Kim Wilde: ‘I was trapped in a hotel corridor with just my knickers on'
Born in 1960, the daughter of Sixties singer-songwriter Marty, Kim Wilde found instant global superstardom in 1981 with her debut single Kids in America. Twenty-five top 50 UK singles, including You Keep Me Hangin' on and Cambodia, followed and she became the most charted female singer of the 1980s. After a hiatus to have children Harry, 26, and 24-year-old Rose, with her ex-husband Hal Fowler, she successfully turned her hand to horticulture, presenting several gardening TV shows and winning a Gold Award at the Chelsea Flower Show in 2005. She now performs on the pop heritage circuit.
Best childhood memory?
When I was about 10, my music teacher, Mr Webster, asked me to play the part of Mary in the school play. He was someone I absolutely adored – he inspired every kid to pick up an instrument, even if they felt they had no musical talent. He made everyone feel empowered to get involved, and I loved him for that. Plus, he was a very charismatic and handsome man, which I, of course, noticed as well. About five years ago, his son reached out to me for a big birthday celebration, so I recorded a grown-up version of the song and sent it to him. Unfortunately, he's no longer with us, but I'm glad I had the chance to tell him what a huge influence he had on me. Did I mention that I thought he was also incredibly attractive and charismatic? I might've kept that part to myself.
Best day of your life?
It doesn't get any better than giving birth. I was spectacularly unprepared in many ways. I hadn't gone to birthing lessons. I'd done very little reading. I just assumed that once I'd get to the hospital, everything would be fine. And then it wasn't it. I was an older mother at 38 and things got tricky, but my body managed to give birth and it was the most beautiful, wonderful experience to hold my babies in my arms.
Best moment on stage?
My 'Here Come the Aliens' Tour at Koko in Camden. My father, who hadn't been to one of my gigs for a while, came and I'd gone fully into costume mode and ended up looking a bit like a space-age Barbarella. I launched myself into the album and the greatest hits and the whole place went absolutely crazy. I was so proud that my dad was there to see that because quite a few of the songs that we were performing that night were written by him and my brother. It felt like a real proper homecoming.
Best performance?
My brother Rick and I had been to a Magic FM Christmas party to do an acoustic set, and we were on the train going home and everyone looked a bit glum, so I said to Rick: 'Come on, it's Christmas. I've got antlers. You've got a guitar? Why don't we just sing some songs and see what happens.' I remember Ricky looking at me and going, 'Are you sure?' and I'm like, 'Yeah, come on.' So that's what we did and unbeknown to us, there was this charming girl filming the whole thing. And then it went viral, which was just something else. I remember thinking, 'This is going to be an absolute disaster and it could literally bury my career overnight' – but it did exactly the opposite. It was so spontaneous, and fun-inspired, and I'm glad it happened. It went on to inspire a Christmas album and brought about a lot of really good things.
Best horticultural moment?
Gardening is my private passion now, but it became a public passion for several years. I stepped out of the music industry to have a family and that's how it began. I thought, 'I've got to learn about plants, because I want to make a garden for the kids.' So, I enroled at a local horticultural college to do a summer course. And that ended up with me doing a two-year City and Guilds course, where I learnt a hell of a lot. I then got asked to do TV programmes, and I just thought, 'Well, why the hell not? I'm an unemployed pop star, let's give TV gardening a go.' Then I ended up at Chelsea Flower Show, with my good friend Richard Lucas and we walked away with a gold medal for our courtyard garden.
Best personality trait?
My daughter said I'm very open minded and I would agree with her. When you have an open mind there's so much more of the world to absorb and to enjoy and to experience.
Best decision you ever made?
Stopping drinking alcohol nine years ago has had a profound impact on my mental and physical health and it's one of the best decisions I've ever made. I gave it a good old session from when I was 15 or 16. I'd spent virtually half my life with it being a part of my life and I certainly did have lots of fabulous times with alcohol, but I'm in much better shape since I stopped.
Worst childhood memory?
