Readers digest UK TruePDF march 2019

COVER ILLUSTRATION © DANNY ALLISONMARCH 2019 • 1 16 IT’S A MANN’S WORLD Olly Mann ponders Britain’s unique relationship with booze ENTERTAINMENT SIMON AMSTELL The actor and comedian o

COVER ILLUSTRATION © DANNY ALLISON

MARCH 2019 • 1

16 IT’S A MANN’S WORLD

Olly Mann ponders Britain’s

unique relationship with booze

ENTERTAINMENT

SIMON AMSTELL

The actor and comedian on

overcoming his fear of intimacy

and finding inner peace

28 “I REMEMBER”:

SUZI QUATRO

The rock star looks back on

her fascinating life and career

38 BEATING ARRHYTHMIA

More than 2 million people in

the UK experience irregular

heartbeat—are you one of them?

56 PARENTS SAYING NO

Could mental health troubles

actually improve your parenting?

64 LISTEN UP

Amazing facts about the human

ear and the fascinating

We explore the houses of some

of Britain’s most vibrant artists

TRAVEL & ADVENTURE

Each month Reader’s Digest navigate the woes and wonders of modern life, weighing in with

leading experts on the everyday tools we need to survive and thrive in 2019

To subscribe to Digested for monthly episodes—including our latest,

“The Happy Ever After Myth”—visit readersdigest.co.uk/podcast

or search “Digested” on iTunes

MARCH 2019 • 3

8 Over to You

12 See the World Differently

46 Advice: Susannah Hickling

50 Column: Dr Max Pemberton

102 Column: Andy Webb

FOOD & DRINK

106 Tasty recipes and ideas

from Rachel Walker

HOME & GARDEN

110 Column: Cassie Pryce

FASHION & BEAUTY

114 Column: Lisa Lennkh on how to look your best

127 Books That Changed

My Life: Peter May

T HE U NTOLD S TORY OF THE W ITCHES OF O Z

Acclaimed as “the hit musical with brains, heart

and courage” (The Sunday Telegraph), the multi

award-winning musical phenomenon is now celebrating

12 spellbinding years in the West End This celebrated

production transports audiences to a stunningly

re-imagined world of Oz, providing wonders beyond

the imagination…

Ingeniously re-imagining the stories and characters created by L Frank Baum in ‘The Wonderful Wizard

of Oz’, WICKED tells the incredible untold story of

an unlikely friendship between two sorcery students Their extraordinary adventures in Oz will ultimately

see them fulfi l their destinies as Glinda The Good and the Wicked Witch of the West Wicked Witch of the West Wicked Witch of the West

“ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR WEST END MUSICALS EVER.”Evening Standard

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SENIOR EDITORS Anna Walker, Eva Mackevic

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MARCH 2019 • 7

In This Issue…

Holidaying in Amsterdam in January, I was surprised

by the proliferation of casual cannabis use in the city

Of course, I knew that the drug was decriminalised, but I wasn’t prepared for the sheer volume of “coffeeshops” (where patrons can legally smoke the weed) and cannabis-infused products—from lollipops, to bath salts, to herbal teas—that were readily available to the passing tourist It was hard to avoid the nagging

thought—if cannabis use has been so readily and smoothly accepted in the Netherlands, what exactly is all the fuss about back home? On p70, Californian writer Danielle Simone Brand asks

just that, explaining the effect legalisation has had on her home state, and musing on whether Britain is close to making the same move

Ever since I watched one of his stand-up shows many years

ago, I’ve been a big fan of Simon Amstell I was struck by his

unique brand of boldness, lightning wit, and the willingness

to expose his most vulnerable self to the world, turning his

weaknesses into an ample source of comedy and growth

rather than a reason for self-flagellation As expected, our

conversation turned out to be one of the most unusual

interviews I’ve ever done To be in Simon’s presence is to

witness an incredibly complex but kind human mind that’s constantly running at breakneck speed Read all about his discerning yet giggly

musings on life, love and intimacy in the modern age on p20

Anna

Eva

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Over To You

LETTERS ON THE JANUARY ISSUE

We pay £50 for Letter of the Month and £30 for all others

Letter of

THE MONTH

I have just been reintroduced to

your magazine after an

abstention of a number of years

and I have to say, I had

forgotten how good and

interesting the articles are

I couldn’t put your January

issue down until I had finished it

I found the short article by

Jonathon Hancock, in relation to

memory training, particularly

interesting and a little poignant

I come from a family who are

susceptible to Alzheimer’s

disease in old age (I lost my

father two years ago to this

terrible illness) and while I

accept the genetically likely

consequences, I do not believe

in its inevitability The

old adage of “use it or lose it” is

as true today as it has always been The brain is a muscle that must regularly be exercised I have just acquired the Twitter app on my mobile so that I can access your daily challenge.For the same reason I enjoyed your review, “The Art of Ageing”

on Carl Honore’s book which I

am considering purchasing Doesn’t life seem better when

we adopt a positive approach?Well, I will go and organise

my Reader’s Digest subscription right away!

