Sinitta Interview

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Sinitta - Gutted to have left Dancing on Ice so early

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Sinitta and her Dancing on Ice partner Andrei performing on the show

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Sinitta wearing 'that outfit' on The X Factor

Unperturbed by her constant association with the aforementioned Mr Cowell in the eyes of the public (let's face it, how is that a bad thing for anyone?), 'The X Factor' regular is softly-spoken, modest and strikingly beautiful in the flesh. She also can't stop talking about Jedward... we're fans already!

Linda McGee: We have to talk about 'Dancing on Ice' first - it's awful how a little mistake can be very costly in reality TV. Were you gutted to leave the show?
Sinitta: It was a disaster! I was gutted. I nearly cried on live TV. And you know, having worked in reality television for six years now, I thought I would have known better than anyone 'look it's just a show, it's not the end of the world' but I stood up there and I really wanted to cry because you've put so much into it and you start projecting forward about what you're going to do next week and how you're going to improve and then it's chopped down before you get to realise your full potential.

LM: And with a show like that it must feel all the more crushing because of the amout of time you have had to spend actually learning a new skill. It must have been hard work physically...
Sinitta: Yeah, there's so much commitment because that kind of conditions you to tune into it, to be so skate-focused. So I'm still skating now because I'd made this commitment in my mind, you know, mentally, physically, emotionally. I am going to be skating, hopefully, for the next two or three months. And so to suddenly be brought out, I thought I was safe as well. Because of the judges' votes I was fourth on the thing so I thought 'Well, I'm staying in the middle. There's three people above me, there's three people below me' and I was thinking 'I actually think I can improve this, at least to second place, if I really work hard' so to be out was like 'aw'. I hadn't even contemplated that. I thought I was safe.

LM: And we were all dying to see what outfits you were going to wear!
Sinitta: Aw of course, and they'd shown me so that was even worse... I didn't get to wear them.

LM: Because you love your fashion, don't you? I saw you sporting a very glamorous gold dress at the National Television Awards recently and you looked in your element. Do you love red carpet events?
Sinitta: Aw, it's the most glamorous event of the year. I love that. It feels old Hollywood. The guys are all in black tie. I love it, just the excitement of seeing everybody else dressed up. It really is... it's probably one of my favourite nights. And I love Royal Ascot as well because I love dressing up. You get to dress up with gloves, hats and all of that.

LM: And of course you made a massive statement on 'The X Factor' this year with your dressing up...
Sinitta: Oh yes. And when you have nothing to wear, there's always something.

LM: Was the reaction to that 'outfit' crazy?
Sinitta: Unbelievable! They're still repeating it now. I mean they had said that if I made it to the finals on 'Dancing on Ice' that they were going to recreate the leaf dress, so I was going to have to try to skate in it. Walking in it was hard enough! Awkward!

LM: Now, lots of people will recognise you from working with Simon and the contestants on 'The X Factor', is that show lots of fun to be part of?
Sinitta: It is. It's a dream job. Total, total dream job. You never stop learning, you never stop laughing and year after year you get involved with the new crop of kids coming through to realise their dreams of becoming a popstar, and you get very involved with them. You go on their journey with them. I have to talk about John and Edward because they were like my little babies there. And I can remember in the beginning when nobody liked them but if you meet them in person you cannot not like them.

LM: So you liked them instantly before all the fuss...
Sinitta: Yeah, liked them instantly, much to Simon's dismay. Because he was like 'Aw for goodness sake, aw please Sinitta' and I'd be like 'Aw but they're so cute' and he'd say 'Yes but darling, for goodness sake, imagine if they won, it'd be a nightmare' and he'd be like 'Will you get over it?'...

LM: But he did come round eventually... well, a little bit...
Sinitta: He did come round. He got it in the end, and their charm, once he started to get to know them as people. But at the very first audition he was like 'You are probably two of the most annoying people in the world' and they just smiled back at him as if it was a compliment. They were like 'We're talking to Simon Cowell. He's thinks we're annoying. Great!'

LM: Yeah, they bring great enthusiasm to everything they do, don't they? I roared laughing at them being completely hyper-active at the National Television Awards...
Sinitta: Aw they were awesome. And they rocked the O2, these two little boys. They've just turned 18 and they'd never performed to an audience, or in public, before six months ago, and now they've just blown everyone away at the O2 and had Vanilla Ice on stage rapping with them. It was just incredible.

LM: Do you think they can make decent careers for themselves out of all this?
Sinitta: Oh yeah. I predict that their career will have many twists and turns. I can imagine them ending up like little supermodels as well because they're great-looking boys, once you get past the comedy hairdos. And lots of people have the Jedwards now! You know what, they look good. Imagine them, as well, tanned and out in the summer. I think a Burberry campaign and I'm going to keep saying it until Burberry give it to them.

LM: Good stuff. I like that you're on Team Jedward.
Sinitta: Aw I love them! And I had the t-shirts. My babies were wearing them, full-length t-shirts with 'Jed We Can' written on them, the ones that Heat magazine made.