When I was three, I had meningitis. I remember a pounding headache and a high fever, and then being rushed to the hospital. My parents were driving back from Liverpool, so we had someone looking after us, and they got me to the hospital. I vaguely remember having a lumbar puncture, and that's the last thing I recall, but I survived it.
Worst moment of your life?
The brief moment when you lose sight of your child – it's happened to me a few times as a parent, and I think every parent has been there. You suddenly look, and they're not where you thought they were. It's a terrifying, shocking feeling. It's happened to me a couple of times, when I had no idea where they were. Without a doubt, the worst moments in life as a parent always involve your children.
Worst moment on stage?
My band and I were in Portugal, performing a few covers, one of which was Forever Young by Alphaville. We were a bit rusty, and chaos soon followed. I started the song in tune with the guitarist, but, for some reason – one we've never quite figured out – every other musician came in on a different key. It was absolutely terrifying, but I decided to just power through. There are photos floating around of the band with their backs to the audience, and just me up front, trying to salvage the situation. 'Kim Wilde singing Forever Young' is somewhere on YouTube, but it's now known as Forever Wrong. It's painful to listen to.
Worst celebrity encounter?
I remember doing Top of the Pops when Jimmy Savile was hosting. My mum came with me to it and we both had a very uncomfortable feeling being around him and we kept our distance. Mum has mentioned it since, saying, 'I knew he was a wrong 'un.' She kept close by me during that show and looking back after everything that happened, I now realise she did me a big favour.
Worst drunken mistake?
In my drinking days I'd had one too many with a promoter who'd been buying rounds for me and the band all night. After a wild evening, I stumbled back to my hotel room. In the middle of the night, I woke up needing the bathroom, opened the door, and – somehow – ended up locked out in the corridor, completely naked. There I was, stranded in a brightly lit hotel hallway with very little on, desperately trying to figure out how to make it back to my room. I think I had a pair of knickers on and that was it. I had to run down to the lift and then edge my way out of it to see if I could see anyone at reception. The guy was absolutely horrified, gave me a key card and I slunk back to my room.
Worst personality trait?
Before I got my hearing aid, I used to talk much louder – years of being on stage with musicians cranking up their amps had left my ears a bit shot. I'd often misinterpret what people said and end up saying the wrong thing, which was usually funny but, over time, really irritated those around me. My family begged me to get hearing aids, which I found pretty humiliating at the time. But, honestly, they've been one of the best decisions I've ever made. I can hear things now – even the insects I once missed – and subtle sounds that I now really appreciate.
Worst advice you've ever received?
I've been fortunate in that regard and haven't received much bad advice. I do remember when everyone was talking about Bitcoin, and someone suggested, 'Do you fancy taking some Bitcoin instead of getting paid for the gig?' I just said, 'No, I don't.' I can't recall who made the suggestion, but I definitely remember my firm, resounding 'no'.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Inside David Beckham's 20-year campaign for a knighthood
When David Beckham attended the Chelsea Flower Show last month his conversation with King Charles raised the eyebrows of regular Royal watchers. Beckham, who was wearing a new rose named in the King's honour, had just turned 50 and it seemed His Majesty had bought the former England captain a present. 'You got it, didn't you?' Charles was overheard saying, with Beckham replying 'It was incredible, thank you. It was very kind.' Now it seems that Beckham has received the gift he treasured above all others – a knighthood. Receiving the ultimate accolade from the British establishment has been very much a crusade for Beckham for the past 15 years, one in which he has successfully cultivated friendships within the Royal family alongside a remarkably effective public relations campaign. How much a knighthood means to him is clear from emails written more than a decade ago, before being hacked and leaked in 2017, which show Beckham was clearly furious over his wait to be knighted. 