Jake and I got back from Tokyo, and with a day’s respite I began the European tour in Margate at the beautiful Winter Gardens. I have been to Margate a number of times, all of them singing related. I had been there with my old school choir and slept on the floor of the parish church hall floor for a week. I have also done two concerts close by to raise money for Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Hospital’s Cancer Care Appeal. It was great to be back here and although some of the town was looking a little worse for wear it was clear that a well earned rejuvenation of the area had begun. The Winter Gardens was a lovely place to start the tour, and there were quite a few of Julz’s family there as they come from various parts of Kent(Julz’s Mum is one of 17 children, so no shortage of Aunts and uncles!). 

Following the first date, we headed to London as I was to record a theme tune for a Korean TV show. It was a beautiful, if sad tune with a very haunting introduction. Once I had finished recording, it was time to catch our flight from London’s City Airport to Amsterdam. It was a short flight and we got to Amsterdam in good time, although it was a very wet day in the City so we didn’t get to explore very much. The venue for the concert in Amsterdam was a stunning one, called the Carre. To my amazement it sold out inside a week of the tickets going on sale, and is a very popular theatre, so we had booked it a long time in advance and could only get the one night. It was one of the most beautiful theatres I have ever performed in!

We left for Antwerp the following day for my first ever concert in Belgium in another fantastic venue close to the Central Station, it was a great audience here as I have found everywhere, I am humbled by the audiences reception of me. We then had a long, long overnight drive on the tour bus, involving two boat trips on the way. We slept through the first one, but the second one wehad to be up for as it was the longer one. Julz always loves the boats. Well to be honest, she doesn’t! She always feels like she is still on the boat for a few days after. We arrived in Malmo where we had a day off to recover from the journey so we had a bit of time to wander around Malmo again. The weather was still not on our side though so we were dodging showers a lot of the time.

After a great show in front of a very receptive audience, it was time to leave for a town close to Stockholm called Uppsala. It was a lovely little town with a beautiful Cathedral. The venue was a great one, very modern, but the feel of the hall was great and it was wonderful as ever to meet so many people after the show. 

After the show we drove into Stockholm and I stayed at my favourite hotel in the city, very close to the Royal Palace and the Parliament building. On a non show day I had been invited by a very successful artist called Carola Haggkvist who has represented Sweden at Eurovision many times. 

We woke the next morning to take a short walk down to the studio where we were recording a duet of the beautiful Christmas song, O Holy Night. The studio we were using was one owned by Benny from Abba, and was where the soundtrack for the film Mamma Mia was recorded. Carola and I strolled down and then spent a few hours recording the song together. As it was her birthday we had a piece of birthday cake, and then we made our way back to the hotel after we had finished recording. We had another marathon trip to do, this time to Aarhus in Denmark. It again involved travelling by tourbus and boat. 

This year we have tried to get to cities that we didn’t do last year and although I had been to Aarhus once before for only a few hours this time I got the opportunity to have a wander around the town and explore a bit. It has a beautiful town centre which was very busy. Another great audience was at the venue before we left for the beautiful city of Copenhagen. 

I have generally been very fortunate with weather in Copenhagen, and this time was no exception. We were blessed with good weather and so we walked around the city, and around Tivoli Gardens which is like an oasis in the middle of the city. Another fantastic audience in the Falkoner Theatre, and it was time after the show to head for Germany. We hadn’t been able to get a place on a ferry that cut the corner a bit to shorten the drive, so we had to take the same ferry that we had taken before, which meant that we didn’t arrive into Berlin until lunchtime the following day. It was a fairly damp day when we arrived in Berlin and after a brief rest Julz and I took a stroll around the city.

The next day, the day of the first German show, the hotel very kindly arranged a personal tour of the city, and we saw many places that we had not seen before like Kaiser Wilhelm Kirche which is a beautiful juxtaposition of a modern building against an ancient church shelled at the end of the Second World War. It was a beautiful day and we took in all the major sights like Brandenburg Gate and drove along some of the site of the Berlin Wall. 

It was soon time to head to the venue, so we thanked our driver and headed to the Tempodrom. This was a beautiful venue and one I enjoyed performing in immensely. The acoustic of the venue was perfect for the show, and it was one of the most enjoyable shows so far. After the show, it was again fantastic to see so many people at the signing, and we then headed back to the hotel before resting up for the journey to Oldenburg. 

More of that in the next few days, where the journey continues through Central Germany and on to Austria and Switzerland…

When we arrived, the weather wasn’t looking too promising, but brightened up when I had done my soundcheck.  When the show started, however, the heavens opened, and it rained virtually the whole night.  This didn’t dampen the 15,000 strong crowd’s enthusiasm, however, and they willingly sang along with every song.

After a while, it was time for me to perform.  First of all I was to perform La Prima Volta, and I had been wondering for much of the day whether I was going to end the song in a different way from the way I recorded it.  I knew that what I was thinking about carried a huge risk and that if it went wrong would be disasterous.  I still hadn’t made my decision when I had started the song, and this was live television!  There could be no retakes if it all went wrong.  I finally made up my mind on my last breath before the last phrase, that I would go for it. 

The high C has always been considered to be special, and so I decided that I was going to make this performance extra special.  I felt in good form and the approach to the last phrase I was happy with.  Thankfully it all went right and I really enjoyed the note and I think the audience loved it too!  I also performed Piano (Memory) again in the rain, and took part in the finale singalong of an Abba classic.  We left to return to the hotel close to LIseberg, and left fairly early the following morning for London where I again had a couple of days at home.

On the Sunday, Jake picked me up to make our way to Heathrow as we had a 7 am flight to Bogota via Madrid.  I had started to come down with a cold, and by the time I got on the plane, it was starting to take hold.  We had enough time to get to the second flight from Madrid to Bogota, and I made myself comfortable.  I was feeling anything but comfortable as the cold led me to cough an awful lot on the plane.

After a total of 15 hours flying time, we arrived in Bogota, where I was greeted by three TV crews.  I gave a quick interview to each of them, and then we made our way to our hotel. 

I had started to feel worse, so a doctor came around who took my temperature which stood at 105 degrees (F). Bearing in mind that we were now at altitude (8000m), I took things very easy for the next few days and with the help of the medication given to me by the doctor, I made a pretty fast recovery.

The next day, feeling a little better Jake and I met up with colleagues from the local record company and had a lovely lunch in a traditional Colombian restaurant that was owned by a local musician.  After a lovely meal we made our way back to the hotel, for me to rest and recover further from the cold, as I had a busy day of interviews the following day. 

After a press conference, I had a number of TV interviews and local press interviews.  It was a busy day, and after all interviews were done I made my way back to my room for a rest until it was time to have drinks with some VIPs and the sponsor for the concert.  I didn’t stay for very long as I still had to recover more for the following night’s concert.

