News Archive
Mar 2002
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H & Claire have finally decided that their new single will be called DJ (as we exclusively revealed last week!) It's a really poppy dance track that will hopefully be a huge hit for them. They're also about to sign a multi million pound record contract, it's thought that that should be completed within the next few days or so. Then there's no rest for the wicked as they'll be flying out to Sweden to do some songwriting for their new album! They will be working with Andrew Frampton, who worked on many of STEPS' hits, and old pal Dane Bowers. Their debut single is thought to be set to hit the shops around April/May 2002.Also congratulations are in order, do you remember how we told you our very own Sarah was off for Steptacular interview a few weeks back? Well the good news is she got it and now she'll be working closely with H & Claire on their new careers, so a very big well done to Sarah and also a big thankyou to her for all the good work she did on this site I'm sure that all of you appreciate it as much as we do!
STEPS In The Bragain Bin!
The Britannia music club are offering STEPS' Greatest Hits album Gold, for the shockingingly low price of 99p in their sale! Yes that's right the 4x Platinum No.1 album, which plummeted out of the Top 40 after the split, is now in the bargain bin for 99p! It's certainly something I thought I'd never see! Steppy Stuff
H & Claire appear in this weeks Heat Magazine which is out now! Saturday 2nd March Lisa Twinned With Rhyl Lisa's home town of Rhyl are so proud of her that they've twinned themselves with her! Lisa was presented with a plaque that the mayor from Rhyl requested for her, on this morning's Saturday Show! Lisa actually thought it was a joke at first, but when she realised it was true she was extremely pleased. Lisa is the biggest star to come from the North Welsh town. She grew up there with her three brothers, until she moved to London seek her fame and fortune.
Born: 05 NOV 1976
Place of Birth: St Asaph School: Ysgol Emrys Ap Iwan, Abergele Famous For: One of the most famous members of what was the UK's biggest pop group - Steps. Trivia: Lisa is also manager of her brother's pop band '3SL'. With 'Steps' a thing of the past this might now be her full time job! Biography: Few in the UK pop industry have reached the same heights as Lisa Scott Lee, whose dreams of fame were realised as part of Steps, one of Britain's biggest ever pop acts. From singles and albums to TV shows, magazines and merchandise, Steps were a pop phenomenon. Now engaged to Hearsay's latest member Johnny Shentall, Lisa was determined from childhood that fame and fortune would be hers. She was encouraged by her parents, declaring "My dad was my inspiration, he always told me, 'you'll be alright princess, your face will be your fortune!' I used to laugh and say I hoped I'd get recognised for my talent as well!" In her teens Lisa's ambitions grew, often using family weddings and parties as an excuse to show off her singing and dancing skills. Her profile rose locally on winning two beauty contests - Miss Rhyl and Miss Abergele. This exposure, combined with modelling for her father's photography, ensured that she was no stranger to the camera. At Ysgol Emrys Ap Iwan Lisa excelled at music, dance and drama, while treading the boards in school theatre led to leading roles in their productions of 'Grease' and 'Bugsy Malone'. In spite of high aspirations, Lisa went through several jobs to earn extra money. Free cakes singled out her stint at a baker's as her favourite, while serving fries in McDonalds comes bottom - although the money from it enabled her to buy her first car. Despite thinking signs for road bumps meant camel humps, she passed her test and was able to leave the burgers behind - though she says she can still remember the prices by heart! At 17 she left Rhyl, having won a place at the prestigious London Conti Stage School, and after graduating went on tour as a professional singer & dancer. Meanwhile, in 1997 music television producer Tim Byrne was finding success with a project he had run for the soap 'Emmerdale'. A line-dancing song performed by the shows's band The Woolpackers had proved popular, and when research revealed that line -dancing classes were booming, it was quickly released as a single. To the surprise of everyone the song was a smash hit, and Byrne saw an opportunity to capitalise on the trend. With no one at the soap keen to follow it up, he placed an advertisement in 'The Stage' newspaper, announcing open auditions for a five-piece line-dancing pop group. Five thousand applications later Byrne had Lisa, Clare, Faye, 'H' and Lee on board for what was first seen as a 1-record project. The first 'Steps' single '5,6,7,8' was released in November 1997 and went on to spend 17 weeks in the UK Top 40. Throughout 2001 rumours persisted that the band were planning to split, with