy to listen to.
Her new music defies easy categorisation. "Genres are crap anyway," says Church: it's the singing that's important. "I don't know what I'd do if tomorrow I lost my voice," she continues. "I'd be in a terrible pickle. I'd have a hell of an identity crisis."	Her new music defies easy categorisation. "Genres are crap anyway," says Church: it's the singing that's important. "I don't know what I'd do if tomorrow I lost my voice," she continues. "I'd be in a terrible pickle. I'd have a hell of an identity crisis."
Singing is what she returns to, time and again, despite the ups and downs of her career. After a well-documented split from Sony in 2006, Church released her 2010 album Back to Scratch, via her own record company Dooby Records – an amalgamation of the names of her children Dexter, four, and Ruby, five. She launched the album via an appearance on the shopping channel QVC at a knock-down price but it struggled commercially. Around the same time, she split from her partner of five years and the father of her children – Welsh rugby player Gavin Henson. She became increasingly disenchanted with the music industry.	Singing is what she returns to, time and again, despite the ups and downs of her career. After a well-documented split from Sony in 2006, Church released her 2010 album Back to Scratch, via her own record company Dooby Records – an amalgamation of the names of her children Dexter, four, and Ruby, five. She launched the album via an appearance on the shopping channel QVC at a knock-down price but it struggled commercially. Around the same time, she split from her partner of five years and the father of her children – Welsh rugby player Gavin Henson. She became increasingly disenchanted with the music industry.
"It's a crazy scene at the moment," she says. "There are hundreds of millions of people you can listen to and while that's incredible, it's total saturation. All you get at the top is a tiny layer of absolute, surefire money-makers. It's totally not about the music any more because it's run by the money men, the suits and accountants."	"It's a crazy scene at the moment," she says. "There are hundreds of millions of people you can listen to and while that's incredible, it's total saturation. All you get at the top is a tiny layer of absolute, surefire money-makers. It's totally not about the music any more because it's run by the money men, the suits and accountants."
Does she like any chart music? There is a long pause, then a groan. "I'm trying to think if there's anybody I actually like in the mainstream. I don't know. Not really."	Does she like any chart music? There is a long pause, then a groan. "I'm trying to think if there's anybody I actually like in the mainstream. I don't know. Not really."
For a while, Church considered retiring from the music business altogether. "After Back to Scratch, I was like, 'I'm not doing this any more.' I'd had enough. I was going to stay at home, be a full-time mummy, organise parties, learn to bake properly…"	For a while, Church considered retiring from the music business altogether. "After Back to Scratch, I was like, 'I'm not doing this any more.' I'd had enough. I was going to stay at home, be a full-time mummy, organise parties, learn to bake properly…"
It was Jonny Powell, her bandmate and boyfriend of a little over two years, who got her out of the slump. "He was always just writing," she says with a private smile. "I got the bug back a little bit. Also, he's got this phenomenal, encyclopaedic memory of music. He's a proper, smart guy."	It was Jonny Powell, her bandmate and boyfriend of a little over two years, who got her out of the slump. "He was always just writing," she says with a private smile. "I got the bug back a little bit. Also, he's got this phenomenal, encyclopaedic memory of music. He's a proper, smart guy."
What's it like working with her partner? "It's fine. If we argue, we just kind of get over it. Everything's pretty laid-back." Striking out on her own, without the backing of a major label, has felt "like starting all over again".	What's it like working with her partner? "It's fine. If we argue, we just kind of get over it. Everything's pretty laid-back." Striking out on her own, without the backing of a major label, has felt "like starting all over again".
She and Henson now have an amicable co-parenting arrangement. "It's good," Church says. "I don't really like to talk about it, mostly to protect the kids." She is clearly a hands-on mother: our interview is peppered with interruptions from Ruby picking up stray bits of percussion and asking: "Mummy, have you finished working now?" Later, Church takes me into the kitchen to meet them properly. They are sweet, happy children, clamouring for her attention.	She and Henson now have an amicable co-parenting arrangement. "It's good," Church says. "I don't really like to talk about it, mostly to protect the kids." She is clearly a hands-on mother: our interview is peppered with interruptions from Ruby picking up stray bits of percussion and asking: "Mummy, have you finished working now?" Later, Church takes me into the kitchen to meet them properly. They are sweet, happy children, clamouring for her attention.
