Katherine Jenkins Fern Britton Meets...

Just listen to the sounds coming out of these rehearsal rooms. Lucky

students, training hard to be professional, classical singers and

Soprano Cathy is training to be a professional singer. This is

preparation for opera school auditions. It is in two weeks.

me, you sound amazing. These young people are the most

recent in a long line of Royal Academy students with plenty of

talent and big dreams. In 1997, a shy young girl from South Wales

came here, to the Royal Academy, with one great ambition. She wanted

to be a successful classical singer. And it was only in a very few short

years that the ambition was Katherine Jenkins is now one of

Britain's most successful performance. She has had numerous

hit albums and musical wards. Although purists may not approve of

her extravagant stage shows, there is no denying she has brought a

whole new audience to classical and She's got a cracking voice. Her

persona is so strong and beautiful. I think she will be going for ever

and ever. When I first saw Catherine, she came walking into

the GMT studio and immediately I She walks her talk. What you see is

what you get. She touches the audience. They are cleverer than

you think at picking up what is true and sincere. But her time in

the spotlight has not been without its down sides. I wasn't sure if

this was going to be a career- ending moment. People, at this

point, still thought that I was very saintly. She might not be a

saint, but she has inherited the title held by Dame Vera Lynn. That

of forces sweetheart. I sometimes think of Catherine as a bit of a GI

Jane. She has made many trips to the front line to entertain British

troops. Afghanistan, she is like, when is the next plane I can get

out on? She has even appeared on Dr Who. The shy student from the Royal

I know that her first love was sacred music. I wonder if that was

born of her faith, and if she can still have bad faith in a life that

is so fast and furious. -- have I met up with Catherine at a London

hotel, not far from the Royal Academy. The first thing I wanted

to know was when she realised she had a singing voice. I don't know

if I really thought about it like that. I was wanting to sing because

it was something that really made me happy. That was the whole reason

for his in the beginning. It wasn't until I won choir girl of the year,

when I was 10 or 11, that was the first achievement I had been

singing. People started telling my mum that I should have lessons,

before that it was just enjoyment. When somebody comes to you and says,

you could train up and do lessons, do you think it is not going to be

so much fun? I was really excited about the prospect of learning to

sing. I had been doing that in church. But this would have been on

my own, finding a singing teacher. Yeah, that was really exciting. I

remember having to ask my mum, for quite a long time, if I could have

them. She didn't let me have them straight away. Was money a

question? It must have been expensive. Yeah, and my parents

didn't have tons of money to play around with. I am so grateful that

they found whatever they could to put on the lessons. I think they

just wanted me to really want it. What was your earliest memory of

standing up and singing to an audience? I was four. I sang in a

school talent show, in the church hall next to the school. I remember

hearing about the show and running out of school and saying to my mum,

there is a show and I have to sing, you have to teach me a song. She

taught me a song called going down the garden to eat worms. It had all

the actions. She dressed me up in this Q2 dress. I remember it like

yesterday. She was first on, being the youngest. The headmaster stood

in front of her. She had little pigtails and a little dress. She

was dying to get going. She kept starting the song as he tried to

introduce her. He had to practically sit on her, it was

quite funny. But she did it very # Go down the garden to eat worms...

I was just amazed at her precociousness.

From that moment, do you think that was the moment that ambition was

born in you? I think that is the moment when I knew that I loved it.

I heard the applause and laughter. I thought, I quite like this. I

think that is the moment that the When most little girls were dancing

around their bedrooms, listening to pop music, the young Katherine

Jenkins was into sacred music. And they are still at the heart of her

Songs of Praise had been particularly poignant in her career.

I always made sure that we were there from the beginning, because

of her spirituality and because of her singing the sacred arias. I

think she has proved there is a definite market place for sacred

Why was it that church music, sacred music appealed to you?

feel it is a very pure kind of music. Singing in church always

sounds really good. I am really drawn to these good Welsh hymns.