the release of 'GOLD', their greatest hits album, seen as a capstone to their success. The rumours were eventually proved true in December, when the band announced they were amicably splitting to 'pursue solo projects'. Steps had come to an abrupt, if unsurprising, end. Where this leaves Lisa is unclear, although she is involved in management, and is likely to stay in the public eye. She may even take to the stage... long-standing rumours of an autobiographical musical titled 'Where There's a Rhyl There's a Way' charting her early years remain unconfirmed... Moment of Glory: 2nd Jan 1999: After 8 weeks in the Top Ten Steps' double A-side single 'Tragedy / Heartbeat' finally reaches Number 1. Their first chart-topper spends 16 weeks in the Top 40, selling over a million copies. Off the Record: Lisa (and the rest of the band) on first hearing their debut song '5,6,7,8' thought it was extremely naff. The critics agreed. (BBC Wales) Faye's Step Away Style
HERE is former Steps star FAYE TOZER with her new look and new music partner. She has shed her spangly tops and glittery jeans for a more grown-up look after announcing she is to bring out a single with opera singer RUSSELL WATSON. The pair have recorded a duet called Someone Like You. It will be out in May. A pal of Fayes told me: She is unrecognisable from her Steps persona and pleased to finally show her true colours. (The Sun)
H & Claire Competition Winner
The winner of our H & Claire competition was Hayley Cameron from Glasgow. Dhe correctly answered the question, What was the name of the song that H & Claire duetted on at the end of the STEPS II The Stars series? It was of course 'I Wanna Be The Only One'. Well done to Hayley and there will be plenty more competitions soon! Sunday 3rd March 2002
Faye's New Video Shoot Faye will be shooting the video for her new single, 'Someone Like You' in London on Tuesday and Wednesday next week. The video will also feature her new musical partner Russell Watson. The song was actually previously recorded by Watson with Cleo Higgins who used to be in the girl band 'Cleopatara' and is included on his second album 'Encore'. Faye has already performed the track with Russell on stage at the CBBC Proms In The Park last summer whilst she was in STEPS and she has been performing it with him in various shows since the split.
Scott-Lee's Are The Family Of The Week They've been described as the Welsh version of The Corrs (only Lisa reckons they're even better!) so there's no wonder that The Big Breakfast have asked The Scott-Lee family to be their Family Of The Week. With four extremely talented children, Mum Jan and Dad Tony have got a lot to be proud about and now's their chance to really show off the family's star potential! The Scott-Lee's will be taking part from Monday 18th March every weekday morning on Channel 4 from 7.00am. Steppy Stuff If you've got a STEPS site or a site about a solo STEPSter and you want us to display your link then send it in to us at the usual address! Tuesday 5th March 2002
Faye Has Her Say
Faye Tozer hasn't spoken to former bandmates H and Claire Richards since STEPS split two months ago. Blonde Faye, 26, who is preparing to launch her solo career with oprea singer Russell Watson, admitted: "I've no idea what they are doing - it's quite sad." H - real name Ian Watkins - and Claire were the prime movers behind the acrimonious Boxing Day break up. They are now relaunching themselves as a duo. Meanwhile Faye and Watson's single 'Someone Like You' will be released in May. And she's also at the centre of record company bidding war.
"It's very exciting branching out, but it's also scary," she said. "I've got a drive to do stuff and this single is very different for me because it's a really big pop ballad but I have never done anything like this before." (Daily Express) Faye Gets A Flush From Saucy Proposel
Sexy STEPS star Faye Tozer has revealed that there is no way she will be taking up saucy men's mag Play Boy's offer of £1 million to reveal her finest assetts to her male fans. She told MTV that she would be far too embarrassed to do the naughty shoot and she didn't think that her Mum would approve of it. But she did admitt that she had been flattered by the indecent proposal and has even had the letter framed and hung on the wall of her bathroom! Faye isn't the first of the STEPS ladies to be offered large sums of money to strip off, in 2000 Lisa was offered over a £1 million to take part in a naked photo shoot and last year all three girls where offered a huge pay cheque to take part in a German porn movie!
Steppy Stuff
The H and Claire Zone on the site has got a bit of a new look, we'll be changing the Lisa and Faye Zones soon too. Obviously everything will really come togethjer when they all start releasing solo stuff. Thursday 7th March 2002
H & Claire To Attend Film Premiere This Sunday H and Claire will be attending the Ice Age premiere in support of Help A London Child.
