My favourite things

Sometimes I hum a few old songs to myself, notably Cliff Richard's The Young Ones and Congratulations. Sure, the first sort of emotional excitement will never come back, but it"s still beating with joy through his songs.

Boys and girls in their teens, during the past five decades, were overjoyed to listen to him singing their floating passions
and hovering dreams: Summer Holiday, Dreamin", On The Beach, Wonder To Be Young, Little In Love, It"s All In The Game and All I Have To Do Is Dream. To those teenagers who are now adults over 30, Richard has been an ever-present element in music, much loved and much respected.

British Elvis

The 67-year-old singer, who was once hailed as "The British Elvis", has had hits for more than 40 years and has sold an
estimated 250 million records worldwide. In 2002, he released his 129th single Let Me Be The One which made its way into the charts.

In 2004, he hit the UK Top 10 for the 67th time with his single Somethin' Is Goin' On. Along with his renowned backing band, The Shadows, he toured the world and attained international popularity and adoration. His successful musicals, including The Young Ones, Summer Holiday and The Wonderful Life made him the No 1 attraction at the box office in England.

Yet the American public had little awareness of him. He remained unpopular in America until he cracked the US Top 10 in 1976 with his guitar-driven track Devil Woman. His 1980 duet with Olivia Newton-John also became a Top 20 hit there.

Richard, who believes he is "the most radical rock star there has ever been", was inspired by the music of Elvis Presley.

Unusual life

"Elvis was my idol from the beginning and even today when I'm alone, I'll often put on the King Creole album. He's produced the most exciting pop music sounds of all time."

Richard once declared that he would remain single until he was at least 25, but he ended up being single forever. His way of life is very unusual; he"s been living as if he were a hermit and not a pop legend. "There is no room in my life for drugs, fights, divorce, adultery, sadism, unnecessary fuss and sex," he once said.

He was knighted in 1995, ahead of Paul McCartney (1997) and Elton John (1998) for his charity work, not for his contributions to entertainment. Now, he's an institution and one of Britain"s most popular entertainers of all time. And he will carry on playing the old guitar until his day comes.

On ageing

If I had a chance to be one age forever, I"d choose 30. I don't see how people can consider themselves adult at 18 or even
21. It took me until I was 30 to feel that I had become a man. I think at 30 you"'e still got the strength of youth but a bit
of wisdom of age, and the combination must be unbeatable.

On indian food

I love Indian food. I guess that's because I was born in India and was brought up eating curry and rice. I really like the
spiciness — you don't have to have it very hot, just spicy without any heat. For me it's an all-round food.

On Michael Jackson

I don't think there's anyone who can approach Michael Jackson for sheer brilliance. Every song is perfect, every performance magnificent. I don"t think what's gone on since should taint the music; you judge the record on its own terms.
On slowing down

What I'd like to do is slow down. If I did two things in one year, I'd do one of them this year and do the other one the
following year, so I would have more time to myself, for my friends and my family and to just enjoy myself.

On India

I'm very fond of my early childhood in India. I think of the holidays I took with my mum there to my grandparents. My
favourite was to a place called Buxa in northern India. The train used to come to a stop against two buffers that were in the middle of a field. I don't remember a station as such. Holidays there were fantastic and are still in my memory.

On wearing jeans

Most people like jeans because, when you put them on, you feel comfortable. There are other items of clothing I prefer to
wear when I'm in the public eye but, for travelling or gardening, I think jeans are the best.

On soap operas

Coronation Street is my favourite TV programme. It"s become a part of my life. If I go away on tour, I usually come back to
find three or four videos of it piled up for me to look at, which is like watching an epic movie or series. It"s a show I really miss.