'They r [sic] a bunch of c---s,' Beckham allegedly wrote about the honours committee. 'Unless it's a knighthood, f--- off.' He added: 'Who decides on the honors [sic]?? It's a disgrace to be honest and if I was American I would have got something like this 10 years ago.' Beckham's representatives said the emails, which included one railing against Welsh singer Katherine Jenkins getting an OBE in 2014 after previously admitting taking drugs – had been 'doctored' and 'taken out of context'. But his quest to become 'Sir David' has nevertheless been a long one, and it is one in which the Royals loom large. Loos scandal did little harm to brand It is 22 years since Beckham was made an OBE for services to football, an honour which in itself was quite remarkable considering there had been effigies hung of him just five years previously after his red card at the 1998 World Cup. By that point he had already begun the charity work that has undoubtedly proven crucial to him becoming the youngest former former footballer to be knighted, having supported Unicef while playing for Manchester United. Accusations that he cheated on wife Victoria with Rebecca Loos after quitting United for Real Madrid – which he denied – had a limited impact on Brand Beckham and, by 2005, he had become a Unicef Goodwill Ambassador. That same year he was part of the delegation Britain dispatched to Singapore in a bid to secure the 2012 Olympics for London. The stunning success of that bid is said to have been behind him first being put forward for a knighthood in 2011 before he had even retired from playing. But any plans to award him the honour were vetoed when he was caught up in a tax avoidance scheme. It was a bid for sport's other mega-event that allowed him to cement a close bond with the current Prince of Wales. The two were united as the figureheads of England's unsuccessful bid for the 2018 World Cup, and their close bond was seen last October when they greeted each other like old friends at an official engagement to celebrate the replacement of London's ageing air ambulance helicopters. At that stage, though, it seemed that if Beckham were to be honoured it would be for his charity work, with the midfielder giving away the wages he earned at Paris St-Germain, his final club. There was some cynicism even then, with the leak of Beckham's hacked messages forcing him to deny claims he had used his children's charity work as part of a campaign to win a knighthood. He was also furious that the messages depicted him as demanding money from Unicef – with which he established the '7 Fund' in 2015 – to pay for flights and hotels to visit its projects. Unicef came to the star's defence, describing Beckham 'as generously giving his time, energy and support to help raise awareness and funds for Unicef's work for children'. It added: 'David has given significant funds personally. The 7 Fund supports programmes for children, tackling issues such as malnutrition, violence, AIDS and emergencies.' It would not be the last time Beckham would come under fire for his off-field choices, as in 2021 he was criticised for signing a 10-year, reported £150 million deal to become an ambassador for Qatar in the build-up to the last World Cup. His promotion of a country with a poor human rights record – and where the death penalty can apply to those found to be in same-sex relationships – sparked a major backlash. Comedian Joe Lycett famously shredded what appeared to be £10,000 (it later turned out not to be real cash) along with Beckham's 'status as a gay icon'. Beckham later said he was 'proud' of his role and that the World Cup had been the 'safest' for the LGBTQ community 'for a long time'. Helped by falling out with Harry and Meghan In hindsight, the more significant event of 2021 was the fact he was cleared by the tax authorities to receive an upgrade to his OBE. That opened the path to his knighthood, and it was one Beckham duly followed as his interactions with the Royal family accelerated. He was helped by the fact that, just like Charles and William, he had fallen out with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Beckham had previously been close with both Princes and their wives, and attended their weddings. But when Beckham flew to Australia in October 2018 to help promote Prince Harry's Invictus Games in Sydney, he is said to have been snubbed by the Sussexes, who allegedly went to great lengths to avoid being photographed