On top of going to see the new cartoon adventure movie they will also be meeting some winners from Saturday's SM:TV competition. Should be a fun day all round! Sweden Beckons For Pop Duo It is now confirmed that H and Claire will be jetting off to Sweden next week to songwrite with Jorgen Elofsson.
Jorgen wrote one of STEPS' biggest hits - It's The Way You Make Me Feel - and has written many songs for a large number of big name celebrities including Sometimes for Britney Spears, Fool Again and If I Let You Go for Westlife. Steppy Stuff Faye and Jasper appear in a small article about the opening of Lady Victoria Hervey's new shop in Hello! magazine. Friday 8th March 2002
H & Claire's First Video Shoot Plans are already well underway for the H & Claire's first single.
Their video is to be shot in Miami towards the end of the month so that they will have DJ ready for your TV screens in time for Easter! Faye To Tour With Watson
Faye will be going on tour as a sprcial guest for her new showbiz pal Russell Watson. The tour which takes place in April and May will feature Faye's duet with Russell. The tour dates are below:
Tickets are still available for all shows and are priced from £20 each. You can buy them online at www.gigsandtours.com or phone 0871 220 0260. Steppy Stuff Saturday 9th March 2002
Possible Tracklisting For DJ According to Popworld the following tracklisting could be used for DJ, the forthcoming release from H & Claire: 1. DJ (radio mix) 3:34 2. DJ (instrumental) 3:34 3. As Long 4:04 We'll give you more deatails as we get them! Faye Is The Cream Of Manchester Opera singer Russell Watson has recorded a song with former STEPS star Faye Tozer. The unlikely duo got together in an industrial unit in Stockport this week to make the video. It's a new recording of Someone Like You, which Russell sang on his first album The Voice. Russell, who lives in Salford, said: "We met at the Children's BBC Proms in the Park last year and we met up recently after STEPS broke up and decided we wanted to give this song a blast. I originally sang it with Cleopatra on my first album, although we have made it more of a pop song. It's a great opportunity for both me and Faye - she is just starting off on her own and I want to branch out into different styles." For Faye, the video - which is based on the story of two lovers torn apart - is child's play compared to the 20-hour days of a Steps filming session. Faye said: "It's great to be here in Manchester working with Russell, and a lot calmer to the shoots that I am used to with millions of make-up artists dashing around. This single is a great way to take a side step from my pop career and try something different. I'm having a great time - Russell is a really funny guy." Manchester TV company Equinox made the video, which was directed by Midge Ure, once of Ultravox. (Manchester Evening News) Steppy Stuff Lisa's brother's band, 3SL, will be relaesing their debut single, 'Take It Easy' on Monday 8th April 2002. Let's hope it's a huge hit! The site has got a bit of a colour change for the spring, it was looking a bit wintery with all the blacks and reds so we decided to lighten the mood with some gorge new pics and colours! Sunday 10th March 2002 H and Claire's record deal will be signed next Monday when they will also announce the record company they have signed with. Things are certainly hotting up for the duo! Lisa and Johnny's STEPS To Love Johnny Shentall has hit the headlines since joining Hear'Say, but it's offstage that he is happiest - with ex-Steps star Lisa Scott- Lee, as CAROLINE BARRETT reports HEAR'SAY'S new boy Johnny Shentall never had a serious girlfriend until he met ex-Steps star Lisa Scott-Lee. The 23-year-old hunk, who beat off 5,000 hopefuls for a place in the Popstars band, was so determined to make his name as a performer that work was more important than romance. But all that changed when he met stunning singer Lisa three years ago - and fell head-over-heels in love. When he took her to his home town of Doncaster, S Yorks to introduce her to his family and mates, everyone was bowled over by the change in the lad who had lived for dancing. "It was love at first sight,"grins Johnny's best friend, Victor Heath. "Normally he would do all the usual laddish things with us, but his dance routines and competitions would come first. Then he came down to London to study dance and met Lisa. It was love!" Victor, 33, from Bentley, remembers Johnny being the Billy Elliott of Doncaster, ignoring jeers and taunts to be the only boy attending classes at the local dancing school "He chose a career that many men would look on as sissy, but he always loved dancing," says Victor. "He got ridiculed, but the insults only strengthened him." Those dancing classes, which Johnny took from the age of six, paid off when he made it to