Personalities | Posted on February 23rd, 2024 | return to news
Interview with Aled Jones ahead of his appearance in Ringwood
Ever-present in our lives for more than 40 years, Aled Jones will be appearing at the Barn in Ringwood on 23 March as part of his Full Circle tour.
The boy treble who captivated the world burst on to the scene and enjoyed remarkable success as a young singer, finding a permanent place in all our Christmases with his smash hit, ‘Walking In The Air’.
Selling over seven million albums, Aled was the original, classical crossover star. His recording from the animated film The Snowman, firmly established him as a household name and he has become an integral part of the nation’s festivities.
Equally at home on the classical stage, or starring in musical theatre productions in London West End, his credits include lead roles in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Irving Berlin’s White Christmas. As a singer, Aled is in demand globally and has performed in the world’s most iconic venues, from London’s Royal Albert Hall to the Sydney Opera House.
He has even given a private performance to King Charles III in Kensington Palace.
Dorset View wanted to find out more about Aled Jones’s new tour ‘Full Circle’.
Dorset View: What is your new tour about?
Aled: It’s a one-man show looking back on my career that will feature never-before-heard music, tales from the decades and for the first time, my story told in my own words. It’s time to come Full Circle.
Dorset View: You recently were Number One on the Classical charts tell us more.
Aled: My latest album, One Voice, which paired boy-Aled with man-Aled reached Number One and I’m looking forward to telling this story.
Dorset View: You’re success spans across four decades, how does this feel?
Aled: I’ve always felt lucky, having the career I have, but as I get older, I feel that I am so honoured to be living this life. I love what I do for a living. I have been so fortunate to be a part of people’s lives for so many years. In fact, I feel almost teary when I think about it.
Dorset View: How did it feel singing in the Royal Albert Hall year after year as a boy?
It felt like being the heavyweight boxing champion of the world and until you get knocked out it’s great. I knew that my boyhood was to be short lived but for those four years I crammed in as much as I could. Maximum singing and maximum fun. The fun bit was down to my mum and dad, really. When I was back at school, it was interesting, to say the least!
Dorset View: And how about hanging out with Royalty?
Aled: The highlight was the private performance for Prince Charles and Princess Diana in their home in Kensington Palace. The Palace rang my dad at work and my dad put the phone down thinking it was someone from his work playing a practical joke. Then an equerry rang back and said the call was for real!
Prince Charles apparently loved my voice and wanted to hear me sing before my voice broke. How would Thursday evening be? My dad said: ‘Yes, that will be fine.’ So off I went from North Wales, with my mum, and my pianist, and I arrived at Kensington Palace. We knew the butler well, because he was a friend of my great uncle, and I remember sitting in their private front room in Kensington Palace. I sat on one sofa and my accompanist from North Wales, Annette Bryn Parri, who’d never been to London, much less Kensington Palace, sat on the other, with my mother also in the room.
We waited in silence, until the Prince entered first. ‘Mrs Jones, or can I call you Nest?’ He said: ‘What would you like to drink?’ And I could see my mum thinking: ‘Does he mean water, or coffee, or tea?’ It was as though time had stood still. And then he placed a hand on her knee and said: ‘You’ll join me in a gin and tonic, won’t you?’ And she breathed out a sigh of relief and said yes. And Diana came bounding in after that. She’d got wet hair because she’d been swimming. I knew her quite well anyway, by that point, so we had a hug. I sang for an hour, whatever songs they wanted.
Dorset View: What is one of your favourite celebrity moments?
Aled: One of the best moments was working with Julie Andrews. There’s a video of Julie Andrews and me singing Edelweiss and at the end, we put our heads together and she gives me a kiss. That was probably the most overwhelming thing I’ve ever done. For me, she’s one of the greatest, if not the greatest film stars of my generation. Growing up, I Ioved those films, like Mary Poppins or The Sound of Music. A brilliant actress with a sublime voice.
To get the invitation to interview Julie Andrews on her tour was just a dream come true. It was a pinch-me moment.
Julie was so lovely to me. She wrote me a hand-written letter at the end of the tour. I have it framed in my office. Working with her is one of the highlights of my career. It wasn’t just that we performed together on stage. It was also the time we spent backstage, where we were as thick as thieves. She had a wonderful team around her of genuine people who’d been around her for years and years and for them to allow me to get into that inner sanctum was very special.
I was completely transported. I was singing Edelweiss with Dame Julie Andrews. It doesn’t get any better than that. It was supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.
And now Aled’s come Full Circle. He’s hitting the road and sharing his stories during evenings of song and stories. Full details are available at: https://officialaledjones.com/
Aled Jones – Full Circle
The Barn, Ringwood
Saturday 23 March 2024
Doors 7pm, Show 7.30pm
Tickets from £30 – VIP and Meet & Greet available
Booking link: https://thebarnringwood.co.uk/event/81330
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