Mel Ogden, North Lincolnshire

R E A D E R ’ S D I G E S T

A MAN OF MANY LIVES

I found Don McCullin’s “I Remember”

absolutely riveting! Such modesty, yet

a life truly lived on the edge Each of

his memories was so evocative, from

growing up in Britain during the war

with the realities of being a school-boy

in London, then an evacuee in the

countryside, to how he came to be a

photographer, and the different

civilisations he has been a part of

around the globe

It made me reflect on how lucky I

am to have been born in this time This

year, I’ve resolved to get more involved

with cultural activities Soon, I shall be

meeting up with old school friends in

London, and I will suggest that before

we go for afternoon tea, we must visit

Sir Don’s exhibition at the Tate Britain

Catherine Lucas, Hampshire

MARCH 2019 • 9

THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT GINGE

I was very amused to read your article, “You’ve Got To Be Kitten Me” I found myself in the same situation with my own mature feline friend who needed the company of another cat

We had home checks—which the cattery insisted on—and into our life came little Lola, a new companion to

a very disgruntled Ginge, who thought, I’m doing very nicely, thank you very much, who is this creature you’ve brought to my house? Fortunately, the amount of hackles are reducing and the hissing appears

to have stopped

Good article and it made me howl with laughter

Marie Smith, Leicestershire

THE DYNAMIC DUO

I wanted to say just how much I enjoyed your interview with Steve Coogan I was particularly fascinated by Steve’s observations about Stan Laurel’s

obsessive nature, and his inability to “switch off” from comedy even when his famous partnership with Hardy was flagging After reading

the interview I couldn’t wait to see Stan and Ollie Laurel

and Hardy performed in my home town as part of that

fated tour, and I was interested to discover what went

on behind the scenes Coogan certainly shares Stan

Laurel’s comic talent In spite of the film’s emotional

storyline, I was still chuckling throughout I will certainly

be going back to watch the original skits

Amber Phillips, Essex

O V E R T O Y O U

10 • MARCH 2019

HOME COMFORTS

Helen Sanderson’s “Ask the Expert”

interview on de-cluttering really

struck a chord with me Since having

my third baby last August we have

been planning a loft and a garage

conversion and I’ve been on a quest

to de-clutter our house It’s incredible

how many things we accumulate that

are “lost” in cupboards My strategies

for decluttering are: passing things on

to friends or family, selling anything of

value, taking old clothes to a charity

shop (they even take rags, which are

weighed and they earn 50p per kilo)

or putting things on sites such as Freecycle, where people will come to collect from your house

While it would be so easy to just put everything into the bin, it’s our responsibility to recycle and avoid waste which will end up in landfill sites With three children, it will no doubt be an ongoing process, but

at least I have made a start

Susannah Harrison, East Sussex

SEXUAL HEALING

I found Amanda Riley’s article “Sex After

50” in the January issue very moving as

so many of the comments resonated

with my own experience

I’m in my mid-fifties and, like Aggie

MacKenzie and Sarah Morris, I hadn’t had

sex for around ten years I was happy enough

but then, just over a year ago, I began a

relationship I was anxious about stripping off and

whether I’d be any good after a ten-year gap What I

discovered was that none of that mattered because having

sex was now more about intimacy, being at ease with one another and, most importantly, relaxing and enjoying it Sex in later life is different to the

enthusiastic athleticism of youth It can be just as passionate, but somehow more intimate, more caring and delightfully enjoyable

Denise Morton, Nottinghamshire

Send letters to readersletters@readersdigest.co.uk

Please include your full name, address, email and daytime phone number

We may edit letters and use them in all print and electronic media From You

WE WANT

TO HEAR

Idrink alcohol every night, but

I’m not much of a drinker In

Britain, this isn’t especially

contradictory We inhabit such a

boozy nation that someone like

me—who takes wine with most

meals, welcomes each weekend with

a G&T, and even subscribes to a craft

beer club, for goodness sake—can

comfortably herald himself “not

much of a drinker.” Since I rarely

embark upon an evening with the

sole intention of knocking back shots

until I can’t remember my name,

I identify as not much of a drinker

Mind you, our nation’s

relationship with drunkenness is

subtly shifting: millenials are

spurning the sauce to keep hold of

I T ’ S A M A N N ’ S W O R L D

their cash and their friendly abs, and middle-aged personalities such as Clare Pooley (in