the finals of an audition for Steps. They were looking for dancers for their first-ever tour and as soon as the cheeky guy with the spiky hair appeared, Lisa knew he was something special. Lisa, 26, says: "I was there with the girls, Claire and Faye, and Johnny walked in. I immediately said, `He's got the job'." The pair, who now live in Windsor, had eyes only for each other from that minute. "At the end of the tour, we didn't want to say goodbye, so we never did," says Lisa. Johnny, 23, says: "I thought Lisa was absolutely gorgeous when we first met. It was definitely love at first sight." Johnny proposed on Valentine's Day last year while the couple were on a dinner and dance cruise up and down the Thames. "There was a room full of people having their dinners and Johnny called me over to sit on his knee," recalls Lisa. "He started saying lovely things, and I said: `If you're doing what I think you're doing, you should be on your knee.' "So he got down on one knee in front of the whole restaurant and pulled out this beautiful ring and asked me to marry him. I cried for about five minutes. "I didn't even speak because I was so overwhelmed and the ring was so beautiful." The happy couple called their families to break the news, then told their mates in Steps. Lisa says: "We told the band after our families. The guys were wonderful. Faye's engaged so she got straight on the phone to Jasper, her fiance. He came down to meet us with the biggest bunch of flowers I've ever seen. It was quite emotional and I'm sure Claire had a little tear in her eye." In the frantic world of pop, the pair still manage to keep in touch at all times. Johnny says: "We like to speak on the phone about five times a day. "We understand each other and I know if Lisa has had a bad day she might need a hug when she comes home. It's hard when we spend time apart, but you've got to give each other space." Lisa adds: "I've had long relationships before, but nothing like this. I knew straight away that he was the one for me and I've never thought that before." Johnny, who used to be in the boy band Boom, didn't tell any of his mates back home about dating a singer from a group with 13 top five hits. "He just introduced her as Lisa so we didn't know who she was," says Victor. "They're so compatible, like soul mates. They have a good laugh together and he fancies her rotten. "He's a loyal guy and has always wanted to settle. He's traditional in wanting to support and provide for his partner. He is mature enough to get married." It was Johnny who supported Lisa after the shock split of Steps, which came just after Christmas. Victor recalls: "When everything happened it was hard for her, but she's fine with it now and has no regrets. "Johnny's delighted about joining Hear'Say, but still finds it strange - Lisa has finished with Steps and now he has got his big break so the tables are turned. He feels like the superstar at home now, even though she's got her own plans." Victor is certain that fame will not go to his mate's head. "He's too friendly and down to earth and Lisa will be used to not seeing him much because she was always away herself. "He supported her when she was in Steps and Lisa is now absolutely delighted he's in Hear'Say. It is a real winning set-up." There will be more updates later in the day including a new edition of Talking Point so if you want to have your say on anything you've got a couple of hours to get your mails into us!
Monday 11th March Step Outta My Way!
IF you want to avoid meeting old enemies then DONT all go to the cinema on the same day. But dozy STEPS did just that yesterday at the London premiere of animated flick The Ice Age.
Wednesday 13th March H & Claire Live @ G.A.Y If you're looking forward to seeing H and Claire perform live again then it's time to get excited. The duo are booked to appear at the G-A-Y nightclub on Saturday May 4th. They will be launching their single DJ (due for release on the following Monday) with a performance of the track at their very first live PA. H & Claire V Faye & Russell It looks like Monday 6th May will be D-Day for three of the ex STEPS stars. H and Claire are releasing their new single 'DJ' and Faye is releasing her collabaration with Russell Watson 'Someone Like You' on the same day! This bound to attract media attention and will no doubt be billed as the biggest chart battle of the year. Catching Up With H & Claire H and Claire have now signed and completed their record deal. The record company they signed with is WEA London Records. The guys are very excited and looking forward to starting work again. They had two photo shoots for the front covers of magazines yesterday morning, signed their record deal and then flew out to Switzerland to record and song write with Jorgen Elofssen so they started back at work again with a bang!
