Big Interview - Craig Chalmers
Craig Chalmers is a happy man. Not only does he see his dreams come true each night as he plays Joseph in the famous Lloyd Webber musical, he is also newly engaged and very much in love.
His beautiful girlfriend of two and a half years, Jennifer, accepted his romantic proposal on holiday in Mexico earlier this year.
Craig recalls: "I organised this whole romantic sunset boat cruise followed by a champagne and lobster dinner in a beachside gazebo.
"I had it all arranged with the management and they brought the ring on a silver platter at the end of the meal and I proposed there by the firelight and it was very romantic.
"She didn't suspect a thing so it was a big surprise. You only do it once so I wanted to make sure it was done properly."
When Craig crashed out of the finals of Any Dream Will Do, the TV search for a new star to play Joseph, in fifth place, he thought he would never get to play the role he had worked so hard for.
But his life changed forever just a few weeks later when the producer of the show and Any Dream judge, Bill Kenwright, called him in for a month just weeks later.
He told Craig he wanted him to play Joseph in the touring production of the show, while winner Lee Mead starred in the West End.
Today, Craig is travelling to Llandudno and his next date on the tour after two years, three months on the road, playing the role. But the memory of that day still puts a smile on his face.
Craig says: "I was delighted. I wasn't even aware that there was this big tour going on so I was very very happy when Bill Kenright decided I was the guy he wanted to be Joseph.
"He just asked me to come into his office for a meeting and we had a chat and he offered me the part after going through a few things and talking about what I wanted to do with my future.
"And it's been a tremendous success really over the last couple of years and to be able to play the part for so long and be able to extend my contract so many times over – it's been great."
It's been tough on his relationship with Jennifer, he admits, but the couple have developed ways of clinging on to
normality.
He laughs: "Jennifer is actually sat in the car with me right now, she's coming with me this week. She tends to come to see me every weekend round the UK.
"We've got this running joke, she's got this Peugeot and it was pretty much brand new when she met me and now it's done nearly 60,000. I'm going to upgrade it once the tour finishes!
"But seriously, you need that kind of dedication to keep a relationship going because I've seen so many break up on the tour. But we go from strength to strength which is fantastic.
"She's going to come up to Preston for the weekend so she'll arrive on either the Thursday or the Friday. She's in marketing, she works through the week and then gets in the car."
The couple have their own little traditions to create a sense of home – including enjoying a Sunday roast each week together.
Craig says: "At the moment, it's become a sort of Monday roast because the schedule's changed for just now until the New Year, we're performing Tuesday to Sunday so Monday's my day off.
"But we had a nice roast dinner last night actually! And we actually baked a carrot cake from scratch last night, we went to Tesco's, got all the ingredients and did that together.
"It keeps the normality of things going and, because it's such a crazy schedule, it's nice to do normal things on your day off."
But he is certain Jennifer is right for him. He says: "I wasn't ever sure that I was going to get married because I wasn't sure I was going to meet the girl that would make me know that that was the one.
"I've had many girlfriends in the past, many relationships, short term, long term and I've been single for periods of time and there's no way I would go into something like this unless you're sure.
"I always knew it wasn't right with all my other girlfriends in the past. I was quite happy, I just thought, if it's meant to be, it's meant to be and it will come along at the right time and that's how it's worked out, I'm very lucky."
He is also sure performing is right for him and he loves his life as it is now. Previously a member of boyband, No Reason, who enjoyed a Top Ten hit, he has no doubt he doesn't want to go back to pop.
Of the original casts, just Craig and Lee Mead are now left. Craig is due to leave in April next year and he admits he isn't sure how his last time onstage in the role will feel.
He says: "Hahaha, God, I don't know! It's going to be very emotional. I have thought about that a couple of times.
"I'm not much of a crier but I think I'm going to get quite emotional at the last show, that's for sure.It's been the majority of my life for three years. I was 25 when I first went in for Any Dream Will Do and I'll be 29 when I finish the tour.
"So that's all of my late 20s in which you do a lot of growing up. It has, it's been my life for that amount of time. It's going to set me in good stead for whatever happens next."
What does he see happening next? He muses: "I've got the wedding so I'm going to take a bit of time off for that and enjoy the summer and there's always pantomime for that Christmas.
"And after that, I'm hoping to go into television presenting so I've got a couple of meetings set up in the next few months to try and get my foot in the door.
"My dream job would be Sky Sports News presenter, that would be my dream. I'm a big sports fan, big football fan and it's the first thing I have on in the morning when I wake up."
Craig Chalmers stars in Andrew Lloyd Webber's Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Charter Theatre, Preston, from Tuesday November 10 to Saturday November 15.
Tickets are available from.prestonguildhall.com
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Wednesday 08 February 2012
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