"They're their own little entities," she says. "Dexter Lloyd is super laid-back and calm. He's into dinosaurs. He's quite smart and a little heartbreaker, but he's funny. He's got a weird sort of comic timing. Ruby's just, like, uber-dramatic. She's full of life and she's got a mad imagination as well."	"They're their own little entities," she says. "Dexter Lloyd is super laid-back and calm. He's into dinosaurs. He's quite smart and a little heartbreaker, but he's funny. He's got a weird sort of comic timing. Ruby's just, like, uber-dramatic. She's full of life and she's got a mad imagination as well."
Has her experience as a child star made her more protective of her children? "I don't think so, but I'd be really worried [if they went into the same industry]. It takes a certain person to know how to weather it. I have no idea how I did."	Has her experience as a child star made her more protective of her children? "I don't think so, but I'd be really worried [if they went into the same industry]. It takes a certain person to know how to weather it. I have no idea how I did."
By any standards, Church had to cope with a lot of attention at a comparatively young age. When she testified before the Leveson inquiry in 2011, she claimed that the persistent press intrusion she had faced for more than a decade had a massive impact on her career. "As an artist, I find it hard to be taken seriously because my credibility has been blown to bits." Last February, she accepted £600,000 in damages and costs in settlement of a lawsuit arising from the News International phone-hacking scandal.	By any standards, Church had to cope with a lot of attention at a comparatively young age. When she testified before the Leveson inquiry in 2011, she claimed that the persistent press intrusion she had faced for more than a decade had a massive impact on her career. "As an artist, I find it hard to be taken seriously because my credibility has been blown to bits." Last February, she accepted £600,000 in damages and costs in settlement of a lawsuit arising from the News International phone-hacking scandal.
"It was a nasty, nasty business," she says now. "Not the inquiry so much. It was the court case with News International and throughout it all, I had to start looking back at all of the press cuttings from my whole life. That was not nice. Because at the time [that she was being written about] the only thing I could do was push it aside and never think about it again. Having to go through it all – and there was reams and reams of the stuff in every paper for years… That just made me go, 'Ooh, this real world is a bit shitty.'"	"It was a nasty, nasty business," she says now. "Not the inquiry so much. It was the court case with News International and throughout it all, I had to start looking back at all of the press cuttings from my whole life. That was not nice. Because at the time [that she was being written about] the only thing I could do was push it aside and never think about it again. Having to go through it all – and there was reams and reams of the stuff in every paper for years… That just made me go, 'Ooh, this real world is a bit shitty.'"
When Church was a teenager, dealing with all the usual raging adolescent hormones, she was also living her life in the public eye. She sang for Bill Clinton, whom she liked ("awesome") and George Bush, whom she didn't ("a prick"). Prince Charles was "pretty cool" and Pope John Paul II was kind enough to bless "about 50 million rosaries" her extended Catholic family had insisted she take with her to the Vatican.	When Church was a teenager, dealing with all the usual raging adolescent hormones, she was also living her life in the public eye. She sang for Bill Clinton, whom she liked ("awesome") and George Bush, whom she didn't ("a prick"). Prince Charles was "pretty cool" and Pope John Paul II was kind enough to bless "about 50 million rosaries" her extended Catholic family had insisted she take with her to the Vatican.
When Church was 13, she was asked to sing Pie Jesu at Rupert Murdoch's wedding to Wendi Deng and was flown to New York in his private jet. Her management told her she could accept £100,000 or be looked upon favourably by Murdoch's newspapers. Church allowed herself to be persuaded to turn down the fee, but the papers didn't stick to their end of the bargain. Instead, the tabloid press salivated over her developing physical attributes. The Sun reported the existence of a website running a "countdown clock" to Church reaching the age of consent. At 16, she was named Rear of the Year.	When Church was 13, she was asked to sing Pie Jesu at Rupert Murdoch's wedding to Wendi Deng and was flown to New York in his private jet. Her management told her she could accept £100,000 or be looked upon favourably by Murdoch's newspapers. Church allowed herself to be persuaded to turn down the fee, but the papers didn't stick to their end of the bargain. Instead, the tabloid press salivated over her developing physical attributes. The Sun reported the existence of a website running a "countdown clock" to Church reaching the age of consent. At 16, she was named Rear of the Year.
Her relationships, her pregnancies and her occasional drunken nights out were photographed for public consumption. Stories were splashed across the front page that she assumed had been leaked by her friends. When she was in her first trimester with Ruby, and had not yet told her parents, news of her pregnancy appeared in the Sun. In 2005, the News of the World reported that her mother, Maria, had attempted suicide.	Her relationships, her pregnancies and her occasional drunken nights out were photographed for public consumption. Stories were splashed across the front page that she assumed had been leaked by her friends. When she was in her first trimester with Ruby, and had not yet told her parents, news of her pregnancy appeared in the Sun. In 2005, the News of the World reported that her mother, Maria, had attempted suicide.