That is probably why I keep going back to them. Singing in church,

you were a church-going family? from as young as I can remember we

would attend Sunday school, go to church. I joined the choir when I

was seven and my sister followed when she was about 6 and a half. I

feel like quite a lot of my time growing up was spent in church. I

was there in the choir for 10 years. But it was an amazing time. I had

great friends in the choir. That is why I learned to sing. Your

Christian faith is strong? Yes, I would say so. I think I have had

times when I have maybe lost it. But it is something that I think

you have really strongly within you. Even though I am not able now to

attend one particular church regularly, because of my travelling,

I still think I have that within meet. I try to go with my mum when

I get back home. Do you think your talent to seeing his God-given?

think it is a gift, I do. I think it is something that I have a

responsibility to look after. I know that I am lucky to have it. I

feel lucky that I am able to sing. Her beliefs and Christianity, that

underpinning of what is good in the world, it is really testament to

how she is, day to day. She is very honest. She is very truthful. She

is very courageous. Her faith is evident throughout her everyday

life. She walks her talk. What you see is what you get. Everybody asks

me, is she as nice as she seems? The answer is absolutely yes. What

you see is what you get. She grow up in the small market town of

Neath, South Wales. Her parents, Susan and Selwyn, gave Catherine

and her younger sister an idyllic childhood. It is the kind of place

where it feels everybody knows everybody. There was a real sense

of community. My family are very close-knit, quite big, and

socialised with each other a lot. My cousins felt almost like sisters.

You know, really good memories. Your mother and your father, there

was quite an age gap between them. It was a real love story? I think

it was about 23 years. My mum went back to work and my father took

early retirement. Then, that was quite a forward step from my dad,

coming from a different generation. He became the house husband and

spent most of the time with me and Laura. I feel, having had an older

father, he was just so worldly Wise is and calm, because he had been

there and done everything. I think he definitely passed that on to us.

His routine would be to get you up and off to school? Make packed

lunches, drive us to school. Take the neighbours. Whenever we got

home, we would ask him what had happened in Neighbours. We would

get home, we would watch it together and he would make tea

before mum came home. The first thing I think about when I think

about my dad is the laughter. Even down to my singing, not taking it

too seriously. Trying to make me laugh through it and make sure I

was enjoying it. My best memories of him are of him clowning around,

singing, just making everybody laugh. Selwyn and Susan had clearly

created a happy home for their daughters. But the good times were

not to last. At 15, on the eve of your GCSEs, he was... He had just

turned 70. He died. He had terrible and cancer. You didn't know he was

ill for quite a while, did you? think we knew that something was

wrong. But we didn't know what. I remember my mum coming to talk to

me and Laura. I remember thinking it would be a lot longer. If I am

remembering it right, I think it was only a couple of months. I was

in school, being pulled out of school by my aunt to say, your dad

has slipped into a coma and we need to go to the hospice. Somebody said

the very important thing, that although he was in a coma, he could

hear? I'm sorry. It's OK. But you have the opportunity to speak to

him? Yes, even at 15 you're not really prepared. Even though I had

two months with him, I still thought he was going to get better.

Which is crazy, but I still did think that. So I didn't say goodbye

when I should have done. But I am grateful that the nurse spoke to me

and said, you know, have a bit of time with him because he can hear

Selwyn never again -- regained consciousness and died on 7th May,

1995. It affected both of my daughters. They held it together

for me. But I think it also gave them determination to make him

proud and make me proud. And help me. Your grief at the time, when

you are only 15 and the next couple of days you have got to get on with

your GCSEs, your grief manifested itself in anger, really? It was the

long summer that you have after your GCSEs. You really have time to

think. I think that is when I did lose my faith in God. I was really

angry at God for allowing this to happen to my dad. I was having

crazy dreams, horrible nightmares about him being ill. I went to see

a counsellor and it is the best thing I could have done. I think

you need to talk to somebody that is not related to it. You cannot

talk to your mum. I couldn't talk to my sister because we were all

having to be strong for each other. The grief counsellor told you to

write off part paid letter? Yes. You wrote a very long letter to him.

