Welsh pop icon Charlotte Church has revealed the impact that her party girl media image had on her grandmother. The star, now 35, will appear on Kate Garraway's Life Stories tonight, February 17, as she reflects on her teenage life.
The Masked Singer finalist shot to fame at the very young age of 11. At this age, she sang Andrew Lloyd Webber's Pie Jesu over the phone live on This Morning.
Church was then invited to sing the Latin song at Rupert Murdoch's wedding in 1999, before going on to perform on ITV's 'The Big, Big Talent Show'. During her episode of Kate Garraway's Life Stories, she opens up to the Good Morning Britain presenter on what it was like to be in the spotlight as a teenager, The Mirror reports.
Read more: Charlotte Church - why I ate raw potato as a child
Kate Garraway, who has taken over the role of presenting Life Stories from Piers Morgan, asked the singer about her decision to leave home at 16, when she left school. Charlotte said: "It was a big thing and not many 16-year-olds were in the position I was.
“I knew financially I could do it and I think a lot of 16-year-olds would make that choice if they thought that they could - would get a groovy flat with their friends.”
Kate also added that this was around the time that Charlotte began smoking, saying that it wasn't a 'great idea' for her to pick up the habit. Charlotte agreed with Kate, and said her habit was mostly down to peer pressure.
Opening up on her teenage years in Cardiff, Charlotte said: "You've got to put me in my context, which is an impressionable young girl who's trying to fit in. There was no conscious rebellion.
“The only thing I rebelled against was celebrity. My rebellion was, ‘I will be normal, I will have this life I'm supposed to have’. This life of Charlotte in Cardiff with her friends.
“This whole showbusiness nonsense, which is a facade, isn't my life. By hook or by crook I was going to have that life, no matter what the papers said.”
She added: “My nan used to say, ‘Oh please love, if you have a drink with your friends, just stay home and have a drink with your friends. Why do you have to go out clubbing? I've got to go to church on a Sunday. Why do you have to wear that? Can't you just wear something a little bit below the knee?’
“And I would be like, ‘No, I've got to do exactly what I want’.”
Kate Garraway's Life Stories featuring Charlotte Church airs tonight, February 17, on ITV and ITV Hub at 9pm.