alongside him. It has since been claimed that Meghan believed Victoria Beckham had leaked stories about her to the press. The suggestion was strongly refuted. When Prince Harry and Meghan became estranged from the Royal family and started giving interviews loaded with private family revelations and allegations, the Beckhams were said to be less than impressed. If sides were being picked, David knew where his loyalties lay. Indeed, Beckham's painful estrangement from eldest son Brooklyn amid a family feud involving daughter-in-law Nicola Peltz has echoes of the breakdown of the King's relationship with Prince Harry since his son and Meghan quit as working royals to live in the United States. There, they have reportedly mixed in the same circles as Brooklyn and Nicola. Arguably, though, nothing helped Beckham's cause more than when he queued up for 13 hours to pay his respects to Queen Elizabeth II following her death in September 2022. While some celebrities infamously jumped the queue, Beckham joined the estimated quarter of a million people who patiently waited their turn. Beckham, who had been awarded his OBE by the late Queen, told the BBC: 'I was so lucky that I was able to have a few moments like that in my life, to be around Her Majesty.' But it is Beckham's remarkable relationship with the King that may well have put the seal on his impending knighthood. What has blossomed into a love-in began in earnest gesture shortly after the coronation, when Beckham, who had discovered a love of beekeeping during the coronavirus crisis, gave the King a jar of home-produced honey – D Bee'z Sticky Stuff – at an awards ceremony in London celebrating British fashion. The gesture landed well. The King, who has long kept bees at his Royal estates and harbours a genuine love for different types of honey, thanked him and said: 'We shall have to do a swap.' Beckham admitted at the time that he was 'excited' to meet the King, describing himself as a lifelong admirer of the Royal family. As a child, he is said to have made an annual pilgrimage to Buckingham Palace with his grandparents, Joseph and Peggy, to watch Trooping the Colour. He spoke of his hitherto unknown passion for nature in 2023's candid Netflix documentary about his life, chatting about the bees he kept on his Cotswolds estate near Great Tew in Oxfordshire. Just a few months later, in June 2024, there he was swapping beekeeping tips with the King. The pair met up privately at the monarch's Highgrove home, some 50 miles from the Beckhams' residence, to discuss plans for him to become an ambassador for the King's Foundation. Pictures released to mark the announcement shortly afterwards showed them laughing together on the King's doorstep, dressed in their smart country attire. 'Having developed a love for the countryside, I'm also on a personal mission to learn more about rural skills which is so central to the foundation's work,' Beckham said at the time. 'It was inspiring to hear from the King about the work of His Majesty's foundation during my recent visit to Highgrove Gardens – and compare beekeeping tips!' It must also be said that the friendship is by no means a one-way street. The King's Foundation has gone to great lengths to attract an array of high-profile personalities to become ambassadors in recent months. From Sienna Miller to rugby star Maro Itoje – the latest recruit, announced on Friday – the charity is keen to reach as wide a demographic as possible in its efforts to promote the synergy between people and planet. Beckham, one of the world's most recognised figures, was a great catch and the invitations then came thick and fast. In December, both David and his wife joined the King and Queen at a state banquet at Buckingham Palace, held in honour of the Qatari ruler. In February, the couple were among the King's guests at a black-tie dinner at Highgrove to celebrate Anglo-Italian relations and, the following month, Victoria was invited to Buckingham Palace for a Women of the World event hosted by the Queen. Then, last month, the Princess of Wales wore a Victoria Beckham suit during a visit to the British Fashion Council – not the first time she had been spotted in one of the former Spice Girl's designs. That was followed shortly afterwards by the visit to the Chelsea Flower Show and the King's 'gift' to Beckham. Whether the gift itself was the knighthood few will know, but no one can dispute that Beckham's hard work has finally earned him the one royal seal of approval he has always craved.