Instagram-her book, The Sober Diaries) and

Adrian Chiles (in his documentary,

Drinkers Like Me) are questioning

whether their middle-class, Waitrose-style drinking is as addictive and potentially life-ruining

as the Wetherspoon variety (answer: almost certainly) Meanwhile, “Dry January” is growing in popularity, for reasons I cannot fathom Why would you voluntarily reject the liquid solace that offers the only relief from the dampest, dankest, darkest, most depressing month of drudgery

we face? Can’t we just do Dry September, instead?

If I have a problem—and I’m not saying I do, folks, I’m just indulging

in a bit of exploratory thinking here—it’s that I’ve mentally adjoined alcohol with an ever-increasing roster of events Champagne for Valentine’s Day Prosecco for

This month, Olly Mann, who’s not much of a drinker, raves about his favourite cocktail in the world

Mastering

The Martini

Olly Mann presents

Four Thought for

BBC Radio 4, and the award-winning

podcasts The Modern

Mann and Answer

Me This!

16 • MARCH 2019

See the world

TURN THE PAGE…

In the evening, when the temperatures

in Bangkok are at least a little more agreeable, the gates open to the Talad Rot Fai Night Market It has roughly

2000 stalls which offer everything from antique cars to Japanese action figures—in fact there is very little here that can’t be found, that is, outside of

a train Ironically enough “Talad Rot Fai” translated actually means “train market” This name derives from the fact that the location was once directly next to the train tracks When the railway company decided to expand, the market simply moved to a new location, taking its name with it

…differently

I T ’ S A M A N N ’ S W O R L D

more often) The Dirty Martini matches the glamour of its rival cocktails—it’s shaken over ice, it comes in its own classy little glass—but it’s not sweet, or naff, or bright orange It’s just a proper hard hit of cold spirit, with a savoury olive kick When I’m in the States I drink it is

as often as possible (but never before 6pm, because that would mean I have an alcohol problem—and, as I’ve explained, I’m not much of a drinker.) You can go to virtually any bar over there—in an airport, a

casino, or at the side

of the motorway—and get an exceptional Dirty Martini I like mine with vodka rather than gin, a twist of lemon and “extra dirty,” ie, with about two tablespoons of brine

in it—which is disgusting when you think about it, but I don’t think about it,

I just drink it

But I’ve struggled to find a comparable one in the UK

Obviously it’s not a regular order down at the Dog and Duck, and that’s to be expected, but I’ve really scoured London—The Ivy, the American Bar at the Savoy, even a bar in City that’s actually called Dirty Martini—and I’ve yet to find one as perfect

birthdays Pimm’s in the summer

Mulled wine at Christmas; well, all

December, really Beer with a

barbecue Port with cheese Cocktails

on a Friday night Sherry in the trifle

An aperitif while cooking—lager

shandy if it’s something spicy Aperol

Spritz when I’m on a plane—with a

Bailey’s nightcap if transatlantic

Drinks when a colleague switches

jobs, drinks for football, drinks for

Eurovision, drinks for the theatre,

drinks in the interval, drinks drinks

drinks The only time this strikes me

as truly problematic is when I

observe myself rushing to tuck my

son into bed so I can begin the

night’s drinking But I shove that

concern to the back of my

in in love with the Dirty

Martini I can’t recall when I

first encountered it, but I

suspect it was after Mad Men (I

used to just drink beer and

wine, but when I saw Mad Men,

and all those cool guys in suits

glugging bourbon and

whisky and petrol, I

found myself reaching

for the cocktail cabinet

18 • MARCH 2019

R E A D E R ’ S D I G E S T

as I routinely enjoy in the US So,

I started to make them at home

I add two parts vodka to one part

vermouth, shake over ice, add a

spritz of lemon bitters, rim the glass

with lemon and serve with an olive,

a slice of lemon and LOADS of brine

I’m very proud of my Dirty Martini

All my friends have been forced to try

one I’ve been drinking it, probably

MARCH 2019 • 19

“When I saw Mad Men,

and all those cool guys in

suits glugging bourbon,

I found myself reaching

for the cocktail cabinet

more often”

twice a week, for at least five years.But then, last week, I stumbled across an online article about my favourite tipple, and suddenly realised for all this time I’ve been USING THE WRONG VERMOUTH! I’ve been casually buying Martini Bianco whenever I trudge through Duty Free, but apparently that’s a