Saturday 16th March Faye's Fears For Release Date
Lisa will be appearing on the same billing as former STEPS colleagues H & Claire. They will al be at Bristol City's Football Ground on 25th May to perform in a pop concert. H & Claire will be ther to promote their new single and Lisa will be there with her brother 3SL. Also appearing at the show are Blue, Mis-Teeq and LibertyX. STEPS Haven't Spoken Since Split Ex STEPS beauty, Faye Tozer, has told how she is devastated at the split of the band and how sad she is that she hasn't spoken to any of the other members since December. Faye tells the new issue of Heat magazine that she has no idea what her ex band mates are up to as she hasn't spoken to any of them since December. 'The last time I saw the guys was on the last night of our Greatest Hits Tour in Manchester, I've had no contact with any of them since and I find that very sad. We were like family for five years and now I couldn't tell you what any of them doing with their lives. I do miss them but you have to move on and I guess that's what they're all doing." Faye who releases her debut single, a collabaration with Opera star Russel Watson, in May also says she's being kept busy recording a new album. "I've been in the studio recording some new stuff, it's great to start from scratch but very scary. I think my new stuff will surprise a lot of people because it's not what you'd expect me to do - it's very Natalie Imbruglia inspired indie rock. Will my fans like it? I hope so! I like it anyway and I can't wait to see the reaction of my fans when I perform it for them."(The Daily Record)
Sunday 17th March Battle Of The Babes Warring pop starlets Faye Tozer and Claire Richards will go head to head in the battle for No.1 when they release their new singles on the same day.
Tuesday 19th March New 'Lisa' Life For STEPS Babe EX STEPS babe Lisa Scott-Lee has told the Big Breakfast that she thanks band mates Claire Richards and Ian 'H' Watkins for quitting the top selling pop act because it's given her a new lease of life. Lisa, 27, of Rhyl North Wales, also said that she hasn't spoken to either of them since they handed in the resignations after a Christmas concert in Manchester. She claims that although she still speaks to the other members, Faye Tozer and Lee Latchford-Evans, she hasn't uttered a word to the pair whom she blames for the split. Richards and Watkins have just signed a £4m album deal with WEA as a duo and are heavily tipped by music insiders to be the most successful of the ex STEPS stars. Lisa is set to embark on a solo career, but as yet remains unsigned by any record company. (The Daily Post)
You Back Both Girls Following the article in the News Of The World about the ever growing feud between Faye and Claire , we asked you which babe you'd be backing and it seems you're split on it. We reciebved over 500 votes and in the end it eneded up 51% for Claire and 49% for Faye it's certainly going to be interesting when the girls go head to head in the charts at the beginning of May.
Wednesday 20th March H & Claire Land SM:TV Job | ||||||||||||||
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IT'S one of the most prized jobs in children's television. And when 3am exclusively revealed that former Hollyoaks actor James Redmond had been sacked as host of hit kids show SM:tv, the race was on to see who would take over. But now, less than a week after James was given his marching orders, the decision has been made.
Step forward former Steps, er, singers H (known to his parents as Ian Watkins) and Claire Richards. The dynamic pop duo - who have just signed a £4million record deal with WEA - will join Cat Deeley, Brian Dowling and Tess Daly on the show next month. And almost as soon as H and Claire (known to her parent as Claire) join the team, head girl Cat will be off pastures new. Last night, excited H told 3am: "It's a real privilege to be able to be a pop star and a TV presenter at the same time." Well, a TV presenter anyway. Claire added: "I'm so excited. It's a dream come true."Conor McAnally, director of entertainment programming at Blaze Television who make the show, added: "H and Claire have been SM:tv regulars for years and are extremely popular with viewers. "They have a great sense of humour and really enjoy what they do. They are the perfect choice to join the SM:tv team and continue our success story." Redmond, 28, who replaced the mighty Ant and Dec, was kicked into touch just 24 hours after we revealed that he thought all was not well on the show. But despite its recent upheavals, the ITV programme is still trouncing its BBC rival The Saturday Show. Last weekend SM:tv pulled in 1.7 million viewers compared with the Beeb's paltry 800,000.(The Mirror)
Former Steps stars Claire and H are taking over from James Redmond as hosts of SM:tv Live.