To my relief, I had recovered incredibly quickly, and was fit enough for the concert, and felt much better on the morning of the concert.  Later in the day we made our way to the venue where I enjoyed performing for an enthusiastic audience.  It was great to meet so many of the audience at a meet and greet after. 

The next day, it was time to make our way to a new country for me, Peru.  On arrival in Lima, I gave a couple of interviews and we then made our way to the hotel where we met the local promoter.  After catching up a bit in my room, we went out for dinner.  The promoter took us to a lovely seafood restaurant that was on a structure that was designed to look like Brighton Pier.  It was some of the best fish I have eaten including ceviche, raw seabass, pacific salmon, and raw scallops.  It was unbelievably fresh!  We were the other side of the world, and yet we were sat in a little piece of England!  We also had a taste of a local speciality, pisco sour which is a lemon based spirit cocktail. 

I was now feeling completely recovered and I was back to normal wandering around the city down to the area by the sea with a fantastic view down to the coast that was effectively a desert by the sea. 

Lima has a great feel to it with mixture of modern buildings and colonial buildings.  The food in Peru is also outstanding!  Even the fast food outlets had great food, so I was absolutely spoilt for choice!

After a Press conference we made our way to lunch and explored the city some more, and then met up with the local team for dinner before making our way to a local bar for a quick drink.  The bar would have been heaven for Julz and her best friend Becca, as it was non-stop rock with plenty of Guns & Roses and Bon Jovi!  The concert was the following night, so we didn’t have a late night and made our way back to the hotel. 

The next morning came, and after breakfast I went for another stroll.  After feeling too ill to wander around Bogota, I decided I was going to make up for it in Lima. 

Later in the day it was time to make our way to the venue which as it wasn’t far from the hotel, we went to on foot.  We arrived in good time and I had one of my most enjoyable concerts so far.  The audience were very receptive and after the uncertainty of the cold that I had had before, I was very happy with my performance.

After the concert Bob Willis, Chris Taylor, Jake and the rest of the team had a drink with the promoter and he very kindly offered to show around the city the next day. 

The next day we went to the beautiful Cathedral in central Lima, and wandered around the central area including the railway station that was built by the British, and which ahs one train a day running into the Andes from it.  It is a stunning structure.  After the railway station we went to an Inca Temple on our way back to the hotel before leaving for the airport. 

It was incredible how the whole temple was built by hand made mud bricks.  In places you can see the indentations of where the earth had been taken and formed into bricks.  It was fascinating and really quite awe-inspiring that people were able to build such a structure thousands of years ago, all by hand.

We had just enough time to grab some lunch in the restaurant at the temple, after meeting some of the llamas and other animals.  We had a lovely outdoor lunch with the whole team in Peru, and I really enjoyed my time in Lima, and I would really love to return to Peru again very soon.

We then made our way to the airport for our flight back to the UK via Madrid.  For Chris, Bob, Mark and Bradley it was time for home.  For Jake and I however, London was merely a stopover on our way to Tokyo….

More about that in a few days…..

We went to our favourite Italian restaurant in Prague which I found when I was in Prague recording Passione.  We had a great dinner, and then meandered around the streets for a little while before heading back to our room.  It was quite surreal seeing lots of pictures of me on posters all around the city,

The following day was the day of the first performance and also a rehearsal with the orchestra, Czech National Symphony Orchestra.  I was being conducted by someone called Marcello Rota who is the cousin of the famous composer Nino Rota who composed much of the music on Frederico Fellini’s films and also Un Giorno per Noi on Passione. 

I had long looked forward to this concert with a full orchestra behind me, and they were a delight to work with, as was Maestro Rota.  I enjoyed my performances immensely and the audience was very very responsive.  The Smetana Hall was a beautiful hall to perform in and the building in which it is housed, The Municipal house is a very striking one. After the show, we popped out for some dinner, before retiring for the night.

We had another show the following night and it felt, if possible even better the second time around.  As you can hear on Passione (The Czech National are the orchestra we worked with on the album), the orchestra was in tremendous form and it was a delight to hear them performing great pieces of music, and to have them accompanying me was truly a dream come true. 

After the final performance we had dinner with Marcello, the conductor and we were presented with special plaques and a whisky with a special label on it with my name on it.  They will both have a special place in my music room at home with the Echo award I won in Germany and the Radio Regebogen award. 

The next day we made our way back to the UK to go home to have a few days to ourselves before heading on holiday with Julz’s sister and brother-in-law.  This was the first opportunity we had had in over a month to see how things were going at home, and with everything running smoothly, after a few days we headed back to London for our flight from Gatwick to the beautiful city of Barcelona. 

We decided to let the train take the strain, and got a fairly early train from Port Talbot to get us to London’s Gatwick Airport in good time for our flight to Barcelona.

We had a good flight, and arrived at Barcelona Airport in mid afternoon, and already it was very hot, and we were looking forward to a few days to relax in the sun, and do a bit of sightseeing.  We weren’t staying in Barcelona, in fact we weren’t even staying in a hotel.  We were going to spend the next ten days camping about 80 miles North of Barcelona close to a lovely fishing town called L’Escala at the Northern part of the Costa Brava. 

Julz and I have stayed on the Costa Brava before, in the off-season in Lloret De Mar on a last minute cheapie winter break.  We got to the campsite, having been picked up in our car by Julz’s sister and brother-in-law who with our little terrors of nephews were to be our hosts for the next ten days.

We soon rediscovered the beauty of the Costa Brava away from the busiest resorts, with its rocky coastline and clear blue sea and sky.  We had an evening out virtually every night eating the local seafood and meat and our youngest nephew (aged 2, and given the name Alfie by his older brother Lewis) kept us all fit by bidding to make his great escape from our camping place. So we took it in turns running after him as he ran down the path giggling all the way.

We took a number of trips to Barcelona where we ambled down the Ramblas and the children marvelled at all the street entertainers, especially the ghoulish street statues that would take them by surprise.  I have always loved Barcelona, it’s a city you can just keep coming back to again and again and never get tired of.  It’s also never more than 2 hours away from the UK. 

On the next trip to Barcelona, we took the children to Nou Camp, the home of FC Barcelona, one of the most famous football clubs in the world.  Even for a non sports fanatic like me, the Nou Camp is an amazing stadium. 

One of the highlights of Barcelona are the fountains close to Placa D’Espanya, and it was my intention that we would watch the fountains rise and fall and change colour to different pieces of music.  I have watched it a number of times, and it is incredible how the whole thing is put together.

On our first attempt to see it, we watched the sun go down leaving a stunning coloured sky, and I was just about the least popular person around when we waited for over two hours and the display didn’t happen.  We strolled down to the fountain side where there was a notice with the times of the display.  Unknown to me, the display only happens weekends now even through the main season, so we would have to come back another day to see it.