“sweet, pale vermouth best served with tonic water,” and for a “real” Dirty Martini I should be using dry vermouth, such as Noilly Prat

I have taken this news badly, immediately spending £15 in the supermarket buying the “right” kind

of vermouth, to make sure no more evenings of sipping Dirty Martinis are WASTED

But who can blame me for this schoolboy error? I’m not much of a drinker, after all n

FACTS OF THE STAGE

Shakespeare’s Globe is the only building in London allowed to have a

thatched roof since the Great Fire in 1666

Prior to becoming Pope, Pope John Paul II wrote a play called The Jeweller’s

Shop which played the Westminster Theatre in 1982

William Shakespeare once lived in a house on the present day site of The

Barbican CentreTwo seats are permantly bolted open at the Palace Theatre for the theatre

ghosts to sit inWilliam Shakespeare once had to play Lady Macbeth when Hal Berridge, the

boy playing her, died suddenly

SOURCE: WHATSONSTAGE.COM

Actor and comedian Simon Amstell opens up to

Eva Mackevic about his troubled past, what drives

his comedy, and his new film, Benjamin

20

He’s best known for his

controversial stint as the

host of Never Mind the

Buzzcocks between 2006–2008, as well

as for his introspective, hilariously

neurotic stand-up shows and his work

on such projects as the comedy series,

Grandma’s House and the bonkers

veganism mockumentary, Carnage

Now 39, Simon Amstell returns with

his second feature film, Benjamin,

a journey deep into his formerly

troubled, 20-something psyche

I wasn’t sure which Simon to

expect when I met him at a busy Soho

café on a crisp winter morning: the

mocking Buzzcocks host or the fragile

ego-ed comedian who once professed

that instead of easing it, his cat had

become a mascot for his loneliness

I found him sitting in a secluded

a strange start

Simon’s new film, Benjamin, tells

the story of a rising young filmmaker (played exquisitely by Northern Irish actor, Colin Morgan), who’s struggling with self-doubt and severe social anxiety brought on by the impending release of his second film, and a burgeoning romance with the dreamy French musician, Noah

“I looked at the relationships and friendships I’d been in, and slowly found that it was a film about someone who’s terrified of

ENTERTAINMENT

intimacy, but eventually lets himself

be vulnerable enough to love

and be loved,” he tells me in that

characteristically high-pitched tone,

avoiding direct eye-contact

It’s hard not to draw analogies

between Benjamin and Amstell who,

like the character, is in the process

of releasing his second film and

frequently pokes fun at his own social

ineptness and insecurities in his

stand-up routines

“It is autobiographical but not

in terms of the exact events that

happened in the film I’d felt all the

things that the character feels but not

in the locations or with the characters

that he feels them I think the film is

emotionally true,” he explains

The comedian claims that he

struggled with opening up and letting himself be vulnerable throughout his twenties, using humour as a defence mechanism Perhaps it’s no coincidence that it was around that

time that Simon started hosting Never Mind the Buzzcocks, gaining notoriety

for his scathing wit and ruthless treatment of guests, which resulted

in several walk-offs, including the infamous Preston episode

“I thought that I had to be funny

in every situation or I was worthless

It was a panic button that I pressed when I didn’t know what else to do

I was incredibly defensive I felt I

wasn’t enough It can’t be that this beautiful boy wants to kiss you You have to show him something first You have to put on a bit of a performance before they’ll want to I think I

no longer connect with each other organically, due to heavy reliance on social media and dating apps

Simon pauses, formulating his thoughts before unexpectedly bursting into laughter: “Everything you’re saying is so much better than what I’m saying, you should just probably write

that down

But it’s true,” he gets serious “All young people are writer-performers Everyone’s presenting a version of themselves in a way that’s incredibly disconnecting Apps just exaggerate problems that have always been there with dating If your head is in

Clockwise from top:

Phénix Brossard and

your phone it’s probably because

you’re addicted And if you’re

addicted to something, you’re out of

the alignment with what your body

needs I think you might do better

romantically by just being in the

world with a feeling of curiosity and

joy rather than a feeling of lack which

comes from not being accepted or

chosen enough.”