LM: Speaking of your kiddies, were they very proud of you on 'Dancing on Ice'? I could see them in the audience with their little flags, going wild for you.
Sinitta: Yeah, they liked it. They had little flags. And they thought I won because at the end, when they gave the flowers and I got to go round again, they thought that I won so they were very, very proud. They were like 'Mummy, you were the winner'!

LM: You've recently released your Greatest Hits collection. How did that come about? Did you just feel it was the right time to revisit some of those hits and get them out there again?
Sinitta: Yeah, well we've been talking about it for ages because we had the 20 year anniversary (I can't believe I'm saying that!) for 'Toy Boy' in 2007 and 'So Macho' in 2006 and people had been wanting to do anniversary singles and it was like 'OK, so why don't we just do an album before the next decade?' so we did a very small amount, limited edition release, before Christmas, and the demand was so great and it sold so well that we thought 'OK, let's do it properly and go for it' and I thought as well with the exposure through 'Dancing on Ice' that there's a whole new generation of people who'll see me. I get people calling me on the street and they'll go 'Oh, it's, it's... Simon Cowell...' and I'm like 'No, I'm not Simon Cowell!'. And they're kind of snapping their fingers and it's like 'You're the Simon Cowell something' and that' OK. It lets people know what I did before and why.

LM: Are you planning on touring to coincide with the album release?
Sinitta: Not touring in venues but maybe a club tour.

LM: Do you still have the same love for the tracks now that you did when you first released them?
Sinitta: I have the same love. I did Alan Titchmarsh yesterday with five boys in my 'Cross My Broken Heart' outfit and do you know what I was a bit nervous, when you suddenly realise that you haven't sung live on TV for 17 years. It's kind of interesting. But even turning up at the studios, I feel like a popstar, because that's what you used to do in the day. You went all round everywhere and you went to the radio stations and did all that. And there's a lot of the same faces and obviously it's the same buildings. I'm really enjoying it.

LM: So the buzz is still the same?
Sinitta: Totally, I get such a buzz. And of course the dancers are all a new crop of boys now so they're all doing it for the first time. And I came off and I thought 'Yeah I could do this, this is fun'.

LM: So you've got the bug again and we can expect more releases then?
Sinitta: Yeah, well there's a couple of new tracks on the Greatest Hits album and I will be going to America to do some collaborations with some artists over there... so we'll do something, probably more dance, R 'n' B style. But at least this is paving the way. It's getting me back out there, used to performing.

LM: Does the hype over 'The X Factor' and Simon Cowell seem strange to you at times because you're so closely involved with the show and to you Simon is a friend as well?
Sinitta: Yeah, it's unreal. Here I'm sort of getting used to it because obviously I see it a lot but I can remember the first time going to America when he was doing maybe the second season of 'American Idol'... yeah it was the second season because with the first season of 'American Idol' it was scary. Everybody wanted to kill him. They could not understand this English guy who came over there with a big mouth and told people they couldn't sing and was so rude about it.

LM: He was usually right but he just didn't dress it up...
Sinitta: Yeah, but there you don't that. You say 'No, thank you' or 'Next' or 'Try again next time' but to actually say 'That was hideous' or 'appalling'... I was afraid for his safety. Sesaon two people understood what it was all about. He'd be walking down the street and there'd be like 7ft rappers going 'Yo Simon, you're the man' and it did kind of freak me out. I was thinking 'Wow, everybody knows you' and there were billboards of him and 'Welcome to America Simon Cowell' and I was like 'Are you kidding me?'... You've come a long baby!

LM: The US version of 'The X Factor' seems to be his next big project for 2011. Would you like to get involved in that?
Sinitta: I would like to be involved, however I could be involved, because I'm passionate about the show anyway. I've been there since the first season and to be able to do it in America would just be unreal. I just think they're going to love it because there's so much more to it than 'American Idol'. In 'American Idol' they're the same age group. It's usually pop, sometimes you might get a rock artist in there but they're all very similar acts so to have it open to the older singers... I think in 'American Idol' there's a cut-off age limit of maybe 24 so they're still very young. And then the groups as well, plus the judges competing...

When you watch 'American Idol' Simon's sitting there half-asleep in his old, sloppy t-shirt, rolling his eyes, finding the whole thing a big yawn and then you watch him on 'X Factor' and because it's his kids up there and it's like 'I want my boys to win' and there's all this passion and protectiveness and he's got a suit on or sometimes even a tie and you know he's very much part of the show as well and I think for them to get to see that side of him... because they see him as this bad-boy, Mr Nasty and he's very laissez-faire about the whole thing and now they're going to see him on edge and also having to stand up there and watch his contestant be voted off. It will engage a whole other audience because if you're not really into young people singing, you might watch it there's a 64-year-old woman in there who is getting her chance at last. It's kind of a whole other generation watching it... I mean even I could do 'X Factor'! I could go to American and say 'You know I used to be a popstar in the United Kingdom'... I could sneak through, but you do have to show ID, that's the problem... (roars laughing)

Watch Sinitta's interview on 'The Café' here.