And come back we did, and it was a stunning display with different pattern according to the music.  There are two displays.  One set to orchestral music and the other to contemporary music.  The climax for the second display is the playing of the fantastic anthem that was sung by Freddie Mercury and Monserrat Caballe for the Barcelona Olympics in 1992: Barcelona.  A great song, and the display fitted the song amazingly.

Paul in Barcelona with Placa D’espanya and Mount Tibidabo behind at twilight…..

The fountain display….

In between our visits to Barcelona, we explored the beaches of the Costa Brava, including returning to Lloret de Mar in far warmer temperatures than we had seen last time we were here.  The beaches aren’t quite sand, and aren’t quite shingle, and although this part of the Costa Brava is very developed, it still has a charm.

We enjoyed our slower pace of life while we were away, and even dare I say it enjoyed sleeping in a tent especially as we had both spent considerable time in hotels over the last few years.  The one thing that was noticeable was that the campsite was very popular with the Dutch.  At one point, I wondered whether there was anyone left in The Netherlands at all!  I did meet lots of people from all over Europe and the UK and shared a drink with a good many of them.  It was great to see so many people and chat with them and to enjoy each other’s company.  Hopefully I will get to see them again as I tour around Europe and the UK over the coming months.

All too soon our holiday came to an end, and it was time to head back to the airport.  We’d had a great time sharing tapas and free time and after a few days back at home, it would be time to head on to the road again, first to Sweden, and then to South America.  But more of that in a few days….

It was one of the later starts that I have had for breakfast tv, and as we were outside and local laws didn’t allow for a performance in the normal style, I performed part of La Prima Volta a cappella. Singing a cappella is something I always feel a
little nervous about, so I was pleased with my performance.

After a brief walk around the town it was time to head for La Guadia Airport in New York for our flight to Dallas. Our last visit to Dallas was connecting on a flight from the Bahamas to San Diego last Autumn when I had a private performance. Thankfully when we arrived this time, it wasn’t in the middle of a thunderstorm!  We were to find the temperatures a little on the hot side, with temperatures constantly over 100 degrees most of the day. We made sure we had plenty of sunblock when we did venture out.

We started the US tour in a fantastic venue, the Nokia Theater in Grand Prairie.There was a very responsive crowd, and it was fantastic to see so many people after the show.

What was great about the US tour this year was that we got to go to places in the US that we hadn’t been to before, namely Dallas, Houston and Atlanta. It was great to see these places and to explore as much as we could. Everywhere we went it was very hot, in contrast to the last US tour in March, so it was great to see places with the sun out and blue skies. There were some very long journeys by bus, for instance, from Hollywood, Florida to Atlanta and from Atlanta to Atlantic City.  We also had the great honour of playing some great venues, such as Atlanta Symphony Hall, and a slightly alternative venue for me, The House of Blues in Houston - a very cool venue!

My favourite venue has to be The Beacon Theater which is right onBroadway uptown from Central Park.  The greatest thing was on the way back to our hotel in Midtown Manhattan, we saw my name in lights on Broadway!  The theatre itself was a stunning building which has recently been refurbished at considerable expense.  All I can say is that I was honoured to perform there, the acoustic was perfect, and the audience were incredible.  I am also enjoying meeting people after the show as I always enjoy shaking the hands of the people that make it possible to do what I love doing.

We returned to some of the theatres we had been to before, like the Berklee Performance Center in Boston, and The Borgata Music Box in Atlantic City. While we were in Atlantic City we spent some of the day with Justin Zackham who is writing the screenplay for the proposed film that is being worked on. It was great to see Justin again, a very nice guy with a lovely family. We took a stroll along the beaches on the Atlantic coast, and although the weather was dull and dreary, it was easy to see the charm of the area, although after 30 minutes of walking in sand, you knew you were getting exercise!

After Atlantic City, we drove to one of my favourite cities, back to Toronto for our performance at the Elgin Theater and Winter Gardens, the only surviving double decker theatre in the world. It was another stunning venue to perform in and it was great to catch up with our Canadian friends while were there.

Directly after the show, we drove overnight to Chicago, only to be woken at 3am as we crossed the border back into the US.  After
spending a little time there we got back into our bunks for the
remainder of our journey. Chicago is one of my top 3 places in the US.  I have been fortunate enough to have been to the ‘Windy City’ three times now, and the weather has always been fine and with blue skies, although it does get bitterly cold in the winter!

I had a TV performance to do as well as my final US performance on this tour.  In the studio, right before I went on stage for a live TV performance, I managed to bang my head very hard on a cabinet.  It hurt quite a lot and I was still feeling it as I was performing.  So you see why Julz always bans people from saying ‘break a leg’! I’m clumsy enough without encouragement!

Our flights back to the UK involved flying out of Washington, so we made use of a spare day to explore the city and tried to fit in as many places a we could, and even caught a cortege leaving the White House.  All too soon it was time to head to the airport, for the next journey to Europe, to Prague for my next two shows…...

It was great to see Bob, Chris and Mark again, we spent so much of the last year touring, we have become firm friends, not just colleagues.  The second tour meant needing to learn some new songs as well as performing some favourites as well as a new Mario Lanza medley so we were kept very busy in the rehearsal studios. 

Our first performance in the Centre for Performing Arts in Vancouver came very quickly, and it was great to be performing there again.  The next day we were due to drive by tour bus to Edmonton, but there was a problem with the bus, so we got an extra night in Vancouver before catching the plane. 

The last time we were in Edmonton, March 2008, it was very cold, I remember having a heavy cold and a trapped nerve, so was hobbling around the stage while coughing!  This time I was in good health and able to enjoy the wonderful acoustics of the Winspear Centre, one of my favourite concert halls anywhere in the world.  We were well received as ever by the people of Alberta, Canada, and it was great to meet so many friendly people at the venue.

We stayed in Alberta for the next concert in Calgary, another place where the temperatures had been far less friendly the last time we were there!  It is great to see these amazing places in different seasons to see the contrast between them.  I’m yet, however to be in Canada in the Autumn (or for you North Americans, Fall).  I have heard so much about the falling of the leaves in Canada, I have to find time to be there in the Autumn!  From Calgary, we flew to one of my favourite cities, Toronto where we spent Canada Day in the city, and returned to our favourite steak restaurant yet again!
We were in the area to do a concert in a nearby town called Kitchener.  Ontario is a Canadian state I have spent quite a bit of time in over the years, and the friendliness of the state was well reflected by the audience.  After spending Canada Day in the city with plenty going on in the city, and going up and having a meal at the top of the CN Tower, we made plans to visit one of the wonders of the world:  Niagara Falls.  The last time Julz and I had been there was Valentine’s Day 2005, with lots of snow on the ground and temperatures of -25 degrees C!