Luckily for Simon, he no longer has

to grapple with these feelings He’s

been in a committed relationship for

seven years, which, as he admits, was

an odd feeling to begin with

“It took me a while to get

comfortable with something being

comfortable.” He speaks slowly,

he chuckles

I ask what’s kept them together for all these years Simon explains that it all comes down to communication

“If one of us is thinking something that might cause some tension in the relationship, we bring it up and then the tension dies, and that seems to be the key,” he smiles

He tells me about a time in France that assured him that he really was happy with his boyfriend

MARCH 2019 • 25

“It was a year or two into the relationship I fell asleep next to him and dreamt that I was in a sex dungeon being seduced by this very wet young man I panicked in the dream, thinking that I’d betrayed the best relationship I’d ever been in But

then I woke up and thought, What

if that’s who I really am? You can’t argue with your unconscious, maybe I’m an animal who wants to be in this dungeon with this guy all the time and everything else is a social construct?

But then, I went to my boyfriend’s mum’s birthday dinner, where his brother gave a speech about how much he loves his parents—he said this totally sincerely, it was so alien

to me— in particular, how accepting they’ve been no matter who their children turned out to be I started crying in that moment and turned

to my boyfriend and said, ‘This is better than a sex dungeon.’ ”

As we talked over coffee,

I discovered several sides of Simon Amstell: the jittery conversationalist who nervously mimics your body language; the mature screenwriter who has learned to be comfortable

in his own skin and left attention seeking behind; a settled man who has found solace in the everyday routine of life with his partner… and Simon the fantasy sex dungeon enthusiast Of course

Benjamin is out in cinemas across the UK

on March 15 Read our review on p118

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…MY LITTLE SISTER WHO IS

NEARLY THREE YEARS YOUNGER

THAN ME BEING brought home

from the hospital I was the baby up

until that point, and I remember

feeling extremely jealous when she

came because everybody was saying,

“Oh, what a beautiful baby.”

I was only three, so I was entitled to

feel that way Growing up, we were

very close, actually—we had a good

relationship—more than anyone

else in the family Nancy and I were

I confessed—I cried my eyes out, saying that I was really sorry for biting her fingers

…I LIKED SCHOOL VERY MUCH BUT I WASN’T ONE OF THOSE ASSIDUOUS STUDENTS, let’s put

it that way I had the ability to be

ENTERTAINMENT

Suzi Quatro, 68, is an American musician and the first female bass player to become a major rock star She’s known for such hits as “Can the Can “, “Stumblin In”,

as well as her role on the popular sitcom, Happy Days

I REMEMBER…

28 • MARCH 2019

Suzi Quatro

30 • MARCH 2019

one and I did well in all my aptitude

tests but I was more concerned

with being an entertainer from a

very early age

…THE FIRST HOUSE THAT I LIVED

IN, IN DETROIT, WAS

GORGEOUS—it had four bedrooms,

was on three levels and had a big

basement It was a real family home

It had three pianos, and tons of

musical instruments, as we were a

musical family It wasn’t one of the

richest ones but it was a nice house I

grew up in Grosse Pointe, which is the ritzy suburb with many mansions We didn’t have a mansion, but we had a very nice house I can’t remember ever having my own bedroom until I got much older

…MY FATHER WAS A MUSICIAN AND HE PLAYED THE KEYBOARD.

He also played the violin and the accordion I have to say, all five of

us [kids] were very musical Everyone

in the family can play more than one instrument

“I DID WELL IN ALL MY APTITUDE TESTS BUT

I WAS MORE CONCERNED WITH BEING AN ENTERTAINER FROM AN EARLY AGE ”

…MY BEST FRIEND, LINDA, IS

THE GIRL I GREW UP WITH IN

DETROIT. We have known each

other since the age of four We were

little devils We had a similar

family—she lived one door away and

they had five kids the same age, just

like us I met her when she moved in

I saw furniture coming in, went right

up to the house and stood on the

lawn and her opening words to me

were, “Hey, get off my lawn,” so we

always laugh about that

…ONE OF MY WONDERFUL

IDEAS WHEN I WAS

SEVEN was to get what

we call potato chips—

crisps—and spread

them all over the

kitchen floor, and slide

It sounded like a good

idea Linda’s mother

came in and all I can

remember was her looking

at me and knowing it was my

idea But she didn’t say anything—

she just put my snowsuit back on,

zipped me up and sent me home

Where I got the idea from, I really

don’t know

…AT THE AGE OF EIGHT IT

STARTED TO DAWN ON ME that

whenever I got up to do my bit,

whatever it might be, that I held this

audience, and I realised that I had

the entertainment gene in me When

you are little you see things like that

and it was nothing to do with ego—

I just remember thinking, Oh, I am holding this audience, so it became a

part of my psyche

…WHEN I WAS 14, WE SAW THE BEATLES ON TV and decided to form a band We got a couple of other girls who were sisters, and another girl whose father used to play in my dad’s band We all got on the phone and shouted at the same time about who would play what I didn’t say anything for a while until I went, “What am I going to play?” And my older sister said,

“You are going to play bass,” and I said, “Okay.”