"It's dreadful when you go back and you question all the decisions you've made," Church says. "I cut loads of people out of my life because I had to. It's the injustice that grates on me more than anything else."	"It's dreadful when you go back and you question all the decisions you've made," Church says. "I cut loads of people out of my life because I had to. It's the injustice that grates on me more than anything else."
Church has been left with an abiding distaste for red tops and celebrity magazines: "It's not informative, the facts are wrong, it's so negative and segregational. It's just bullshit.	Church has been left with an abiding distaste for red tops and celebrity magazines: "It's not informative, the facts are wrong, it's so negative and segregational. It's just bullshit.
"I hate the thought that there are millions of women reading those shitty magazines and thinking the only way to get ahead is to follow these diet plans. The magazines that say, 'Fashion is all about expressing yourself – so follow this trend.' What's that about?"	"I hate the thought that there are millions of women reading those shitty magazines and thinking the only way to get ahead is to follow these diet plans. The magazines that say, 'Fashion is all about expressing yourself – so follow this trend.' What's that about?"
The fluctuating shape of her own body over the years has provided endless fodder for a certain type of media speculation. Like any non-size-zero female celebrity who has the gall not to hide themselves away until they've shed the necessary pounds to squeeze into sample size designer dresses, Church has endured a succession of unflattering photos of her "spilling out of" clothes or "flaunting her curves" in bikinis. She tells me the one time she did lose what she refers to as "a shit-ton of weight" was as a result of a bout of norovirus in 2010.	The fluctuating shape of her own body over the years has provided endless fodder for a certain type of media speculation. Like any non-size-zero female celebrity who has the gall not to hide themselves away until they've shed the necessary pounds to squeeze into sample size designer dresses, Church has endured a succession of unflattering photos of her "spilling out of" clothes or "flaunting her curves" in bikinis. She tells me the one time she did lose what she refers to as "a shit-ton of weight" was as a result of a bout of norovirus in 2010.
"Everyone was like, 'She's lost the weight! Finally.'" Church claps her hands with glee. "'Perhaps she can wear Galliano!'" She laughs.	"Everyone was like, 'She's lost the weight! Finally.'" Church claps her hands with glee. "'Perhaps she can wear Galliano!'" She laughs.
Does she ever let that kind of attention get to her?	Does she ever let that kind of attention get to her?
"I suppose I've always instinctively known what's important and what isn't. And stuff like all of the body image stuff, I was just a bit like, 'Oh, you sad people.' There's so much more to life. Why are you so fixated on this? I'm a person. If someone has got a problem with a size 12 girl walking in with no make-up on and a big spot on her chin, that's their issue. I'm not very insecure."	"I suppose I've always instinctively known what's important and what isn't. And stuff like all of the body image stuff, I was just a bit like, 'Oh, you sad people.' There's so much more to life. Why are you so fixated on this? I'm a person. If someone has got a problem with a size 12 girl walking in with no make-up on and a big spot on her chin, that's their issue. I'm not very insecure."
She has previously admitted that her experience with Leveson made her into a feminist. In what way? "A lot of my outlook changed after Leveson," she replies. "Before, I was totally involved in my life, in my own little bubble – it was almost blissful ignorance. After, all of the facade fell away and I became aware." She catches herself. "This sounds like wank probably."	She has previously admitted that her experience with Leveson made her into a feminist. In what way? "A lot of my outlook changed after Leveson," she replies. "Before, I was totally involved in my life, in my own little bubble – it was almost blissful ignorance. After, all of the facade fell away and I became aware." She catches herself. "This sounds like wank probably."
She says she read an interview with Kat Banyard, the author of The Equality Illusion and the founder of UK Feminista, and thought it was "absolutely amazing". She's worried about "all of this sexualisation stuff" but at the same time doesn't want to be "some crazy activist".	She says she read an interview with Kat Banyard, the author of The Equality Illusion and the founder of UK Feminista, and thought it was "absolutely amazing". She's worried about "all of this sexualisation stuff" but at the same time doesn't want to be "some crazy activist".
For a while, Church was involved in Hacked Off, the media campaign group lobbying for statutory regulation of the press and last year spoke about the issues at the Tory party conference in Birmingham. Unsurprisingly, for someone who describes herself as "a bit of a communist", Church didn't enjoy the experience.	For a while, Church was involved in Hacked Off, the media campaign group lobbying for statutory regulation of the press and last year spoke about the issues at the Tory party conference in Birmingham. Unsurprisingly, for someone who describes herself as "a bit of a communist", Church didn't enjoy the experience.
