Colm Wilkinson

“Around Clifden, I like the place, and the people are great.”

“I don't keep a lot of memorabilia around.”

“There have been lots of attempts to make a movie of 'Les Miserables' over the years.”

“When I work with a character like Valjean on stage, I get totally absorbed in that man. I become that man. But there's always, outside of that, the third eye, which watches what you're doing. And you can say to yourself, 'I'm crying well' or 'I'm being angry well.' But there's always that element there, and it never stops.”

“As a journeyman singer, I have to go to where the work is.”

“You have to learn how to read contracts, how to position yourself, and about marketing. That is why you find the most successful artists are the ones who can mix creativity with business.”

“I grew up in a very musical family, but music was not encouraged as a career. It was a hobby.”

“There's nothing like being in front of a live audience and getting that vibe from them, and I love people to join in the singing, and I love people to clap their hands.”

“'Bloodless' reminded me a bit of 'Les Miserables' when it first came out.”

“As I tell my children, the first thing is always health. Get sleep, don't party, don't do drugs or drink. If your body is right, then you will be right, and if your body is wrong, you will be wrong. Live like a Buddhist monk!”

“I have made a career out of my hobby, which is an incredibly fortunate position to be in, but you have to have the passion. Even today, I will go down to the studio and start singing for what I think is 10 minutes, and I look at the clock, and it's been two hours.”

“For myself, personally, I am never really aware of timing or anything because I am passionate about what I do, so I have found that if you really love what you do, then time flies.”

“Eighty per cent of my time is spent on paperwork, hiring musicians, putting bands together, setting up concerts, and 20 per cent is spent on the music. That's the part that you really enjoy, but you can't afford to spend 80 per cent on your music; otherwise, it's not going to happen.”

“I absolutely had a dream of doing 'Man of La Mancha' one day; that's a long time ago.”

“The great saints were always great innovators... They had to be very strong people... principled people. And, apart from their principles, with great tenacity they had to have great reserves of patience.”

“The one thing that concerts have done for me is given me the opportunity to get back to sort of do songs that I want to do. It's about enjoying yourself.”

“I'm up for doing a part if I thought the part was right and the people want to consider me for a part. If I thought the part was absolutely exciting... I would go for it.”

“You do get a lot of people complaining if you don't do songs they have come to expect. I have to be careful about fulfilling that side of things and keeping it fresh for other people who have come to see the show.”

“Hal Prince and Andrew actually asked me if I would be interested in continuing with 'Phantom', but obviously I was under contract to 'Les Mis' by then.”

“You see some people on stage today, and they have these huge ear monitors.”