I did. Has anybody ever seen it? and nobody will. But you still have

After the tragedy of losing her father, Katherine found some

comfort in the belief that he was still guiding her. Soon after he

died, a remarkable thing happened. I know he's here, I feel that quite

often, and I felt it the first time was actually doing my GCSEs. My

least favourite subject would-be maths, and it was on the eve of my

exam. I was prepared, and I had a dream where my dad was telling me

to look under my bed for a book. I woke up and thought there will not

be a book I have not revised, and I found this book with one page in it,

it was an algebra equation. I read that, and went back to sleep, and

it turned up on the last page of my exam. It was that equation. I

couldn't believe it. I felt so strongly that my dad had helped me

in that exam, because he had always helped me with my maths homework,

and he helped me again. I ended up getting an A grade, which was a

complete fluke, and I still talk to him when I go on stage. Just when

the orchestra is playing the overture, I know I am going on, and

I say "help me, Dad, to sing well". It's nice that she always thinks he

is there with her, and I am sure he is. some people might think I am

crazy but I do believe he is watching over the three of us.

Katherine was very young when she lost her father. There is no good

time to lose a parent, my dad has been gone for about 20 years and I

think about him every day. He will have been a massive influence on

her, and everyone who achieves success without our parents being

there to witness, there will always be a melancholy about that, there

will always be a regret, there will always be I wonder what he would

have thought of that. The anger that Katherine felt towards God for

allowing her father to die is perhaps understandable. I wondered

how long it took for her to regain her faith. I would say it took

quite a few years. I think probably more into my sort-of 23, 24,

something like that, before it really... I still had my faith, but

there were points where I've really questioned it and I think now it is

something as I get older, it grows more and more, it becomes more

important. I see that in my mum and I see it is important to her as

well. I have a godson and it is important to pass that on. I feel

it is something that will only grow from this point on. Has it taken

away your fear of death? Do you have any fear of dying? And no, I

don't. Life is so short, and I think as long as you have made it

everything you can, that is the one thing I learnt from losing my

father so young. You have to treasure every day, and take every

opportunity. I really feel like I have done that so I am not scared

about that at all. Throughout her teens, Katherine retained her love

of singing. She progressed through the church choir, and won a number

of competitions. Her voice was getting her noticed. I think it has

got a velvety quality, and a sort of kind quality, and I think she

has that in spades. It is like a chocolate, and soothing. During one

Christmas carol concert when she was 18, Katherine discovered her

voice also had explosive potential. Is it true that you shattered

chandelier? Was it the top be? I was singing in Swansea and I was

the soloist with my college choir, and when I hit the high note there

was this bang, but it sounded like a gunshot. The audience docked, and

we were all startled and there were pieces of glass coming down from

the ceiling. I realised then, oh, OK! You think that is only things

that happen in cartoons. I don't think I could make that happen

again, but I would love to do it as a party trick. Katherine decided

she wanted to make music her career. In 1997, she won a scholarship to

the Royal Academy of music. It was a dream come true, but a scary

prospect none the less. She was in an outstanding year, she was the

youngest in her year. London itself is just intimidating, but also it

is a famous institution, an old institution, and that can be

daunting. It was a huge thing for me coming

from somewhere like Neath. I didn't know any other singers like myself.