Jake my tour manager was good enough to drive us down to Niagara on our way to do a TV appearance in New York City.  Although a very touristy place, we loved Niagara Falls the last time we were here, and it was no different this time.  We had lunch overlooking both the American and Canadian falls and just wondered about the enormity of it all.  We still had a fair way to go, and so we left for the Canadian/US border about teatime, passing Buffalo on our way to New York City, arriving in ‘The Big Apple’ fairly late at night, and went to bed pretty much as soon as we got to our hotel as we had a fairly early start to appear on the Early Show on CBS close to Central Park…....

More on that in a few days with news from the next stage of the tour!

It was quite a long journey to Tokyo, but we had plenty of time to watch a film and have a sleep on the way.  We arrived in the heat of the afternoon, and made our way to the hotel.

The next morning was one of 6 very early days. I have never done so many breakfast shows anywhere than here in Japan, but the enthusiasm amongst the people on set is incredible. As soon as I walked forward for my rehearsal there was a hive of activity and a loud shout. Although very energetic, this energy was infectious and also friendly. Nothing was too much trouble for the people working with me on the TV shows. It was incredible to think that in the course of one week, I appeared in front of over 200 million people.  I tried not to think too much about the fact that some of the audiences I was performing live to exceeded 22 million! 

Before the week was out, I performed a short performance in front of over 5,000 people in a mall, and although there wasn’t time for a signing event I had the incredible feeling of having the audience rush across to to try and get their hands out over the barriers where I ‘high fived’ them on my way out.  One of the security guards got knocked sideways by the rush.  Thankfully he was ok! 

One of the last things I did while in Japan was to give Julz a surprise before we left.  One of the most important TV shows in Japan is called UnbelievableTV who had done a feature on me about a year ago, and they wanted me to surprise Julz by singing to her at a restaurant.  I have to admit to shedding more than a few tears as I performed Cavatina to her in a full restaurant (having changed the words to “You are beautiful, beautiful to my eyes”).  Julz has always been there for me and is someone that I will always describe as a perfect wife for her support to me through thick and thin, something that is sworn to by every couple on their wedding day, but not necessarily the easiest thing to carry out. 

I thought that she deserved to have this very public recognition of all she has done for me.  It was probably the most emotional performances I have ever given in my life. 

After a very successful and enjoyable week in Tokyo, with stunning weather, it was time to fly to one of my favourite capital cities, Seoul.  Seoul is a very busy city, but has a charm about it that is difficult to resist.  One of the first things I did was a performance in the main square of the city that was to be in front of an estimated 4,000 people. I looked out of my hotel room that was quite close to the square and thought that there were more than 4,000 there more than an hour ahead of my performance. 

I walked out on to the stage to find a huge crowd of people, the largest crowd I have ever performed to anywhere. It is estimated that in excess of 25,000 people were in the square watching me perform. Although initially very nervous, I truly enjoyed my 5 song performance in front of a great audience, and the atmosphere was incredible.  It goes down as one of the most incredible nights of the last two years to find so many people come out to watch me, all I can say is, THANK YOU! 

I had one task to do before I left, and that was to fly to the beautiful city of Busan, although this time I was not to have time to walk along its beautiful beaches and coastline. I was to be a judge on the Korean version of X Factor or American Idol. I had never been a judge before, and suddenly finding myself having to decide on the future of a singer was quite a daunting prospect. I am always quite nervous about doing something for the first time, especially as on one or two instances, I had the deciding vote.
 
After my day as a talent show judge, it was time to get on another two flights, stopping off in Seoul on our way to Hong Kong.  We arrived in Hong Kong very early the next morning where I would spend a couple of days doing a round of interviews, plus an evening of wine and music.  I started off by performing some music from Passione, and then changed mode to work with the sommelier of the hotel introducing wines and matching them with tracks from both Once Chance and Passione.  I used to be a wine advisor in one of the larger Tesco stores in Bristol, and as a result I have a healthy appreciation of wine.  It was a good and a very educational evening, and after having a great traditional Cantonese meal, it was time for our Asian adventure to come to an end and for my next world tour to begin.  We had a long flight to Vancouver, where we would actually, thanks to time difference land before we took off!

Thank you Asia and we look forward to seeing you again when the Passione World Tour hits Asia next Spring!

I decided that as I had spent so long away from home that I wanted to spend some time in our house rather than spend the night in a hotel less than 35 miles away from my own house.  When I got there, Julz was in London with her best friend to watch Nickleback, which was a Christmas present I had bought for them.  I joined Julz later in the week, and Jake, my tour manager and I picked them up from the O2 dome late on the Thursday night. 

We made our way back to our hotel, and the next day was a very big day for me.  I was to perform on the semi-final of Britain’s Got Talent. 

We made our way to the studios in Wembley early in the afternoon in good time for rehearsals for the show in the evening.  It was great to be back at the studios again.  The last time I had been there was to watch X Factor just before Christmas. 

I grabbed some lunch and ate it in the canteen with Julz and her best friend.  I got to meet some of the contestants, including little Hollie Steele, who came over to say hello.  She was happy to be there, and I wished her luck for the evening performance.

It was a lovely sunny hot day, and it was great to find myself back in the studio again.  There is a great team of people that work incredibly hard to make BGT work and it was great to meet them all again, as well as some of the contestants.  I had a few rehearsals, and it almost felt like I was back on the competition again.  The butterflies and nerves were definitely still there, and being back on the set certainly reinforced this.

As my performance grew closer, I got the opportunity to speak with Simon in his dressing room.  It was great to catch up with Simon and he had lots of nice things to say to me, including thanking me for the hard work that I had done over the last two years.  He also told me that he was very impressed with the record. It was great to hear such encouragement from Simon as I have always respected him for his honesty.

It was soon time for my hair and makeup and then for me to make my vocal preparations for my performance.  I spent some time with Yvie, fine tuning from what I had done in rehearsal.  I also spent some time watching the programme from my Winnebago, and my heart was in my mouth when Hollie broke down.  It was great to see her recover her composure, which would have taken a lot of courage.  After warming up it was time to make my way to the backstage area to wait for my turn on stage.

As my turn came, I was feeling incredibly nervous.  I knew that this performance was probably one of the most important performances that I would do.  I also knew that the expectation level was completely different this time, and that I had to do my best.

As I started my performance of La Prima Volta, I felt my legs shaking again like that first performance.  After a few seconds, I started to relax and enjoy my performance more.  All too soon it was over, and I got a huge reaction from the studio audience and Simon, Piers and Amanda.  It felt so great to be back.  I especially liked Ant and Dec shouting out “Good Old Pottsy” after I had left the stage.  It is a common nickname for all my siblings, and one of the better things that I was called at school! Before I left to return to our hotel, I caught up with Simon who told me he had really enjoyed my performance. 

