Samantha Fox
English singer and former glamour model
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- On What She Would Do If She Didn't Make It With a Singing Career: I always had a back-up plan. My Dad was fantastic like that. I remember my Dad saying at school. "Take typing Sam, 'cause you never know. You can fall back on being a secretary if nothing else works." I remember taking typing, which I hated. I did look at other careers, although when I was in the sixth form at school, we had to go a careers teacher and tell them what we wanted to do for a living. I said I wanted to be famous. I said I wanted to be a singer, an actress. I wanted to be a star. They're looking at me like I'm very modest. "You're very modest, Samantha. You've got to pick something." Then I said "OK. I want to be a policeman. Really, I want to be a private detective. I want to by-pass that a bit and be a plain clothes police." (laughs) They just laughed at me. So, I had to write to the police force 'cause I had to show that I was really looking for a proper job. So, I wrote to Hendon Police Force and they wrote back to me saying I was too short. I was quite pleased, actually. (laughs) So, remember, I was still in school when I became famous. It was very odd to go straight into show business.
- On Knowing She Would Be a Star Someday: Oh, yes as a kid, definitely. I would disappear into me bedroom, getting dressed up, miming along to a song, coming down showing me Mom and Dad me new outfit, or me new dressing up look, singing 'em a song. It was like an audience. (laughs)
- On a porn star with the same name 'Samantha Fox': It's not something I Google very often. (laughs) She's probably real old by now. I remember in the '80s when I started, she was about 40 then. So, she's probably about 60 now. What can I say? She was lucky she was born before. She picked the name before I was born. But, it is my real name. It's not her real name. She picked it before I was born and she registered it. So, there's a couple of us out there. (laughs)
- On her reluctance to sing the song "Touch Me" initially: Well, I said to them, with something like "Touch Me", we don't have to go over the top. The song says it all. At the time, I guess I knew what kind of rubbish they were looking for 'cause I auditioned to sing the song "Touch Me". But they were looking for a British Madonna. At the time, Madonna had a controversial hit with "Like A Virgin". They wanted to find to same. They were looking for a pretty girl with a cheeky song and I obviously fitted that role I guess at that time. I'd been modeling for four years prior to "Touch Me" where I posed topless. I'd done Playboy. I didn't really feel we had to really harbor in about that. If anything, it kind of hindered my career in England because I was so successful as a model up until "Touch Me", that I think a lot of people thought it was a joke, I wasn't serious.
- On Her Loyal, Beloved Fans: They corresponded. Before I released "Touch Me", I had a modeling contract with The Sun newspaper for four years. At that time I had like 10,000 people in my fan club, from just the modeling pictures. When it became international, it just grew huge. I'm very hands-on with the fan club. It's very personal. And the fans really seemed to like that hands-on approach. I keep in touch with 'em. My fans are very, very loyal. They know without them, I wouldn't be where I am today. If you look at my website, it's very personal. When it's my birthday and there's a few friends in my house, I put pictures on. I talk about my holidays. I talk about my feelings, my thoughts, my fears. Also, when I do gigs, if they're in the fan club, they know they're gonna get to meet me. They meet me backstage afterwards. Some of those fans I get to meet have been my fans since 1983 and suddenly we're meeting. That makes their day. That makes their year. So, it's the least I can do. I think that's why. I've kept my hands on with my fans and basically let them all know without them, I wouldn't be here today.
- On Singing in Cold Weather: You have to make sure you do a good warm-up. Suddenly you go out in the cold, it hits your chest more than your voice. When you got really cold conditions, you can't get your breath. I have to take it a little bit slower and do a really good warm-up. It was certainly difficult the first time I performed outside in minus 10. That was mad. (laughs) I like doing mad things. It's a little bit different.
- On God's Love: 'I think we've come a long way since the Bible was written. No, Alpha never made me feel bad about my sexuality, because I believe in love: at the end of the day, I think all God wants for us is to be happy and love each other. But Alpha was good because it helped me find myself a bit. It has taken me a while.'
- On dad Peter Fox: My dad was a very stubborn man. He wouldn't ever wave the olive branch. When I did see him again, he hadn't changed, which was kind of good; it put my mind at rest. I kept thinking, during those six years when we didn't speak, that maybe he was dying to speak to me, or maybe he wanted to say sorry. When I went to see him again, he told me he was writing a book about how he made me, and someone was buying the film rights. I just sat there, thinking, "He wants to see me because he wants a happy ending for his book". That was the only reason he wanted to see me.'
- On her gay male fanbase: 'I think that's why I've got such a big gay market. Gay guys love women who are tough, who are survivors. They always call me a diva. And I am a survivor; I've pulled through everything and I've not become bitter about it.' It's no small achievement, really, when you consider how many people have betrayed her.
- On being labeled: 'I wouldn't say I'm bi because I'm in a gay relationship and I love her and I want to be with her forever. So to say I'm bisexual... it's too shallow. Maybe when I was younger I thought I was bisexual, but then I think I was just confused.'
- I was quite confused, really,' she says cheerily, lighting another Lambert & Butler in a flash of silver rings and long, scarlet nails. 'Imagine being a sex symbol and you have these feelings! I kept thinking I was always going to meet the right man, but I never did. Kept waiting for this knight in shining armour. "When's he coming? He's taking a long time, isn't he?