I was petrified I would be in a class of geeks! I thought they

would be people not like me, I thought they would be very posh

people and in a certain way and I was not going to fit in. Then I

came to the academy, and they were all people who had a voice but they

were also young and wanted to do fun things. I thought this was

amazing, I couldn't believe how we gelled so quickly. I taught her

this technique of singing, how to breed, have to place your voice,

but also to prepare her for the profession. The business head, a

real application, motivation, she had all of these things from an

early start. It is not like going to university. I look at my friends

who went into the student union thing, and you don't have that at

the Royal Academy. It is much more intense. Every day you are all

begins your peers and it is a very intense place but there is fun as

well. It was that quest for fun that would land Katherine in

trouble a decade later. In 2008, she admitted in an interview that

as a student she had experimented with drugs. Being an angel was

never her trademark, and the general public, let's be honest,

they liked the fact people can come clean and move on. I am not going

to dwell on this but you fell into the trap of drugs and partying and

you have spoken about this before, but with a bit more distance and

hindsight, if you could say to somebody else who was facing that

temptation, what would you say? Funny, I wish I had not done it. I

look back and it is something I feel has been exaggerated in that

it wasn't a drugs problem. It was a teenage thing of experimenting in

things and rebelling, doing things you shouldn't do, but I realised

pretty quickly that wasn't for me and I am glad I had that strength

to see that, but I am not... I don't regret talking about it. I

regret doing it, but not talking about it, because I feel like, if

one person listens to that and thinks actually, she tried it and

it didn't work, then I hope that puts somebody else off.

instance, your godson, if he was 17 and just going to university and he

said I know that you did these things so why shouldn't I? I would

just be really honest and I would be there to talk about it with him.

I have unfortunately got the experience to talk about it with

him but I would hope for the use that in a positive way. I don't

think... If somebody is going to do things, they are going to do it,

but I hope I could be there to be the person who could understand in

some way. Also, you're doing it at a time when you don't realise how

famous he will be. When somebody says they have a story they will

sell to the papers, you have to make a decision. Do I come clean

and say this before There is a massive story or let it happen and

keep quiet? It was the best thing to talk about it. I had had a chat

with Piers Morgan about it and I felt uncomfortable I had not been

completely honest with him. I did an interview with him for GQ, and I

felt when he asked me the question about drugs, I didn't really know

how to respond because I was conscious about the fact that in

some ways I am a role model to young people and if I am saying yes,

and my some are saying that is fine to go ahead and do that, and if I

said No I was not telling the truth. It was something that really

bothered me, and the nights after that I had conversations with my

friends - what do I do about this, shall I put it right? And I am glad

I did. Katherine decided to contact Piers Morgan and set the record

straight. She admitted she had lied. I remember when we were at the

Festival of Remembrance with Katherine when the story came out.

I remember being upset about it, all of us being upset because we

are protective of her, and I think she did the right thing. I wasn't

sure if this was going to be a career ending moment because people

still thought I was very sent me, even though I had never said that

about myself. -- saintly. In fact, the response was very humbling

because it shows how much sense people have got. People said we

have all done so me things, just unfortunately for you you are

famous and everyone will know about it. I really appreciated that.

mum, again, it is very important, when you have got to tell her

something you know will horrify her. How did you react? She knew because

we had talked about it at the time, just after the time. I have always

been quite open with my mum, I talked about it then. Of course she

wasn't happy but she did know. actually, as a parent, you are

dismayed but I had been reassured it was only an experiment, it

hadn't gone any further. I am sure everybody, many people, experiment.

I was proud that she had admitted it, and I am still proud of her.

What does the whole drugs situation tell you? It tells you she is human,

do we think any worse of her for it? I certainly don't.

Katherine Jenkins who graduated from the Royal Academy of Music was

a lot more confident and worldly wise than the girl who had first

arrived four years before. She decided to become a music teacher

to earn some money so she could return to the Academy and continue

her studies. Katherine was brought in as my singing teacher when I was

in a girl band. She came in every weekend to rehearse and teach us

have to sing. She always made the classes fun and as a result we

became friends. It was clear she had an amazing talent, and for that

not to be put to good use as it has been would have been a real shame.

From Katherine, I have learnt obviously how to sing, but more

than that just have to... She is just a very, very inspiring person

to know. A friend who believed Katherine have potential suggested

she made a demo tape that could be sent to record companies. One of

the largest, Universal Music, liked They just wanted to meet me to

start with. They had heard the demo. I just remember meeting them, and

they said, where are you from? I said Wales and I felt that they'd

liked that. They asked what I was doing, I said I was teaching. They

quite liked that. I felt it was going in a positive direction. I

felt like I was just having a chat. They said, we need to see you

singing live, would it be OK to arrange a showcase? A couple of

weeks later they hired a studio and I went in. It was four record

company people. When she first came into the room, she did look nervous.