Daily Mirror
2 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
David Beckham reaction to knighthood joke in front of King Charles says it all
David Beckham and his wife Victoria are reportedly set to be given knighthoods in King Charles' Birthday Honours List next week, with Sir Rod Stewart's brutal joke seemingly coming true Sir Rod Stewart's light-hearted prediction about David Beckham's getting a knighthood - made right in front of King Charles - looks to be coming true. Reports have emerged that Beckham is set to receive a knighthood in the King's upcoming Birthday Honours. The former England footballer had previously been considered for the merit several times, but was never included on the final list. In 2017, Beckham's apparent disappointment at being overlooked became public when a trove of contentious emails - allegedly from him - were leaked. Bearing that history in mind, Stewart, who was knighted in 2016 for his contributions to music and philanthropy, made a playful jab at Beckham during an event they attended alongside the British monarch. During the award presentation at a ceremony for 'The King's Foundation', Stewart quipped in front of the King: "I am also wonderfully honoured to be a knight, and David, yours is coming soon." Beckham, amused, was seen smiling and shaking his head, taking the joke in good spirits - even in the King's presence. Now, new reports indicate that Stewart's prediction was accurate. According to The Sun, Beckham will officially become a 'Sir' next week, while Victoria Beckham is expected to be styled as "Lady Beckham". The 50-year-old was named an ambassador to the King's Foundation last year, further solidifying his relationship with the royal family. Recent public moments suggest a friendly rapport between Beckham and the King. At the Chelsea Flower Show last month, the King asked Beckham: "You got it, didn't you?" referring to a birthday gift. Beckham responded: "It was incredible, thank you. It was very kind." Beyond his footballing achievements in England - 115 caps for the Three Lions, plus various trophy-laden stints at Manchester United, Real Madrid, AC Milan and Paris Saint-Germain - Beckham has made a mark as a football executive, co-founding Inter Miami in MLS, home to Lionel Messi. He has also championed numerous charitable causes, particularly through UNICEF, and was awarded an OBE in 2003. However, it has taken over two decades for that to be elevated to knighthood. His prospects took a hit in 2017 following the publication of controversial emails allegedly written by him. One message reportedly said he "didn't care about being knighted," and another read: "It's a disgrace to be honest and if I was American I would of [sic] got something like this 10 years ago." Beckham later claimed some of the messages had been tampered with. A friend told the Mirror at the time: "To be honest, he does feel that he has given so much to his country... you don't really mean it. "While he was frustrated in those emails, he was over it the moment he sent them. Getting the knighthood is not what his work is about. He doesn't care if he gets a knighthood or not." Typically, honours recipients are notified weeks in advance, so Beckham and his wife may already know of the honour. Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
The National
4 hours ago
- The National
David Beckham to be awarded knighthood, as per reports
The former England captain will appear on the list due to be released next week, the Sun reported, having previously been awarded an OBE in 2003. Beckham, who played for his country 115 times and has carried out extensive charity work, has been in the running for a knighthood for more than a decade. The Unicef goodwill ambassador, who turned 50 in May, would take on the title of Sir and his wife, former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham, would become Lady Beckham. King Charles and Queen Camilla meet David Beckham at the Chelsea Flower Show (Paul Grover/Daily Telegraph) (PA) He had been on the verge of receiving a knighthood in the 2014 New Year's Honours list but HM Revenue and Customs placed a red flag on his nomination due to his involvement in an alleged tax avoidance scheme, according to previous reports. Speculation that Beckham was in line for a knighthood grew after he announced his retirement from football in 2013. Footage published by the Sun shows the King asking Beckham if he 'received his 50th birthday present', during a conversation at the Chelsea Flower Show last month. The King appeared to say 'I'm glad it got to you', with Beckham responding: 'It was incredible, thank you, it was very kind'. The Queen was then heard telling Beckham: 'I'm glad you got the roses.' Manchester United's Eric Cantona (right) and David Beckham celebrate after Beckham scores the winning goal (Laurence Griffiths/PA) Beckham is the only Englishman to score at three different World Cups and his career included the treble-winning campaign of 1998-99, when Manchester United won the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League. He earned the third highest number of England caps of all time for the men's team, and was captain on 59 occasions. After playing for United, Los Angeles Galaxy and Real Madrid, Beckham turned to making his co-owned US team Inter Miami into a success. The former winger married Victoria, also known as Posh Spice, in 1999. Together the power couple starred in the Netflix documentary Beckham – which included a viral scene of her discussing class. The four-part documentary series about Beckham's life and professional career scored him an Emmy in 2024 for outstanding documentary or non-fiction series. Beckham was given his OBE for services to football on the recommendation of then-prime minister Tony Blair. His wife Victoria got the same honour for services to the fashion industry in a later New Year Honours list.