FORMER STEPS stars CLAIRE and H will take over from JAMES REDMOND as hosts of SM:tv Live. The pair, who recently signed a£4million deal with WEA records, will present the show with Brian Dowling and Tess Daly. Claire said: Its a dream come true. (The Sun)
Steps survivors Ian Watkins and Claire Richards will replace ousted actor James Redmond as hosts of SM:tv. H & Claire emerged from the Steps split in the New Year with plans to launch as a duo and have signed a £4 million deal with WEA Records. Now the twosome will join hosts Tess Daly and Brian Dowling at the end of March. Redmond was sacked last week as host of SM:tv and cd:uk, after a newspaper reported complaints that his taste in music and style of presenting was met with constant criticism from the show's bosses. Talking to the Daily Mirror, H expressed his excitement of the prospect, he said: 'It's a real privilege to be able to be a pop star and a TV presenter at the same time.' 'I'm so excited. It's a dream come true,' added Claire. H & Claire are also busy with prepping their debut single, DJ. The song is pegged for a May release, with a date yet to be fixed. Blaze Television's Conor McAnally believes that the duo will be well received by viewers. He said: 'H & Claire have been SM:tv regulars for years and are extremely popular with viewers. They are the perfect choice to join the SM:tv team and continue our success story.' H & Claire will be performing live at G-A-Y on 4 May. (World Pop)
Thursday 21st March H Is Out For The Count Former STEPS singer IAN 'H' WATKINS was punched by an angry Welsh fan because the lad thought the first STEPS single was awful. H's dad revealed the story to STEREOPHONICS frontman KELLY JONES. Kelly said: "He told me H went to a wedding in the Rhondda where some boy whacked him and said, 'That's for 5, 6, 7, 8'." (The Sun)
Lisa Bigs It Up With The Staines Massive Lisa was in London's Leicester Square, last night, at the Empire Cinema's Premiere for the new Ali G movie. She may not have been too pleased with Ali's parliamentry manifesto though as it seems he doesn't think much of her home country..."The first thing I would do would be to get rid of Wales - I would swap it for Jamaica."
Steppy Stuff We've been busy sorting a few pages on the site out to make room for all the new solo info that will be going up when they all start releasing stuff. The Gold newsletter is out today and also there should be a new edition of Talking Point later on - check the what's new pages for more details.
Saturday 23rd March H & Claire Shine In Miami H & Claire jetted off to Miami on Wednesday to film the video for their first single DJ which is to be released on May 6.
Summer Roadshow Dates H & Claire are already confirmed for some of the summer roadshows, so you'll soon be able to see them performing live in a town near you. Confirmed dates as follows: 25 May - Bristol City Football Club, Aston Gate Stadium, Bristol There are loads of others which we'll let you know about as soon as they are confirmed. (www.handclaire.com)
Sm:tv News As you all know H and Claire will be the new presenters of sm:tv from next month, so we'll be working an sm:tv section for the site, more details to follow....
Tuesday 26th March
H's Video Shoot Diary
Hellooo to you all. As you know we're currently in Miami and we're having the time of our lives. It's so amazing over here- our new record company is really looking after us. Claire and I had a great time on the flight watching movies on individual video players. Claire watched American Pie 2 and I watched a really scary horror movie, 13 Ghosts. I love any vampire or spooky ghost movie. We were met at Miami airport by a huge white stretch limo which took us to Miami Beach where we're staying in a fabulous hotel overlooking the beach with an incredible swimming pool. There's an amazing fitness centre I've visited every day for my daily work out (well, everybody is so body-conscious over here, you've got to do your bit haven't you?).
Wednesday we chilled out and spent Thursday at a dance rehearsal studio working with our new choreographer, Dan Karaty. Dan is only 22 but has already choreographed NSync, Britney Spears and Kylie Minogue's "In Your Eyes". He is incredible and has devised such a cool routine to DJ - much harder than any previous routine we've done but it looks amazing. We have 4 dancers from Los Angeles in the video - some of the top dancers in the whole world. At the end of the choreography day I was so knackered I went for a jacuzzi and massage but Claire went out with Jackie, our makeup artist, for dinner on Ocean Drive which is crammed full with amazing restaurants and art deco hotels.
On Friday we headed out to the video shoot location in Fort Lauderdale. We hired a huge, very glamorous, Italian-style villa on the waterfront. It's owned by the Budweiser beer family and looks like the kind of place Donatella Versace would throw a party at. The video starts with Claire stepping off a huge white speedboat on the dock alongside the house; she then joins me in an Italian garden. We had 40 "extras" including the most incredibly beautiful models chosen from agencies in Miami and all looking like supermodels! The styling in our video is stunning. Our stylist Faye Sawyer got most of the clothes from Dolce & Gabanna and spent a fortune -Claire's shoes alone cost over £1,000. She also wore some incredibly valuable diamonds lent to us by Mouawad.