I remember thinking, poor kid. I always feel really sorry for any

artist that has to be in that situation, in a static situation,

where you have a record company executive staring at you, looking

totally emotionless. I sang my programme from my final recital at

the Royal Academy. Right at the end, they said, well, do you know any

musical theatre? And that is not what I had been studying. I turned

to my pianist, I said, do you know what I dream daydream? We just

busked it. -- I dream to a dream. She sang it off the cuff, I don't

even know if she knew the words. sang it, they said, thanks, I'll

let you know. They didn't look that interested. They looked bored.

don't think we did, but I can forgive her for thinking we'd

looked bored. On the way home I called my mum and said, it didn't

go very well, they didn't look very happy. I kind of cried on the phone.

I remember thinking, yes, she has definitely got it. Within an hour

of getting home, I got this call. They said, we are going to offer

you a six album deal. You need to get a lawyer. I cried all day again.

When you finally got a pay cheque from them, could you tell me how

much it was? About �30,000. Wow. And you have to take that to the

bank? I took it to the bank, the lady in Barclay is said to me, why

have you got a cheque for this much money? It kind of spoiled the

moment a little bit. I was really proud that this was my record deal.

I had to explain, I've got a record deal. It was a bit strange.

didn't believe you? She thought I was cashing in somebody else's

cheque. If the first record deal hadn't worked out, what do you

think he would be doing now? would probably still be teaching

singing. Maybe be in a very small opera chorus, working my way up.

That is what I thought my life would be. And I would have been

happy doing that. It's amazing how one phone call can change

everything. I know. It did feel like a dream. If you wrote that in

a film script, it would almost be too easy for it to happen in that

way. Do you feel God's hand in there? Destiny? I feel there is a

bigger power than me that is putting this path in front of me. I

think that is a mixture of my dad Katherine's debut album reached the

top of the classical charts in April 2004. She began touring and

became a regular on TV screens. next guest is the lovely Katherine

Jenkins. Please welcome Katherine Jenkins. Ladies and gentlemen, the

fabulous Katherine Jenkins. There was just something different about

this girl. She wasn't just a classical singer. There was star

quality, but there was accessibility. If you have the

magic ingredients of true talent and a lovely personality, or VST

you are going to be taken into the hearts of many. -- obviously, you

are going to be taken into the She touches the audience. I think

the warmth of her personality shows itself. It comes over. The audience

is cleverer than we think. They # Sharing words of love and

Her voice is clearly the key to her success. To look after it, she has

developed a strict regime. There are so many things. I don't drink

alcohol before I am singing. Derry, spicy foods, I avoid those. Often,

I will go from one concert to the next one, if I am on tour, without

speaking one word. That can be quite nice. For people around me!

Do you write notes? I write notes, I send texts. I will even mess

around and play give me a clue. But my mum and my friends have got

really good at lip-reading. long before the performance do you

start warming it up again? If I was sitting at 7.30, I would start

talking again maybe at 4 o'clock. Suddenly I will announce, OK, I can

talk. Then it is a lot easier. preparation, not just for your

voice but for the outer Katherine, is that a kind of meditation?

find when I am getting ready for a concert that I do my own hair and

make-up, usually. I find that is my time to mentally prepare myself and

get myself into the mood of being on stage. That is something that I

really look forward to, being on stage. I feel really natural.

nerves? No, this calm. And I am so grateful for this. It is something

that happened when I sang for the first time that the Millennium

Stadium in Cardiff. I had just been signed with my record contract. It

was my first time singing in front of such a huge crowd. I was

petrified. I have always been a nervous performer, especially as a

teenager. I feel that it cured it, because it is never going to be

that bad again. I was thrown in at the deep end, so now I am this calm

when I step out. I would like to # Spend all your time waiting for

that second chance. # For a break that would make it OK.