After the excitement of my performance I had the next day off in London and we made the best of the good weather.  Julz and her best friend Becca spent the evening watching the musical ‘Wicked’ in the West End, and I spent it watching the final.  It was an exciting and nail-biting final, and I think that all the acts truly gave the best performances they could. 
Sunday came, and I had a session with Yvie, to look at my TV performances for the remainder of the week and also for the upcoming world tour.  We had a good session, and also went through my performance on BGT.

We then made our way back home as my next day’s promotion was to be in my own backyard.  I did a number of breakfast radio interviews in Neath and Swansea before making my way to Cardiff to do a signing session. 

After a few hours meeting people in Leckwith, it was time to head up the M4 back to London.  I had an early start the next day for GMTV.  It was great to find myself back on the sofas of breakfast television and daytime TV catching up with Ben Shephard, Eamon Holmes and his partner Ruth Langsford, plus the BBC Breakfast team, who all gave me their usual warm welcomes.  I truly felt privileged to be doing interviews with some of the friendliest people on TV. 

It was soon time to make my next move, this time to Sweden where I would perform on a programme celebrating their national day in Stockholm.  It was held in a park on one of the islands of Stockholm, and was incredibly pretty.  After another signing, it was time to make my way to the airport to meet my next journey, where Julz would join me on our trip to the Far East, starting in Japan.  More on that later, in the meantime, thank you all for your continued love and support.

Paul x

After our rather wet day off, the weather improved the next day and it was time to start work in earnest on promoting Passione.  My first TV show was The View, which is similar to a UK chat show called Loose Women.  I enjoyed my performance of Mamma and they did an incredible job with the set and lighting, during the song there was a screen in front where my live image was projected on the screen in front.  It was quite strange seeing myself back to front live!

The next day, I recorded an extensive interview for PBS, a very influential channel in the US that brings arts and music to a large section of the public.  After a number of other interviews, including a satellite tour of the US, it was time to head out for dinner, and we headed down to the downtown area of Manhatten for nice meal in Greenwich. We didn’t have a late night as I was to be up for the Today show the next morning.

We were up before 6 to get to the studio in time for a soundcheck.  There I met Matt and Meredith Viera again.  The last time I had seen Matt his arm was in a sling, so it was good to see he was on the road to recovery as his arm was now out of plaster.  It was another enjoyable performance of Mamma and not long after a few interviews, it was time to head to the airport to head back to Europe and my first performance in Germany for the new album.

We arrived in London en route to Frankfurt where we would take the 3 hour drive to a very pretty German town called Gotha.  It was a historic town with a beautiful castle right opposite where we were staying in beautiful grounds with its own ‘English Garden’.  The weather was beautiful, and so Julz and I took a walk around the gardens. 

After our recovery day, it was time to head to the studio for rehearsals.  It was great to be involved with the Carmen Nebel show again, the last time I did it was right before the arena tour of Germany last year in Dortmund.  This time it was in Erfurt, a small town in Central Germany.  One of the performances was with a boy called Dennis and we performed Mamma together, and I gave my first TV performance of the beautiful aria from Franz Lehar’s operetta Das Land des Lachelns (The Land of Smiles).  I really enjoyed my performance and the audience gave me a huge reaction, which seemed to go on forever!

After the performance we made our way to the town of Mainz, where I was to perform on the opening show of the series for a TV show called Fernsehegarten (meaning TV garden).  Here I gave a performance of Mamma in the outdoors in beautiful weather.  There were lots of people enjoying the sunshine and I met quite a lot of them on my way back to the dressing room.  We then made our way to Oberhausen for what was to be a suprise performance…But more of that in a few days!

Paul x

We started in Montreal, and had the day to explore the city. We strolled for some time in the centre of the city and grabbed some lunch in a cafe.

I had some radio interviews, some of which I performed on and it was fantastic to speak to many of the same presenters I had seen before.

The next day we drove to Ottawa where I would perform in a tv show and also do a live performance in a mall that I often visited on my first visits to Ottawa. when we arrived, it was a beautiful spring day’ and we had dinner in a nice restaurant in the open air.

I enjoyed my performance, and it was great to meet everyone, including some that I had met after my show in Ottawa last year.

After the fine weather of Ottawa, it was time to head to Toronto. Toronto is one of our favourite places, as although it is big, it is very friendly. We stayed in the hotel where the Queen stays in when she is in Toronto, and I did many of my interviews in the Queen’s suite.

We made a point of returning to our favourite steakhouse, Barberien’s where the food and the service was as good as ever. I had an unscheduled trip to Montreal to do an interview on a show called Toute le Monde en Parle (All the world in speech). The show was great fun, and I was particularly impressed with how quick the translator was!

We made our way back that evening to Toronto’ where I would be performing at First Canadian Place. I was amazed by how many people turned up! About 5000 people were there to watch me, which is just incredible! It is always fantastic to meet the people that give me the very special opportunity that I have.

Before we were to return to New York, I did a signing at a large supermarket where apparently they rarely do signings. It was then time to catch our flight to New York, where we arrived in the evening to be greeted by blue skies.

Thankyou again Canada for your support and friendliness. I’m looking forward to returning in June where I start my North America tour in Vancouver.

Paul x

We connected at San Fransisco on our way to New York where we would finish the journey to Philadelphia by road. We had a short layover in San Fransisco which reminded me of the trip I made there last September. It is definitely a place I would like Julz to see, so we’ll have to return to see it!

We eventually arrived in New York pretty late and we had a three hour drive ahead of us. We arrived in the early hours, and went straight to bed after a full day travelling.

We had the next day off to recover from the journey’ so we took the opportunity after a long lie-in to have a wander around Philadelphia. It was a fine day, and we walked down to the town hall, passing the liberty bell on the way.

Paul outside Independence Hall, Philadelphia

Philadelphia is of course a very important part of US history, and has a link to my former home town of Bristol. The Penn family originated in Bristol and in the Church where I sang with my church choir there is a plaque to William Penn and his father.

Julz spent some time trying to find other books in the Twilight series. She has read two of them already since we left London, and so we popped into a bookstore to find them. Excitedly, Julz bought the remaining titles and we made our way back to the hotel. That evening we went with Jake for dinner and grabbed a ‘Philly’ cheese steak. We then headed back to the hotel.

We were in Philly for a short session on QVC to perform a few tracks. We headed out to the centre in Westchester and after a briefing a rehearsal, it was time to perform.
To my amazement, QVC’s stock sold out within 7 minutes! I enjoyed my time performing, and it was then time to head to New York in readiness for my performance on CBS’ Early Show. This time we went by train. It was a ninety minute journey on the train, my first ever train ride in America.

