Sir Grayson Perry is known for his ceramics and eye-catching dress sense, but now he’s trying something new — penning a musical about his life.
The artist, above, has been working on a fictionalised musical project for a few years and already has more than a dozen tunes. The 63-year-old is collaborating with Richard Thomas, who wrote Jerry Springer: the Opera, and a musical about the life of Playboy model Anna Nicole Smith.
Perry may draw on his difficult childhood for inspiration. When he was four, his mother left his father for the milkman. He then moved between his parents’ homes, creating an imaginative life around his teddy, Alan Measles. Perry later started dressing as a woman and was thrown out of his stepmother’s home for wearing her clothes. He dresses as his alter-ego, Claire, on the London party scene.
The artist is interested in modern masculinity and has presented shows on the subject for TV. In 2007, he wrote an autobiography, Portrait of the Artist as a Young Girl.
Speaking to the Art Newspaper, Perry said the musical is going to be “dead traditional”, adding: “We’ve written 14 or 15 songs already.” He plans to open in Birmingham in 2025.
F1 row: Delevingne puts her foot down in
Cara Delevingne has explained why she refused an interview live on air with Sky Sports at the Formula 1 Grand Prix yesterday, saying she was “told to say no”.
The model and actress, left, twice told Sky’s Martin Brundle “no” when he tried to approach her at Silverstone, before saying she couldn’t “hear anything, sorry”. Brundle then sarcastically said he was “sure it would have been very interesting”, creating a viral moment online. Delevingne retweeted a post which claimed Brundle was trying “to manufacture the moment for the controversy” and another accusing him of being rude.
She wrote: “I was told to say no, so I did.” She added: “I had so much fun today and was so happy to be there no matter what anyone else may think.”
In da... Somali restaurant
Party like it’s your birthday: 50 Cent was in town for Wireless Festival over the weekend. He celebrated his 48th birthday with pals Dr Dre and Jimmy Iovine at Somali restaurant The Village in Hammersmith.
Glory Days with Bruce and John Kerry
There’s a reason they call him The Boss. Bruce Springsteen brought together an unlikely group of fans for his concert in Hyde Park as part of BST festival on Saturday night. US comedian Chelsea Handler shared these pictures of a motley crew enjoying the gig: Katy Perry, Orlando Bloom, Dame Emma Thompson and jeweller Irene Neuwirth partied with comedy royalty Judd Apatow and Leslie Mann. They were joined by a surprising face: former US secretary of state John Kerry, who was also Dancing in the Dark.
Elsewhere this weekend, model Leomie Anderson and rapper Stefflon Don were at a Spotify party in collaboration with US musician Ice Spice at Cirque Le Soir in Soho. On Saturday, actor Will Poulter and diver Tom Daley Dior Tears pop-up launch party.