She is blessed, really. It is a gift. I think her father looks over

her, and gives her an extra surge I am interested in how Katherine is

coping with the downside of fame. Life is very different for her, now

she is successful. The press intrusion, the touring, the many TV

appearances. It is a far cry from the simplicity of performing in a

church choir in Neath. How much does the rigmarole of fame, fortune,

all of this busy mess, affect the purity of you just getting on stage

and singing? The trappings can get in the way. There are so many

different parts of what I have to do a, interviews, photo-shoots,

travelling, the recording. If I am totally honest, the better I love

the most is a live performance. That is why I do everything else. I

love been on tour, I love performing live with an orchestra.

I love the connection with the audience. In some ways, to be in

the studio and have months way you completely focus and make something

as perfect as you can make it, that is also a lovely thing. But the

rest of its kind of goes hand in hand with it. But I would always

choose the music part of it. Success also means that something

has got to give. For Katherine, the biggest sacrifice his time with her

friends and family. When you're working that hard to promote albums,

on the road all the time, you're never home, you don't see your

mum... I think it is really hard to keep a relationship with anyone in

your life, it when you are travelling like that. My mum, she

still wants me to call more often and I would like to get back to

Wales more often. I think it is something that you have just got to

really fight, to keep the relationships in your life that are

worth keeping. And you felt driven enough to think, I have been given

this opportunity, I must work at it? I do feel like that. I feel

like the people in my life who really love me can see the

opportunity, can see that I have to make the most of it, can see how

happy it makes me. I think they all kind of think that maybe it is

something I have to do now. They are there for me and I will be

# I tell myself you are coming home, like you have done 1 million times.

# If it's all right, I'll still be Part of her life now is criticism

from some sections of the music world. As a solo singer, she has

taken a role that makes her the centre of attention, but it also

makes her vulnerable. Instrumentalists can hide behind

their instrument. As a singer, you expose yourself. Singers do get a

special name in a profession, because they are living emotions.

It is a very special art, I think, Katherine's desire to bring

classical music to an audience that wouldn't normally be interested by

using some of the techniques of the pop world has not met with

universal approval. The main thing about Katherine Jenkins is feeling

very safe and accessible, when it comes to choices. If I were

critical, it would be that she doesn't seem to make many risks.

She has a call audience and she does not want to alienate them. She

wants to reach out to as many people as possible. As a result,

there can be a bland notes. -- it can be bland. A lot of people get

carried away. His Katherine a true opera star or not? I don't think

she should worry about that. Nobody One of the key differences between

the great opera singers, Joan Sutherland, compare that to

Katherine Jenkins, it is really the approach they take to their

characters. Opera singing is all about characters. On stage, URL

nobleman's wife, a chastened daughter, a vengeful witch. They

require careful characterisation. When she sings in a stadium or

arena, she is really selling Katherine Jenkins. And that is what

her audience want, they want her to be herself, not somebody else.

should she worry if she is deemed to be an opera star or not? She is

a fine singer and she has got a lot Katherine's success also means that

the press is always on the lookout for stories that suggest that fame

has gone to her head and she has turned from girl-next-door into a

demanding diva. We all have moments when the pressure gets to us and

you suddenly stamp your feet and say, I am not having that. Have you

had those moments? I am sure that I have. I think there are times when

people would like you to be like that. Sometimes I feel the pressure

that people want me to be that. They would love you to kick off,

they would love used to throw a water bottle. And say, she is

demanding? I like things done in a certain way, but I have never

thrown a tantrum. I hope I have never been really disrespectful to

somebody. Because my mum didn't bring me up like that. I still look

at this and think, yes, I do a different job to a lot of other

people. But that does not excuse bad behaviour. What has been the

worst part of fame, do you think? The intrusion into things that I

would deem not for everybody's knowledge. I have always wanted it

to be about the music. Try to keep a line between my personal life and

my music. But there are times way you just cannot avoid that. I

realise I chose this, so I have to do with the consequences of my

choices. But my family did not choose this and I hate it when they

get dragged into my crazy world. is nice when they are nice stories.