When we arrived, we headed straight to aol where I recorded three songs, La Prima Volta, Memory and Mamma, plus an interview. After that it was an early night as we would be up at five the next morning.

Five AM came very soon, and it was time to head to the studios very close to Central Park and I performed La Prima Volta and Memory, before heading to Montreal. We left for the airport on a day with record temperatures. So back to Canada we go!

The day after the main day of interviews we had a rehearsal for next weeks final of Australia’s Got Talent and had the rest of the day free.  I had always fancied taking a trip on the building called The Edge.  It is a 1000 foot high building with a compartment that comes out with clear glass underneath.  Julz took some convincing to go on this as she tends to be quite scared of heights.  She did pluck up the courage and was brave enough to take the plunge. 

Paul on the viewing deck of The Edge, 1000 feet above the ground

There was quite a view from the top although it was quite a dull day but you could see that on a clear day see for miles!  We got on to the ride itself, and although Julz was still a little unsure, she did get on, and although she was still unsure about stepping on to the clear glass, she did get more comfortable with it.  As the compartment pushed itself back in, Julz remarked that she was disappointed that it wasn’t more scary!  I have to admit that this mystified me! 

The next day we were to head to Sydney, but not before I was to perform at a showcase at a mall on the outskirts of Melbourne.  I always enjoy performing in situations like this, because it brings music to the people where they are.  For me, some of what I was doing was the very first time that I had performed some of the tracks before a public audience, so that gave an extra edge to the performance.  I really enjoyed the performance, and there were quite a few people there.

Events like these also give me the opportunity to meet the people who make it possible to do what I love doing and to thank them personally.  This is really important to me, as I owe my future to those that buy my records and concert tickets.
 
After signing everyone’s CDs, it was time to get to the airport to get the next flight to Sydney.  Sydney is a truly cosmopolitan city, and one I always enjoy strolling around.  The last time I was here, I climbed the bridge.  I would have loved to have done it again, but the schedule was pretty packed, so I look forward to coming back early next year when I will try it again, possibly in evening light!

I did manage to get one or two walks out and about, around the harbour with its iconic sights of the harbour bridge and the Opera House.  The Wednesday (22nd) was to be a very day for me.  I had two songs to perform on Sunrise (Memory, and a song which has been discussed on nearly every radio interview this week:  Whiter Shade of Pale), and then a completely new experience for me:  I was to co-host a daytime show called The Morning Show.  This was quite nerve-wracking at first, and I managed to start reading some of my co-hosts’ lines on the auto-cue. I think I settled into it reasonably well after a while, and quite enjoyed it.  I got through to the end of the show and it was time to head back to Melbourne to perform on the final of Australia’s Got Talent. 

The set was very close to the design of the Britain’s Got Talent set, so it felt a bit like it did on the first time I had reached the semi finals on June 14th 2007.  I enjoyed my performance and that of the finalists.  I would like to offer my congratulations to Mark Vincent on his incredible performance and wish him and all of his fellow finalists all the best for their futures.  I think they all have bright futures ahead of them.
After clearing from the studios in Melbourne, it was time to take the next leg of our journey to Philadelphia.  Quite an extensive journey this was to be, and it was to complete the fith time I have been around the world!

Thank you to everyone in Australia for all your support.  It was great to be back, I look forward to returning very soon!

Paul x

All too soon my alarm rang out, and it was time to get into the car to make my way to Heathrow again. It was a pleasant flight to Chicago, and when we arrived the weather was pretty chilly, but very sunny. I had the rest of the day to ensure that I knew my words ready for the rehearsal the following day, so I spent a bit of time copying down the words to Memory until I was assured of them being firmly in my memory.

This is the second time that I have recorded a show for Oprah, so I very fortunate to get this opportunity and i am grateful to the whole production crew at Harpo Productions for giving me such a warm reception. After the rehearsal, I had most of the remainder of the day to myself to wander round this very clean and hospitable city. Jake and I also took a trip up the Hancock Tower which gave us a wonderful view of the city and the Great Lake below us. I had just heard at this point that I was to do a North American Tour that would include Chicago, and I am looking forward to returning.

The day of the taping was quite hectic as Jake and I were to be flying back to London the same afternoon as I had to be back in Port Talbot for the hastily rearranged documentary filming. It all seemed to go very well, and it was a great privilege meeting Oprah again. I look forward to the show going out later in the year.



Paul in Chicago on the Hancock Tower

We made our flight in good time, and arrived in London fairly early the next day.  We drove back down the motorway to get to the house so we would be ready for when the first of the TV crews were to come to Port Talbot.  We spent the next two days with one German crew and a UK crew, so our last two days before leaving for New Zealand were to be very busy. 

We left for Heathrow around Noon on the Friday, so that we would arrive in good time for our epic flight that would involve us flying first to Bangkok, then Sydney and then on to Wellington. 
It was quite a shock to the system to find ourselves eventually in Wellington, and try and keep ourselves awake until a normal local bedtime to avoid getting bad jetlag.  I attempted this by taking a few strolls along the harbour, with it’s beautiful views out to sea, and the distant mountains. 

We woke the next day and took a stroll along the waterside, and grabbed a drink outdoors where the wind suddenly picked up smashing quite a few glasses on tables around us.  I was in Wellington to perform on the semi final of Dancing With the Stars.  I was to perform La Prima Volta for the first time.  It is always quite nerve-wracking to perform a track for the first time, and an added dimension was that I would have a live band and orchestra.  It was expertly led by the conductor and pianist, and I enjoyed my performance, although it was very nerve-wracking! 

We spent the next few days in Wellington, doing radio interviews and press interviews, and then made our way to Auckland where I would do a performance in front of 250 invited guests, some of them prize-winners.  I had a very pleasant tea with a number of radio prize winners, and enjoyed listening to their questions and stories.

All too soon, our time in New Zealand was coming to a close, and we had to move on to Australia.  On our way to the airport, I popped in to see patients in the Mercy Hospice in Auckland.  A number of the patients had been invited to the performance that I had done earlier in the week, but were unable to because they were too unwell.  I spent a bit of time at the Hospice chatting with people of all ages with different types and stages of cancer.  They never failed to be cheerful and great to talk with. 

After leaving the Hospice it was time to take the flight to Melbourne for the next step in our journey around the world.  We were feeling happy and sad at the same time.  Happy that we were going to another of our favourite countries, but sad that we were leaving another.  Thank you, New Zealand for your usual very warm welcome, we look forward to returning soon!

