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Post by Lynda on Nov 13, 2007 17:02:12 GMT
Some of you may have received the following from Lee's agents
Dear Lee Mead fans,
We can officially confirm that Lee Mead will continue to star as “Joseph” at the Adelphi Theatre for the duration of the extended booking period announced in today’s press. From Monday, you will be able to buy tickets to see Lee until October 2008.
Monday is a big day for Lee: not only can you buy tickets to see Lee up to October, but his debut album hits the shops! “Lee Mead” will be available from all major music shops and online stores, and the man himself will be performing and signing copies of his album in HMV on Oxford Street from 1pm.
Also, don’t miss Lee on BBC1’s Children in Need on Friday at 7pm, and then again after midnight when he’ll be performing Gonna Make You A Star, the single from his new album, due for release on 3rd December.. Lee will be appearing on loads of TV and Radio stations over the next few weeks – please check his official website for details as and when they are confirmed.
Finally, as always, huge thanks from Lee for all your support!
Best regards,
Thomas Kohut
OFFICIAL LEE MEAD WEBSITE
INTERNATIONAL
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Post by Lynda on Nov 15, 2007 23:05:58 GMT
video of Lee answering your questionshttp://backstagepass.seatwaveblogs.com/2007/11/interview_lee_mead.php
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Post by Lynda on Nov 15, 2007 23:34:53 GMT
Looks like his cold is better.
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Post by Tanith Messenger on Nov 18, 2007 22:49:34 GMT
Interview from Sunday Times.................
Relative Values: Lee Mead and his mother, Jo Lee Mead, 26, shot to fame when he beat 10,000 contestants to win the BBC TV series Any Dream Will Do and the lead role in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s West End production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. His first solo album is released tomorrow, and the single Gonna Make You a Star is out on December 3. He lives in central London. His mother, Jo, 53, is an office cleaner. She lives in Southend-on-Sea with her husband, Steve, who drives a heavy-goods vehicle for the Post Office. They have another son, Casey, 22, an anti-smuggling officer for HM Revenue and Customs. Caroline Scott JO: I’ve always said to both boys: “Whatever it is you’ve done, whatever it is you think you can’t tell me, you can.” And I promised I’d always be honest with them back. Sometimes I wonder if as a family we’re too close, because we share everything, all the time. How we feel. Where we’ve been. What we’ve been doing, what we think about what we’ve been doing. I don’t think there’s anything Lee doesn’t tell me. My boys are always saying to me: “Mum, other families aren’t like us.”
I loved my parents to bits, but I couldn’t talk to them. Maybe it was because they were old-school, I don’t know, but I made a conscious decision to do things differently. I’ve tried to let my kids know I’m here for them whatever the problems they might have. And I love talking to them — I just think they’re so interesting, I’m fascinated by what goes on in their heads. You always lose your children eventually; you have to let them go in order to get them back. But Steve and I both said we’d do everything we could to always be a part of their lives.
I didn’t send Lee or Casey to nursery. I don’t know if that was the right decision or not, but I wanted to be with them and enjoy them. I’m not confident at all with the outside world, but I’ve always been confident about what is right for my family. Lee was bullied a bit at school and I had to talk him through all that.
It might have been because he wore glasses or because his hair was too curly, and he was definitely in tune with his feminine side. A lot of his friends were girls — I think they felt comfortable with him because he was so into his dance and drama. Acting was a way of leaving himself behind.
He’s a funny mixture, Lee. One half of him is desperately insecure, and the other half is completely sure and focused. For various reasons, he left college before he graduated, and even though it was never going to work for him, he was in a terrible state afterwards. As a mum, you’ll do anything to protect your child and make him happy, but I knew with Lee that if he really wanted to work in the theatre, he had to toughen up. I had to bolster him up for the next thing; and it’s still like that, really. He does get very down. He constantly doubts himself, both on a personal level and with work, but because of the connection we have, we’ll talk for an hour or so and we usually end up in a place where he feels a bit better.
I’ve always felt that Lee is blessed. Not necessarily with talent, but as a person. He’s got such a lovely nature and he makes things happen for himself. Because he listens and he’s open to learning and he is very gracious when things don’t go his way, he’s growing all the time. And he’s so driven. The energy Lee put into Joseph, he put into the school play. When you’ve got a child like that, you worry more than if he was the other way round. Because Lee puts so much pressure on himself, when he comes down, he really comes down.
