Disc spinner

Geeta Nihalani profiles an iconic DJ of our times - Fatboy Slim.

He's 45, has thinning hair, grew up in a small town in the UK and went to university to study a BA in English, politics and sociology. He's also played music for a throbbing crowd of 250,000 who mobbed Brighton Beach, resulting in the musician being banned from playing in that city. F

atboy Slim, or Quentin Leo Cook (aka Norman Cook) as his mother likes to refer to him, was raised in Surrey, less than an hour out of London. He began his musical career by playing bass for a friend's band called The Housemartins. The band happened to lose their regular bassist on the eve of their first national tour, yet reached the No. 1 spot on the UK singles charts with a cover of Caravan of Love in 1986.

Three years later the band split up, and Cook moved to Brighton to pursue his interests in DJing, developing his skills in the city's thriving club scene.

Hitting the jackpot

Although he released numerous albums in the 1980s and 90s, it wasn't until 2000's Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars that Fatboy Slim truly hit the limelight as one of the premier DJs of this generation alongside the likes of Paul Oakenfold and DJ Tiesto.

This fame was only cemented with the release of the single Weapon of Choice. After all, who doesn't remember Christopher Walken's iconic performance as an exhausted businessman in a deserted hotel lobby who suddenly gets an urge to do a song and dance number?

The number soon went on to gain cult status throughout the electronic music world. Fatboy Slim recently decided to abandon his famous moniker in order to record under his own name as DJ Norman Cook. He has long been a talked-about commodity in musical circles.

Ever since Halfway between the Gutter and the Stars where he featured guest appearances by soul legend Bootsy Collins, and Macy Gray of 'trying to walk away' fame, Cook has been in demand among famous stars as a re-mixer.

He has collaborated with artists such as the Rolling Stones, simultaneously being choosy (and powerful) enough to refuse the requests of several others such as Madonna.

The superstar rocked up a storm in Dubai earlier this year when he played at a beach party at Barasti at the Le Meridien Mina Seyahi Beach Resort.

The writer is a freelancer based in Dubai