Shayne Ward - ‘I’m excited to be back’

SHAYNE Ward spoke exclusively to the Ulster Star ahead of his sell-out show at the Waterfront Hall on Tuesday night where he told us how excited he is to be back releasing music.

The singer kindly took the time to speak to the Star before the show and he was keen to thank his local fans for all their support.

And as he sat down for a chat in his dressing room before his first gig in Belfast since 2008, Shayne vowed not to be away so long next time.

“I just want to say a massive ‘thank you’ to the fans, first of all for coming out of the way to come and see me, and apologies for leaving it so long. I promise that I won’t be leaving it as long next time.”

Shayne spent two days in Belfast before his show and he told us how pleased he was to be here.

“I’m enjoying it,” he said. “It’s always nice to come to Belfast. I’ve always got the same faces that come and see me all the time at the airport and all the gigs. I’m excited for tonight. There’s been a real buzz about the show since it started, that’s all I wanted, I wanted people to receive it in the right way and they have done so. I’m looking forward to this Irish leg of the tour.”

He added: “It’s always good to get back on the road, I’ve always loved the live side of it. I really enjoy having a band behind me, it’s just the control you have on stage, when you have a band you can literally do whatever you want, even songs we haven’t rehearsed, you can throw it in the mix at any time and the band will just pick it up and that’s what I love about doing it live. I enjoy it and the fans are enjoying the live side of it as well.”

Shayne will be performing live throughout the summer as various festivals, as well as supporting Boyzone at a special outdoor gig in Scotland in August, which he said he was “pleased” to do.

Shayne also revealed that he will be soon adding more strings to his bow than singer, songwriter and dancer, as he takes up acting and modelling, after he was recently signed by an acting agency in London - the same team behind stars such as Ray Winstone.

Shayne revealed: “After the tour I’m going to focus on more live shows for the festivals. That’s more or less what we’re getting together now so there will be a lot more live shows till the end of the year. Then I’ll start focusing on the acting. I’ve been taken on by an acting agency in London called CAM who look after Ray Winstone, which instantly sounded intriguing, I was like ‘Yeah, I’m going to make a film with him!’. It’s something I’ve wanted to do over the years but never really found the time to do. I feel at this moment in time it’s the right time to do it.”

He added: “Even as well with the modelling side, I want to make sure I’m a Jack of all trades, but for the right reason, that I’m comfortable and confident with doing it.”

Interview and review

by STACEY HEANEY