Paul in New Zealand at Wellington Harbour

We were here for the purpose of making music videos, and I was prepared for a long day.  We started shooting around 11am and eventually finished shooting sometime around midnight.  We filmed the videos in Kiev’s magnificent Opera House, and I really enjoyed singing on such a wonderful stage in a beautiful building.

From Kiev, we made our way back to Germany to do some press interviews ready for the release of the album in May.  We started off in the beautiful city of Munich where the weather had returned to winter!  From Munich we took the first of two train journeys.  This time up to the Radio Regenbogen Awards in Karlsruhe.  Here, I was awarded the award for Best classical artist of 2008.  It was a fun evening and I got to watch some of my favourite 80’s acts perform.  During the finale, I got to speak to Mark King and the other members of Level 42. I had a great evening, which was followed by a very early start.

After a very short night, Jake and I left for Vienna for more advance interviews.  It was a fine Spring day when we arrived, and after a brief rest, Yvie, my vocal coach arrived in Vienna to work with me for a few hours.  It’s always great to catch up with Yvie, who has a been a great friend and vocal mentor since I was on Britain’s Got Talent., which was where we started to work together. 
From Vienna, we took our second trip by train.  We decided that as the weather was forecast to be good through the Alps, that as we had the day free, that we would take the train to Zurich.  We had last done this journey in September, in the other direction.  The weather then was wet and miserable, but this time to sun was blazing in the sky lighting up the snow covered mountains.  It really brought it home how wonderful nature can be. 

After another day spent doing interviews and photos for the release of Passione here, it was time to head off home to prepare for the next trip. Travelling across Europe, much of it by train has been a real voyage of discovery, and I am thrilled and privileged to be able to do it.

As I write this, I am downunder, as my album Passione has been released here in the last few days.  I missed the launch of this year’s Britain’s Got Talent as I was on a very long journey (more of that another day!)when the first episode went out.  I was away for last year’s series as well so try and catch up with it online when I can.  The first show of this series looks to be very interesting.  I was particularly impressed by a few acts, which reminded me very much of the year I was involved in the show.  First of all, Susan Boyle, who performed one of my favourite Les Miserables songs incredibly in spite of what people may have been expecting, she went out and gave it her all and remained true to herself.  Although not born with dancing feet, I was really impressed with Flawless who were pretty close to their name and incredibly professional; I also thought that the Greek father and son were incredibly good fun, and entertaining.  All three of these acts demonstrated the magic of Britain’s Got Talent.  Great variety, Great fun, and expect the unexpected!  I would like to wish all contestants all the best for this year’s show, and I hope that I will get to meet you later in the year.

We were here for me to present Passione to whole worldwide record company through the medium of a wine tasting.  During my time at a supermarket, I was a wine advisor and studied for a wine tasting qualification.  So in a lovely restaurant very close to the Cathedral on the hill above the city I took the assembled people through tracks of the album and also took them for Hungarian wine.  The only wines I had previously heard of from Hungary were Bulls Blood and Tokaij Aszu.  I had selected both of these and they were both exceptional.  It was an enjoyable evening and it was great to catch up with people who had worked hard to help with the success of One Chance, some of whom I had worked directly with when I was in their markets. 

We had a late afternoon flight back to London, so Jake and I took a boat trip on the Danube and spent an hour on an island before returning to make our way to the airport.  Budapest is indeed a lovely city with plenty of history and friendly people.  Here’s hoping I get to return soon!

Speak to you again soon!

Paul x

We eventually arrived in Munich with several inches of snow on the ground, and I did a few radio interviews on our way to the hotel.  We went out in the evening to one of my favourite places in Munich:  Rathauskeller.  A few of us drank a beer by the stein (called ein Maβ in german)me sticking to just the one, as I am a very slow drinker! 

After a snowy day in Munich with snow and ice everywhere, and trams and buses running as normal, we took to the plane once more to Hamburg.  I had a few interviews to do here, Newspaper and a radio interview, and although it was still a little chilly, there was less snow here.  After the radio interview, we made our way to the train station to catch our train to Berlin. 

We arrived in Berlin to find even more snow!  We were staying very close to Potsdamer Platz which gave me plenty of opportunities to take my usual strolls around the city, in the Tiergarten and around the streets close to the Brandenburg gate.  I had an early start for a breakfast tv show called Fruhstuck Fernsehen (literally meaning Breakfast TV).  I was then taken to many different places including Viva which is a music channel aimed at teenagers.  After a brief interview, it was time to head for one of the radio station and then back to the hotel where I had left Julz having a pamper day.  She certainly enjoyed it! 

Next came the day of the awards itself.  I was getting more and more nervous, wondering whether I would win, but feeling overawed just by being nominated at all.  After all here I was at a rock and pop awards ceremony nominated for two rock and pop awards!  On the way, we went to a reception by the side of the river for a meet and greet with Sony Music Germany, and to my amazement I was awarded with a plaque for achieving sales of over a million in Germany.  After photos and meeting lots of people there, it was time to head to the O2 arena to get there in time to prepare.  While I went to have my hair and make-up done in preparation for the red carpet, Julz got ready and put her dress on.  I can’t tell you how stunning she looked!  How lucky am I?  I have a fantastic career doing what I love doing, and I am married to the most beautiful person in the world!  Julz really looked a Million Dollars (although the dress itself actually cost £100 from Debenhams!) and I was proud to have her on my arm. 

I have done a few red carpets (although this one was actually purple!)but this one was manic!  Lots of people calling me back and I tried to get to as many people as I could.  After a long time out in the cold, we went in and took our place in the dressing room waiting for our call time to go into the arena.  I had to get warmed up in good time as I was performing right after my nomination, and I was trying very hard not to think about the award at all.  We sat in our places in the white sofas, and then my category came up:  I was shaking!  Suddenly, they called out my name, and it felt just like that day in June 2007 all over again.  I never thought I would have quite the same feeling of being overwhelmed again, but I was almost lost for words, and blurted out some German as best as I could, basically saying that I didn’t know what to say. 

The performance that followed it was one of the most emotional moments of my life!  I practically ran all the way to the stage so I would have as much time as possible to collect myself to perform the aria that changed my life.  It was a wonderful night and I loved every minute, and I was fighting hard to stop myself breaking down in tears of joy while performing, it was THAT emotional!  After the show had finished and we had had a toast of celebration, we retreated to the aftershow party for which Julz had changed into another stunning dress and her favourite purple shoes.  The party was quite a busy affair, and after grabbing a bite to eat and drinking a little champagne, I gave a number of short interviews. 

I would like to thank everyone in Germany again for making me feel so welcome, and for giving me so much support.  Now how do I fit that award into my luggage?!