But when you get stories like that business with the drugs, it is very

difficult. I don't think we will ever get used to it. Katherine has

now taken her music to Europe and America. But also to places few

performers go. Her trips to entertain the troops in Iraq and

Afghanistan have earned her the title long-held by Dame Vera Lynn,

the forces' sweetheart. I sometimes think of Katherine as a bit of a GI

Jane. She has this kind of call of duty, a commitment to the armed

forces in a way that is second to none. Afghanistan, Iraq. If she can

get there, anyway, she tries to. The times when she is not allowed

because security is so tight and circumstances have prevented it,

she is fuming. She is, like, when The value of her trips is that she

communicates the public's support for the sacrifices they make, and

it is incredibly important to their morale. She represents home, and

that does elicit a very powerful emotional response. It gives them a

moment when everything stops and they can reflect, and I think that

means a lot. You have taken your voice now to entertain the troops.

We have taken over Dame Vera Lynn's position, how did that come about?

I went to sing to the Chelsea pensioners, and they have a

clubhouse there, but I found they never really had anyone going in to

sing to them which seemed very odd to me. I went to saying things like

White Cliffs of Dover and we will meet again, and as a result of that

I got invited to sing a VE-Day concert with Dame Vera Lynn.

Through talking to her, she encouraged me to think about going

to somewhere like Iraq, and also the British press were starting to

label me as a forces' sweetheart but I didn't feel I had earned that

then. I got a call from Jim Davidson representing the British

forces Foundation and he said how about going to Iraq for Christmas,

and I thought that is exactly what I want to do. Unusual to think I am

young, glamorous and gorgeous, and I want to go and spend Christmas

with Jim Davidson in Iraq! Although Katherine's mission is to entertain

the troops, she also finds her missions can have a more serious

purpose. You have met soldiers who are very young and they have been

able to confide in you privately in a way they perhaps couldn't with

their colleagues? I remember meeting a guy who was very upset,

he was missing home, he wasn't happy and I will never forget what

he said to me. I hope that in talking to him a little bit about

home, taking some time with him, I hope it helps because I feel like

that kind of part of it is just as important as the singing. The you

put yourself in danger when you were in a helicopter once and there

was a missile coming at you. That must have shaken you will orbit! --

shaken you'll all a bit. I remember it so clearly. We were being thrown

around, ducking and diving in the helicopter. It seemed to via to the

right, then down, and it took some quite dramatic moves but everybody

was a lot more pale than they were afterwards than they were before.

We landed, then we literally ran on to the next base and the next show

and you don't really have time to think about what just happened. I

came home, I was back in Neath by about 3 o'clock on Christmas Eve. I

went into the pub with my sister, and I was standing there thinking I

have been in a war-zone today. I couldn't forget what was happening

to me, I couldn't forget when I was eating my Christmas dinner,

actually that was a big thing. tell her not to tell me when she is

going. Clean know she will be going before Christmas but I don't

actually want to know when she is going, just tell me when you come

back, then I don't have to worry about it too much. Last Christmas,

on an army fled to Afghanistan, Katherine broke into an impromptu

version of Silent Night. I feel like we're going for 24 hours, 48

hours, and these people deal with that kind of thing for nine months

sometimes. I think more than a sweet heart, she is a champion who

genuinely cares about them, their plight and their circumstances.

