A festive chat with Andrew Stone

Christmas can often be a quiet time in the world of reality TV. With X Factor over and a long wait for the start of Dancing On Ice, there is very little around to occupy us RTV fiends. So thank the Lord and sing Merry Christmas for Sky1 this year, who is giving us a bumper load of festive treats this season with the help of the cast of hit fly-on-the-wall series Pineapple Dance Studios. We caught up with the one-and-only Andrew Stone to find out more.

Tell us about your Meaning of Christmas documentary, Andrew...
"Well, I'm shooting that at the moment and it involves me walking around meeting people from all walks of life about Christmas. There are some comedy people in there who take it very seriously and the programme is about me finding out my own meaning of Christmas through these other people. It is a tongue-in-cheek and very funny journey you go on with me. I've met a Catholic nun, a priest, I've met Father Christmas, diehard preachers and I've visited a turkey farm. We're very pleased with what we've done so far."

Is it true you've got a Christmas single coming out as well?
"I've written a song called 'My Christmas Wish', which is for the RSPCA charity, and that is about getting back to the basics of Christmas. Christmas can be whatever you want it to be, but the essence of Christmas is when you see the snow falling and the Disney movies, the sitting around the log fire and the piano. Christmas for me is about the simple things that make us happy. While I embrace the new age, we need to remember where it all came from. Christmas has been an up-and-down affair for me in the past, like it has for a lot of people, but it's one of those moments now that I look forward to because it means a complete break from work. I'm completely flatlined with all my work at the moment."

What can we expect from you on the festive episode of Louie Spence's Showbusiness?
"On the Showbusiness Christmas Special, you'll see more of me with Starman working on 'My Christmas Wish' and promoting the track. You'll see me writing the song, making the video and meeting the RSPCA and doing the whole thing for charity. The video is all very tongue-in-cheek for charity and they are going to make me look very David Brent-like. We're going to camp it up as much as possible."

I know that you don't take yourself too seriously. Do you get annoyed when some people perhaps don't get that?
"You'll see a different side to me in Showbusiness. They have edited me differently and Starman has genuinely become something lovely and big. I am a serious musician, I've danced for 30 years, I've done West End shows, I've danced with Kylie Minogue and Tina Turner, I have been classically ballet trained - so I know what I'm doing. Having a career in the music industry is serious for me. But at the same time, I am taking the p*ss out of myself. I take what I do seriously, but I don't take myself too seriously. There's a thin line there and I hope people can get that. I want people to consider me a serious artist, but also realise that I can have a laugh and that I understand there are other things in life that matter."

That's how a popstar should be!
"Right! If you take yourself too seriously, you're f**ked. You really are. I am very humble, even though I am very confident."

You've been described as the 'King of the One-Liners' in a Sky1 press release. Are you happy with that title?
"I didn't know that! Being called the King of anything is nice! It's not a negative thing, so I'm fine with it. I come out with these things every so often, I don't plan them, but if people want to put me in that box then do it. I'm just doing my thing."

What will we see you doing on Showbusiness in the New Year?
"You've got two things. There is an Andrew Stone stream and a Starman story. You will see a long journey that we all go on together hunting down a record deal. Watching Starman and me on Sky1 is a little bit like The Truman Show, because they capture everything that we are doing together as a band. When the last series finished, we picked up a camera and just carried on filming, so there's no real gap."

Pineapple was a huge success for everyone involved. What is your highlight of the last 12 months?
"We sold 12,000 singles without a record deal or any airplay, that was my highlight. That was all digital, no physical CDs. No adverts, no posters, nothing like that. It proved that we had a core audience who liked us. If we had a machine behind us like a label, which we're not far away from, and get the awareness of the band out there, the future could be very bright for us. Pineapple has built us a cult audience, who are very loyal for us. I'm very positive about Starman's future because of that. Also, on a personal note, with all the attention, interviews and TV work the show has brought me, I've learnt a lot about myself. I've probably learnt more in the last 12 months than I have over the rest of my life put together. It's all been highly concentrated and stressful. Don't get me wrong, it's worth it, but the buck always stops with me. If I don't do my thing, I'm letting a lot of people down who are relying on me."

Are Starman any closer to that record deal?
"We are in talks with a certain record label about a single deal and an optional album, so that's very exciting. But I'd like to focus on the Christmas single now. It's a really nice sentimental ballad and with the RSPCA behind it, hopefully we can make it a hit and raise lots of money."

Could you knock The X Factor off the top spot?
"I'd love that. We're not in direct competition with The X Factor because of the timing of the Sky1 show, so you never know where we may chart on Boxing Day. The RSPCA are making everyone aware of it. And for me, even one record sale is a positive. If it charted, wonderful; if it goes high, amazing."

And the RSPCA is a great cause!
"Exactly, a dog's not just for Christmas and all that."

Andrew Stone's Meaning Of Christmas airs on Monday, December 20 at 9.30pm on Sky1. Louie Spence's Showbusiness Christmas follows on Wednesday, December 22.