The second half of the video is based by a swimming pool with swimmers in the pool and a really cool DJ playing at the decks. Fat Boy Slim is in town but we couldn't find him to get him to do a cameo role... Director Patrick Kiely (who also directed Chain Reaction for Steps) had a waterfall built and stood a girl swimmer underneath as water poured all over her. We did the dance routine with dancers by the pool and all the extras around us as the director filmed through the waterfall. A late finish at 4am and headed straight to bed. On Saturday we filmed an interview with BBC Liquid News on the beach then hit the shops with Jackie, Faye, our hair stylist Jenny and manager Tim Byrne. Claire splashed out on new sunglasses and I picked up a shirt by Swedish designer J Lindeberg having seen the exact same one in his shop in Stockholm last week. Claire and I are getting on even better than ever- she's a fantastic best friend. We're in Miami for another week to have meetings with songwriter Andreas Carlsson (who wrote Here and Now and Words Are Not Enough) and producer Brian Rawling - we're going with Brian to meet Barry Gibb at his Miami home. How cool is that! Actually we know we are very, very lucky and we really appreciate how fortunate we are. If it wasn't for the people who support us (you!) we wouldn't be here so thank you, thank you, thank you! Loads of love, H xx (www.handclaire.com)
DJ Mixes
Almighty and Xenomania are thought to have remixed H & Claire's debut single DJ. The single will be released on Monday 6th May but we don't know whether it will be on 2 CDs or 1 CD at the momnet...more on that as we get it.
(Thanks to Becka)
Steppy Stuff
Don't forget that Gold (or The Very Best Of STEPS) is out in the US right now so if you're an American fan don't forget to go and get your copy now!
Also it's time for the FHM Top 100 Sexiest Women Poll and we want you to vote like crazy for the beautiful STEPS ladies, Lisa, Faye and Claire! All you have to do is point your browser towards www.fhm.com then click on Girls and then click on 100 Sexiest and fill in your voting form it's as easy as that!!
Thursday 28th March
Pre-Order Faye's Single
You can pre-order a copy of Faye's new single 'Someone Like You' at www.amazon.co.uk
Someone Like You
Friday 29th March
DJ Now On The Box
The brilliant video to H and Claire's new single, DJ, is currently playing on The Box.
You can request it by ringing 09067 533 400 and requesting Bo No.505 Remember to ask the permission of whoever pays the phone bill. We'll keep an eye on MTV to see if it's being shown on there too, that's if it's not an exclusive to The Box. I have to say I think it's even better than anything they've done with STEPS, the song is amazing, the dance routine is slick and H and Claire look gorgeous - you will not be dissapointed! Steppy Stuff
The new issue of CD:UK has a few steppy bits in it. There's an interview with 3SL which Lisa features on and a small chat with Claire.
The Talking Point page has been updated so check that out. Also there's a few other new things but check the What's new page for more details.
Sunday 31st March
DJ Tracklisting
We got a promo copy of H and Claire's new single DJ yesterday and the tracklisting on it was as follows:
1. DJ
2. DJ (Almighty Mix)
3. DJ (Kool De Sac Mix)
We've also heard that there's a Graham Sack Extended Mix available so it may well be released on 2 CDs!
To hear a 30 second clip of the Almighty Remix go to www.handclaire.com/sound/almighty.ram
Don't forget to visit our DJ special!
Brian Welcomes H & Claire
With news that former Steps stars H & Claire are to replace the doomed James Redmond on SM:tv, regular host Brian Dowling has admitted that he and Tess Daly are gearing-up for their arrival.
Speaking in his weekly page in Heat magazine, the flamboyant former Big Brother contestant said: "They will be joining me and Tess on the SM:tv sofa from April 13th. I shall start pointing out the emergency exits, tour guide Tess can whirl them around the studio and cat can share the biscuit tin for once."
Brian also issued the duo with a friendly warning, namely, "No more late Friday nights for you two, mind - the 5.00 am Saturday rise does nothing fro one's complexion, believe me. But beware: go anywhere near my morning tea an toast and hair will fly!" (The Post)
Poll Results
What do you think of the news that Faye's new single will be a duo with opera singer Russel Watson?
It's great - it'll sound fab
It's OK - it might be alright
It'll be terrible - arggh!
There's a new poll on the Poll Position page - Who's single will you be buying? | | |
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