is interesting, looking at the career you have chosen, a lot of

classical singers would not be putting themselves in danger, would

not sit and openly discussed God, would be more concerned about an

image that is classical and sedate and rather more proper. Has anybody

suggested to you that you should not talk about your faith, or

wanting to go into war zones? think it is just really important

to be yourself. I feel like sometimes people have a perception

of the classical artist, as you said, and ditties sort of being

very serious, never made a mistake, and I have felt the pressure from

that. I want to show people, as part of the message the classical

music is for everyone, that I am just like everybody else as well. I

like doing everything that everybody else does. The future

will bring many changes to her life. In February, she announced she was

engaged to the television presenter Gethin Jones. They had met four

years before on this set of Strictly Come Dancing. He was

competing and she was singing. is engaged to Gethin Jones now, I

know him very well, are playing looking lad. Not that I am jealous

in the slightest, but I bet there are a lot of middle-aged men who

would like to swap places. Sad, isn't it?! I imagine there are a

lot of troops, a lot of men who are gutted she is engaged. The lovely

thing for me personally, seen them getting together, is I can see

exactly why. They are perfect for each other. They both have a sense

of enjoyment of life, they both want the same things, they both

love this feeling of a home life and home sweet home. Seeing the two

of them together, it just makes you sick really. They're both gorgeous.

Look at you two. They are just little more birds sitting on the

sofa together. We should wrap them up in chocolate and sell them on

the street! Let's not forget, it has virtually blinded me in the

last hour or so, a gorgeous sparkler on your hand. He has done

very well, hasn't he? What makes Gethin Jones Mr Right? He is just a

really good guy. As people see him on the television, that is just how

he is, for me with a good heart and kind. Does he share your faith?

he does actually. I think when you both come from a similar place, you

have the same kind of core beliefs. She shared experiences. Exactly,

yes. I know you probably haven't had time to set a date, but

presumably the service will be full of music. I would imagine. You know,

I think it will be all about music. I know I won't be singing myself.

Everybody keeps asking me about that. It will be a day off. But yes,

I want it to be emotional and music is such an important part of that

for me. When you are finally married, how will you combine the

horror, the juggle of being a wife, possibly being a mum, and being an

international superstar? I think that, please God, I have children

that I will at some point slow down on the touring a little bit. I feel

like to be a mother is a real gift and I want to enjoy that. The

craziness of my life right now would not allow that, so maybe to

wait a little bit, and take a step back and enjoy being a mum for a

while. Not give up singing completely, but just enough to take

time and enjoy it. The Jenkins family motto is to go forward

cautiously, which is a brilliant one. Where did that come from?

are strong people, they think about what they will do, they are thought

full but they do things with a lot of fun. My family know how to enjoy

themselves, know how to enjoy life, know what is important. They are a

Yes, she is Katherine Jenkins the star, she is adored by millions,

she has a fantastic talent, but in all the years I have known her she

has remained a decent girl. I don't think that being famous has changed

Katherine. She has managed to stay very grounded and it is the same

person I knew 10 years ago, which is testament to her personality.

Katherine's career I think will literally go on forever. She is one

of these people who has the ability to do that, to keep recreating

herself, because she has a true passion for music. She will use her

instrument, her voice, as much as she can and it will always keep up-

to-date so I think she will be I feel really lucky that I have

been able to do what I have done so far and I don't really want to ask

for any more, so if I can carry on singing and carry on touring and

people still want to listen to me singing, I will be happy with that.

What will you be doing for Christmas? I will be back in Wales.

I always go home to Wales for Christmas. That, for me, it is the

guaranteed time with the family. Just to be back, going to Midnight

Mass with my mum, going to my anti- 's house on Christmas night and

playing trivial pursuit, I would not change that for the world.

does Christmas mean to you? Family. Just quality time. That is all I

look for in Christmas. Just knowing I have got the time to feel no

pressure, just to, you know, just chill with the family, eat, laugh,

just enjoy it. Katherine, thank you. And happy Christmas. Happy

Christmas. Thank you for having me. Over the years, I have met

Katherine several times and she has never changed, despite her enormous

success. I think that old phrase hard work brings good things was

made for her. She has worked very hard, she has kept her feet on the

ground, she has worked hard at her career, her appearance, her family,

her faith, and I think everything about her is truly sincere. I hope

that in the future she is very happy. Next week I am meeting

Russell Watson, a remarkable singing talent who emerged from

pubs and clubs to become an international star. He has faced

the death twice through brain tumours, and and experience that