"It was just really awful," she says. "On the way back from Birmingham, there was this little boy who was about 13, sniffing glue on the train. The conductor sat him down in our carriage and phoned the police. He was just this little kid." Church offered him a sandwich, a Coke and a packet of crisps. Her manager, Rhiannon Morgan-Bell, gave him a £10 note for the train fare home. When the boy got off the train at the next stop, he was arrested.	"It was just really awful," she says. "On the way back from Birmingham, there was this little boy who was about 13, sniffing glue on the train. The conductor sat him down in our carriage and phoned the police. He was just this little kid." Church offered him a sandwich, a Coke and a packet of crisps. Her manager, Rhiannon Morgan-Bell, gave him a £10 note for the train fare home. When the boy got off the train at the next stop, he was arrested.
"We'd gone straight from the Tory party conference with 'Making Britain Better' – all of these slogans, all of this shit – to absolutely broken Britain. It was heartbreaking and made me hate even more all that Tory party conference thing."	"We'd gone straight from the Tory party conference with 'Making Britain Better' – all of these slogans, all of this shit – to absolutely broken Britain. It was heartbreaking and made me hate even more all that Tory party conference thing."
Church is proud of her working-class roots – her father used to board up derelict council houses for the local authority and her mother and stepfather run a B&B. Does it worry her that the cabinet is dominated by former public school boys?	Church is proud of her working-class roots – her father used to board up derelict council houses for the local authority and her mother and stepfather run a B&B. Does it worry her that the cabinet is dominated by former public school boys?
"Yeah," she says. "I don't like this government much. I'd never vote for them. It doesn't so much make me depressed as it makes me angry. Some of these policies they come up with don't make any sense. They might be out of touch because of their background, their upbringing or whatever but that doesn't mean they don't necessarily have any common sense or smarts. They should do – christ, they went to some of the best schools in the country!	"Yeah," she says. "I don't like this government much. I'd never vote for them. It doesn't so much make me depressed as it makes me angry. Some of these policies they come up with don't make any sense. They might be out of touch because of their background, their upbringing or whatever but that doesn't mean they don't necessarily have any common sense or smarts. They should do – christ, they went to some of the best schools in the country!
"They just don't seem to be that smart and they just don't seem to be doing things very well. That's where I have a problem. It doesn't seem very fair. Every time that I still say I'm working-class, my boyfriend rips the piss out of me. He's like, 'No, you're not.' But I feel like I am. I feel like I have that mentality. It's where I've come from. That feels stronger than anything."	"They just don't seem to be that smart and they just don't seem to be doing things very well. That's where I have a problem. It doesn't seem very fair. Every time that I still say I'm working-class, my boyfriend rips the piss out of me. He's like, 'No, you're not.' But I feel like I am. I feel like I have that mentality. It's where I've come from. That feels stronger than anything."
She says she's "dying for a fag". We decamp outside and stand at the edge of a long driveway overlooking a picturesque sweep of Welsh countryside. There is a child-size Mini Cooper by the front door and a littering of dog poo across the gravel. Church lights up, takes a drag, stares at the poo.	She says she's "dying for a fag". We decamp outside and stand at the edge of a long driveway overlooking a picturesque sweep of Welsh countryside. There is a child-size Mini Cooper by the front door and a littering of dog poo across the gravel. Church lights up, takes a drag, stares at the poo.
"I have to clear that up," she says, unperturbed.	"I have to clear that up," she says, unperturbed.
It is often said that Church is down to earth. But it's more than that: it's a realness that is rare to find in a celebrity, let alone one who has been famous for most of her life. And she's genuinely funny, too, although only when she allows herself to relax, only when the tape is turned off and she lets her guard down. It's why she was a natural host when Channel 4 gave Church her own chatshow in 2006 (she won best female newcomer at that year's British Comedy awards) and it's why, more recently, she won plaudits for hosting an episode of Have I Got News for You with all-male panellists.	It is often said that Church is down to earth. But it's more than that: it's a realness that is rare to find in a celebrity, let alone one who has been famous for most of her life. And she's genuinely funny, too, although only when she allows herself to relax, only when the tape is turned off and she lets her guard down. It's why she was a natural host when Channel 4 gave Church her own chatshow in 2006 (she won best female newcomer at that year's British Comedy awards) and it's why, more recently, she won plaudits for hosting an episode of Have I Got News for You with all-male panellists.