BBC Radio 2 star Michael Ball opens up on his latest health battle, the tragic loss of his mum and ending his association with the show that made him famous ā as he says āIām doneā
Michael Ball(Image: bbcradio2/Instagram)
Thereās something in the old theatre adage that the show must go on. And whenĀ Michael Ball
Michael had suffered pain for three years but things came to a head during an eight-week tour of Les MisƩrables in Australia
āI didnāt want to let people down,ā he explains. āI decided I was just going to crack on with painkillers and try to get to the end of the tour. I had to have a crutch to get me to the side of the stage and I used the pain for my character. They cut the bits where I had to go up and down a barricade. I just got my head down and ploughed through it, but it was soul-destroying. I couldnāt enjoy anything really.ā
When the tour ended, Michael returned home and had a full hip replacement.
āIt was an utter game-changer,ā he says. āYou realise that youāve been in chronic pain, getting worse for three years.ā
Michael, 63, who combines his singing and musical theatre career with hosting the popular Love Songs show on Radio 2, says needing surgery has prompted an overhaul of his life.
Ā was told he needed an urgent hip replacement, he ignored the advice and insisted on continuing with his production, crutches and all. Now, a year on and showing he is nothing but a trouper, the West End star will be back on stage ā with a brand-new left hip ā for a UK tour to celebrate the release of his album, Glow.
Michael had suffered pain for three years but things came to a head during an eight-week tour of Les MisĆ©rables in Australia last year. The singer recalls: āI went for physio and it wasnāt getting any better. I had a cortisone injection, which helped, but after two days I was in agony and really limping.
āThey took me for an MRI scan and the doctor said the ligament was completely ruptured and severed ,and Iād got bone-on- bone on the joint and that my hip had to be replaced. He said, āYou must be in a really severe amount of painā. I went, āWell, itās nice to know Iām not just being a drama queen!āā The doctor advised Michael to fly back to England for surgery but he refused.
He reveals: āIām going to the gym, oh, at least once every week. Iām not wholeheartedly throwing myself into this. Itās gradual, Iām dipping my toe in. But Iām out every day, I do long walks with the dogs and Iām eating more healthily.ā
He has always been someone who likes to see the positive side of life(Image: James Hole 2018)
Frank and warm and with a self-deprecating sense of humour, Michael has always been someone who likes to see the positive side of life ā and this enthusiasm and drive may have helped to propel him to the top in the notoriously unstableĀ worldĀ of showbiz.
āThe thing is, Iāve never been cool,ā he muses. āIāve never been trendy or the in-thing. Iāve always just got on and done what Iāve done and itās appealed to some people and some people canāt stick it. But if youāre never in fashion, youāre never out of fashion. Iāve just kept going and the diversification has helped.ā
Michael is certainly one of Britainās most prolific entertainers. He has starred in a host of West End productions, from Les MisĆ©rables to Andrew Lloyd Webber shows such as Aspects of Love, alongside Ann Crumb.
He achieved a No1 single with a duet of Youāll Never Walk Alone alongside Second World War veteran Captain Sir Tom Moore, represented the UK at the Eurovision Song Contest and has been on Radio 2 for the past 16 years.
More recently he also turned his hand to writing, producing two best-selling novels.
And next up is Glow, his 23rd solo studio album. It is his first-ever album of entirely self-written material. So why has he waited so long to write his own songs?
āI wondered that as well,ā he admits. āI think it was confidence and not understanding the art of writing. I donāt read music, I donāt write music, I donāt play an instrument, Iāve only got my brain and my mouth.ā
He met his partner, former Ready Steady Go! presenter Cathy McGowan, 37 years ago(Image: Getty Images Europe)
The albumās first single is Vintage, a catchy tribute to the joys of growing older. He explains: āWeāve got to keep challenging ourselves, weāve got to keep finding new things to be excited about. And we also need to know when to stop, when something has had its time, which has happened this year.ā
He is referring to his decision to call an end to his 40-year association with the big hit Les MisƩrables.
Michael first found fame when Cameron Mackintosh cast him as Marius in the original London cast in 1985. He reprised the role in 1995 and in 2019 and 2020 he returned as Inspector Javert.
But after last yearās Australia tour, he turned down the opportunity to go to New York for a three-week run. He says: āI went, āno, Iām done. It feels right that I stop on this. Letās not over-egg the puddingā.
āSo thatās me and Les Mis finished. Itās the end of an era. Itās a pretty big decision, but it feels right. For me it was time.ā
That new album contains some of Michaelās most personal songs yet, including Remember to Remember, a poignant tribute to his 91-year-old father Tony and his mum Ruth, who died last year at the same age.
āIt was profound and rather beautiful,ā Michael says. āShe was fully compos mentis ā it was her heart. I stayed in the hospital with her and slept there and was with her the whole time. I was holding her hand to the very end and we talked and talked until she just drifted away.
āIt sounds weird, but it was the perfect ending. It wasnāt a tragedy. It was sad, but if you are going to go, thatās the way to do it.ā
Michael has also enjoyed touring and recording with opera singer Alfie Boe(Image: Dave Benett/Getty Images)
Michael lives in South London with his partner, former Ready Steady Go! presenter Cathy McGowan. The pair met when she was a TV reporter and interviewed him for Aspects Of Love.
āItās 37 years since we met, but I always say 35 is when it became proper,ā he smiles. āIām so immensely proud of my family. I know how lucky I am.
āIām in a really good place in my 60s. I love that I still have this opportunity, that my voice works and that I can still haul myself up on the stage with a new hip.ā
For the past decade, Michael has also enjoyed touring and recording with opera singer Alfie Boe. But he reveals that the partnership is now on hold, as next year he will be appearing in the West End.
With or without Alfie, one thing Michael can still count on is screaming fans. āI mean probably more out of pity than lust!ā he laughs. āI always sing The Wonder of You and play it up to the hilt. So, thereās always someone Iāll pick on in the front row ā āYour kiss to me is worth a fortuneā and weāll have a kiss. Itās brilliant fun.
āThe trouble is, the stages now are quite high and so Iāve got to get right down and try to look elegant and my legs arenāt what they were!āMichaelās new album, Glow, is out on May 22. New single Vintage is out now and his UK tour starts in August. For tickets, visit michaelball.co.uk