He’s a lot better now at picking himself up, but he didn’t used to have that ability. If something bad happened, it would be a long while before he felt better again. He did a summer season in Bridlington when he was 22, and it was such a miserable experience. There was a handful of people in the audience every day, and he had things thrown at him. We went up as often as we could, and I spent hours on the phone, with him going: “Why am I doing this? I’m not good enough.” He was lonely and homesick, and because he was so young and inexperienced, people weren’t very nice to him. I worried about him constantly, but I felt it was my job to be strong for him and keep him going.
Lee is quite private and he’s finding all the attention hard. He loves the work, but he never wanted the fame. Every night he’s in front of the theatre signing autographs, and sometimes there are people outside the stage door too, so he can’t leave. I get the occasional call saying: “Mum, I’m a bit confused,” or “I’m so tired…” But generally I think he’s coping really well, considering he hasn’t had a holiday for a year.
He makes his own decisions and choices, but he bounces most things off us. I constantly worry about him being safe and happy. I worry about who he’s with, who he can trust and how he will ever know who wants to be with him for himself rather than for what he’s done. He’s just come out of a long relationship, and I kind of hope he steps back for a bit and has some fun. Trouble is, Lee likes home. He wants a wife and he wants children, he wants a house here, with a garden like that — he’s got it all planned out in his head.
When Lee first left home, I cried and cried for days. I missed him so much, it was dreadful. I thought I’d never get over it. I used to open the door to his room and just stand there, looking at everything. Boys are so physical and, apart from anything else, I missed all the hugs. But he phoned and came home whenever he could. You’ve got to know when to be quiet and step back and let your kids get on with it, and that takes a bit of doing. The hardest part is letting them go in your head. You’re not Mummy any more and you’ve got to find something else to be. But really
nothing much has changed. We come and see Lee more now, because he’s so busy, and he and I still bicker and pregnant dog like mad over stupid things which neither of us can remember afterwards. Lee is just a really good, kind person and I love him to bits.
LEE: Mum really is my best friend, and I know that sounds a bit weird, but it’s true. I trust her judgment 100%, because whatever she says, it’s out of pure love. She’s just concerned for my happiness. We discuss everything on a daily basis. We’re open about our feelings in our family to the point where we’ve talked about whether or not it’s actually normal. It’s the same with my brother — I’ll ring him almost every day. It’s the one thing that Mum and Dad always wanted for us: to be close and to always be there for each other.
Our very first home was a caravan. Mum and Dad were just starting out, they didn’t have much money and Dad was working 17-hour days as a postman. Mum had part-time jobs, but she was always around for us, and I think that’s why we’re so close now. We’ve never been rich materially, but I wasn’t deprived of anything. There was always a hug, and I knew that if I was scared I could talk things through with her. I think a large part of who I am now is down to my parents and the close relationship we’ve had. I was always kept in line, so there was guidance, but also freedom to express myself and an amazing trust in who I was and what I wanted to do. What my parents wanted for me most of all was to be happy. If you’ve got contentment, everything else comes.
I didn’t start performing properly until I was about 18. I didn’t think I was good enough to go to a London college and I wasn’t ready to move away from home — plus the fees were £10,000 a year. So I went to a little local college, and then decided to leave before I graduated. I remember the day I left so clearly. I had no qualification, no agent. I remember sitting all on my own at home, having a little cry. I was really upset and scared, but my gut feeling was that I had to move on, and I think that’s something Mum has instilled into me. I’ve taken so many risks over the years, but I know if I follow my instincts, I’ll be okay.
I was in no fit state to audition for anything, but I’d seen an advert for a job on a cruise ship in The Stage, and Mum persuaded me to give it a go. So my first taste of professional work was as a £200-a-week entertainer on a ferry between Portsmouth and Bilbao. Security guards either side of the stage; dancing on crushed glasses; people hurling abuse. I once had a cigarette packet thrown at my head. It was terrible. And it was my first taste of being away from home. Strangely, given what I was doing, Mum always believed I had the potential to be big, but being chronically insecure, I didn’t have that self-belief. I needed tons and tons of reassurance, and I still do. My confidence swings all over the place, and I phone her all the time. And we’re that close that she doesn’t just tell me what she thinks I want to hear.
I got to a very low point in the Joseph house. I never wanted to leave, but I just wanted to go home for a weekend. I was under so much pressure, mostly of my own creation, and I was so tired, I just hit a wall. I talked to Mum every single day, telling her what I was doing and how I was feeling. I was constantly worried about whether I was being myself. Then I went through a phase of thinking that if I was myself, people wouldn’t like who I was, because I was just an ordinary guy. The pressure was extraordinary.