It’s all getting really exciting now as I have returned to Stockholm and Prague to finish the last few tracks on the album.  My first day in Stockholm, I recorded one of my favorite arias of all time, E lucevan le Stelle from Puccini’s Tosca.  It is one of those arias that you have to give everything.  I have to admit to feeling drained at the end of recording that one, but I loved every minute!  It was great to be back in Stockholm again and walking around one evening, I noticed a stunning sunset forming over the Royal Palace not far away from where I was staying.  I recorded some great tracks over the week, I tried to imagine that I was in a theatre performing them on stage. 

I returned briefly to London briefly to do a live webchat for Amazon. It was great to chat to so many people, you all asked fantastic questions, there were so many, and I’m sorry if I didn’t get to yours. 

I have been alternating between Stockholm and Prague while recording this album, and because part of the recording fell on Valentine’s Day I thought that it would be good to have Julz with me too.  We had a lovely meal in an Italian restaurant in Prague where we had a double date with Yvie, my vocal coach and her husband and children who had come to join her for Valentine’s Day. 

We also had a long walk around the city as Julz had not been there yet. We took a walk to the Castle and the Cathedral, we also walked to Wenceslas Square which is less of a square than a long boulevard.  There were also lots of lovely shops with beautiful crystal glasses and chandeliers.  Prague is a beautiful city and we fell in love with it’s beautiful churches and squares.  Here I recorded a few tracks with the
orchestra.  The orchestra were in great form as usual, and we had another free day in Prague before flying to Germany to do some interviews, and for the small matter of the Echo awards, the German equivalent of the Grammys or Brit Awards.

Speak again soon!

Paul

x

It was great to return to this beautiful city. I was excited when it was decided that the photos for the next album would be taken in Venice. I got there a day ahead so that I could reacquaint myself with the city. I spent quite a bit of time wandering around the maze of streets past the Rialto Bridge and Piazza San Marco, and enjoyed a nice cappuccino and watched the sun go down over San Giorgio Maggiore Island with a beautiful sky following it.

There was a very early start the next day. I tend to be quite mischievous when I have an early start, so pretended that I had only just woken by sending a text to my favourite member of my management team when I was almost finished having my hair and make-up done. Once my grooming was done, it was time to hit the streets of Venice. The weather was stunning, and although being Northern Italy in January meant it was pretty cold outside, the sun made me feel quite warm.

Venice is a beautiful place to do a photo shoot, and we went to some stunning venues, often by boat. We did one shoot in a stunning villa right on the Grand Canal. At this point, in the sunshine, it was difficult to believe that it was midwinter because the sky was clear, and the sun felt very warm on my skin. I have always loved Italian food, and we went to a restaurant called Osteria Del Assassini (literally meaning The Assassin’s Pub). I always try to use my Italian as much as possible and so asked one of the waiters in Italian why it was called The Assassin’s Pub. It turned out that the area was a very rough area in the 18th Century where several murders took place.

We went over to the beautiful island of San Giorgio Maggiore and took some more shots over there where it was a slightly rocky boat trip over, but the sun was still out so once we arrived on the island away from the sea breezes it felt warm again.

The beautiful light of evening was beckoning and we continued shooting right into the darkness. With the disappearance of the sun, however, it started to feel like winter! The lights of the Canal were stunning, though and I hope that I didn’t LOOK cold in the photos! I enjoyed the day, though saw some wonderful places ate some lovely food and it was very humbling that I saw many people stopping me through the day wishing me well who came from many different places like Argentina and Brazil. I’d love to have the opportunity to visit….who knows?

Soon, I’ll be returning to the studios of Prague and Stockholm to finish the album, I’m really loving making this album and thanks to all of you for supporting me every step of the way.

It’s great to be working with another fantastic orchestra, and they have a lovely rich sound to them.  It’s good to get my teeth into a new sets of songs and arias, and I hope that you will all enjoy listening to them when the album is released in the Spring. 

Keep your eyes peeled for a new look website very soon!

Touring Scandinavia was an honour and a pleasure as I saw more of these wonderful countries, and what I thought was to be the end of the tour I spent the last few days in Amsterdam and two nights performing at the very famous Heineken Music Hall. 
Little did I know what would happen in the Autumn.  Thanks partly to a very well edited advert in Germany, I spent a lot of time in various cities in Germany performing at some of the biggest football games in Europe.  I found my tour extending in the Autumn, with a show in Manila, The Philipines and three shows in Taiwan. 

To my utter amazement what followed this was an arena tour of Germany, Austria and Switzerland.  At the start of the year I could scarcely believe that I was touring at all, yet here I was touring Germany in venues of over 10,000 people seated.  It all started in the beautiful city of Hamburg, where I was blown away by the reaction of 10,000 people at the Colorline Arena.  This feeling was carried throughout the whole of this part of the tour.  How big this was really hit me in Cologne where I walked out onto the stage in front of nearly 12,000 people.  The seats seemed to go on forever!  I’ve always enjoyed walking around cities that I am in, and Germany was no different.  I truly enjoyed myself meandering around the streets of Cologne with its stunning Gothic Cathedral, Stuttgart with a stunning townhall square which was a great place to sit and drink coffee, Nurnberg (Nuremberg) with its stunning old Bavarian buildings, and rather steep walk up to the castle, and walking around its famous markets.  We had lots of long, fun journeys on the tour bus, especially on the road from Nurnberg to Vienna and then from Vienna to Zurich.  I clearly recall getting out of my bunk bleary eyed as we arrived in Zurich the morning after the second Vienna show, as I had finally reached the end of the road for the tour this year. 

I wasn’t quite finished for the year, though.  We had a stop on the way back home in Dusseldorf for me to perform at the ErfolgsKongress.  There I had the great honour of hearing former President Bill Clinton speak, and got to meet him after he had given his speech.  It was a great honour to meet someone who I had only seen on TV before, and was a fitting end to my touring for the year.  What had started as a 55 date tour had turned into a year with over 100 full concert appearances, and I was staggered when I was told how many people had watched me perform this year:  over a quater of a million people had paid to see me perform this year.

I’d like to thank each and every one of you for all your support and for all your messages of support.  I’d also like to thank everyone that came to my live shows, it was great meeting you and I hope to meet you again when I start back on the road later on this year in the Autumn. 

Finally I would like to thank my guest artists this year who have performed brilliantly and added sparkle to the show:  Natasha Marsh in the UK, Scandinavia and Holland, Sarah, Joy and Kelly, otherwise known as The Three Graces in North America, Elizabeth Marvelly in New Zealand, Australia and Germany, Illumina in Japan, Kim in South Korea, Linda Lampenius Brava in the outdoor shows in Sweden, and also Rachelle Gerodias in Manila and Taiwan.  Thank you all for your friendliness and ability, it was an honour performing with you.

There is also the small detail of a new album to record, but more about that very soon!  Thank you all again for your support and friendship Julz and I would like to wish you all well for 2009.

Paul x