I find the whole fame thing quite difficult, and I discuss this a lot with Mum. I still catch the Underground, but I’m stopped every 5 or 10 minutes. I was followed home once, and that worries me. Mum gets recognised herself now, which is odd for her, because before Joseph she was neither recognised or even spoken to at work. As a cleaner she’s someone people often overlook. But my mum is a very deep person. She reads a lot, she’s very thoughtful and she loves a good conversation. Just because she’s a cleaner doesn’t mean she hasn’t got a lot to say. She has big dreams. I think she could write a book — she could do anything she wants, but she lacks confidence.
Being rich doesn’t particularly appeal to me. I’ve never had anything, so I feel rich now. And I’m happy. But then I always was happy. When Casey and I were kids, we had all we wanted at Christmas and, looking back, that must have meant Dad was overdrawn. He always had part-time jobs, and Mum did too. Mum still looks after me. She likes to come up once a week, and she brings shepherd’s pie and changes my sheets. She forgets that I’m a man sometimes. I’m not in a position to look after my parents now — and they wouldn’t want me to — but one day I’d love to pay off their mortgage or let Dad retire early. We go out for dinner a lot, and I’ve treated them to a few weekends away. That’s something I’m really enjoying. What’s the point in having money and nice things if you can’t share them?
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Post by Lynda on Nov 19, 2007 18:54:02 GMT
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Post by Lynda on Nov 20, 2007 12:15:22 GMT
Musicals Extend: Lee Mead's Dreamcoat & Cabaret Date: 20th November 2007
The two West End musicals that triumphed at this week’s 55th annual Variety Club Showbusiness Awards (See News, 19 Nov 2007) - Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Cabaret - have both announced extensions to their booking periods.
Joseph, starring Lee Mead (pictured) in the title role, has extended its booking period by four months at the West End’s Adelphi Theatre, where it’s now booking through to 18 October 2008. Mead - the winner of the BBC reality TV competition Any Dream Will Do who Sunday night took home the Variety prize for Outstanding New Talent - will continue to star in the production until this date.
Joseph started life in 1968 as a 20-minute entertainment for an end-of-term school concert. By the time it received its Broadway premiere in 1982, it had been expanded into a full two-hour show. With music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice, Joseph’s popular score includes the songs "Any Dream Will Do", "Close Every Door to Me", “Go, Go, Go Joseph”, “Those Canaan Days”, “Benjamin Calypso” and "One More Angel in Heaven".
The new staging of the record-breaking 1990s production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the London Palladium, which was directed by the late Steven Pimlott, is designed by Mark Thompson and choreographed by Anthony Van Laast. The musical opened at the Adelphi on 17 July 2007 (previews from 6 July). In addition to Mead, the cast features Bombay Dreams’ Preeya Kalidas (as the Narrator), Dean Collinson (as Pharaoh) and Stephen Tate (Jacob/Potiphar/Guru).
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Thanks Whatsonstage.com
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Post by Lynda on Nov 20, 2007 12:17:27 GMT
Lee Mead, Suchet & Cabaret Scoop Variety Awards Date: 19th November 2007
Any Dream Will Do winner and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat star Lee Mead won the prize for Outstanding New Talent at the 55th annual Variety Club Showbusiness Awards, in a star-studded ceremony hosted by singer and TV presenter Myleene Klass last night (18 November 2007) at the London Hilton.
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Post by Lynda on Nov 20, 2007 15:06:35 GMT
Lee featuring in this weeks copy of Inside Soap
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Post by Lynda on Nov 20, 2007 15:07:56 GMT
see sunday 25th November copy of Mail on Sunday
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Post by Lynda on Nov 29, 2007 11:47:13 GMT
Lee in Heat Magazine christmas issue
TV Times 4th December issue
On 20th December at 10 a.m. Lee will be making a personal appearance at St Pancreas Station for Great Ormond Street Hospital for sick children
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Post by Lynda on Nov 29, 2007 11:52:32 GMT
TV appearances
8th December TMI BBC2 9.a.m.
26th December Christmas Cooks 10.30
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Post by Lynda on Nov 29, 2007 13:32:14 GMT
How nice to hear Zoe Tyler apologise to Lee for saying he was a bit rubbish in the week of ADWD when he had been so poorly with cough and cold. Poor boy didnt even know if he was going to make that saturdays show.
Just think if he hadnt gone on he would be still just be our Lee doing great in various musicals but not having the fame and following. Oh well it was nice having him to ourselves for a few years, but we now have to share.
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