I didn’t even think about it I went to my dad and asked him if

he had a bass guitar and he gave me the Rolls Royce of bass guitars, which is a 1957 Fender Precision I put it on and

it was an another epiphany: I said,

“Oh wow, this is me.”

…WITHIN THREE MONTHS WE HAD OUR FIRST SHOW, so I’ve now been doing this job for 54 years—

a long time The very first gig I ever played, the first time on the stage,

I had the feeling that I had come home—that was pretty impressive Rock ‘n’ roll is my first love but I’ve done a lot of acting as well as radio work on BBC2 since 1991 I’ve done

MARCH 2019 • 31

R E A D E R ’ S D I G E S T

I R E M E M B E R …

32 • MARCH 2019

TV, had my own talk show, done

West End, written my own musical,

became a published poet and my

first novel came out in 2017 I’ve also

written my autobiography and I’m

gigging a lot!

…BEING TOLD BY JACKIE

COLLINS, WHO GAVE ME A

QUOTE FOR MY

AUTOBIOGRAPHY, THAT I COULD

WRITE She said, “You are really

good.” I said, “If I want to write a

novel, can you give me any advice?”

And she replied, “Yes—just stick

with what you know at the

beginning”, and so I did

The Hurricane starts off

with a rock chick and

from then, it just flies I

use familiarity to

create a character, but

it’s totally different from

me It’s quite realistic and

has a shock ending that

nobody ever expects coming

…DETROIT HAS ALWAYS BEEN A

HUGE MUSIC CITY, especially in

the 1960s, at the advent of Motown

It was an absolutely wonderful

musical city to have grown up in

We had famous people in our

house non-stop I was in the

band since I was 14 and we played

gigs with all these people My

brother was a known musician

and he became an agent for quite

a while so he promoted all these

bands, hence, we all knew each other really well

MY ROLE MODELS WERE MALE.

I don’t do gender, I never have I just don’t think about male, female—

I never even called myself a female musician I remember singing in an all-girl band, which was my sister’s idea—but I didn’t give a s**t about singing in an all-girl band I didn’t care who was in the band either way—they could have been monkeys

as long as they could play

…SEEING ELVIS ON TELEVISION THE FIRST TIME when I was six and having an epiphany when it occurred to me that I was going to do what

he did It’s a crazy, young age for that to happen but that’s exactly what happened It was an internal [realisation] but I kept being

a fan all the way through and when I started the band, we did Elvis songs

It just kept rolling and became a tradition of mine to cover at least one Elvis song on an album

…IN 1974, I WAS IN AMERICA WITH MY ENGLISH FAMILY. I had some hits under my belt, and I got a call at my hotel in Memphis from Elvis’s people He came on and invited me to Graceland, which sort

of freaked me out He’d heard [my

version of] “All Shook Up” and said it

was the best version since his own

and would I like to come to

Graceland—but I turned him down

I wasn’t ready yet I never actually

met him face-to-face but I don’t

regret it because I eventually wrote a

very important song about him—Elvis

imitators do it and it is played at

funerals It has become quite a

“beneath the radar” song that

everybody knows, called “Singing

with Angels.” It was a tribute to him

…WHEN I WAS ON HAPPY DAYS It was my first ever acting job and it was something I had wanted to do for a long time so when this offer came along, I took it and it was a great decision I’m really glad I did it; it gave me a lot of joy I played a very popular character—Leather Tuscadero—and I received the second most fan mail after the Fonz, which is quite something It was a brilliant show and I am still

in touch with them all—it was a great experience

MARCH 2019 • 33

“I DIDN’T GIVE A S**T ABOUT SINGING IN AN ALL-GIRL BAND THEY COULD’VE BEEN MONKEYS AS LONG AS THEY COULD PLAY”

Suzi starring in Happy Days

34 • MARCH 2019

…ACTING IN MINDER , DEMPSEY &

MAKEPEACE , AND RECENTLY ON

MIDSOMER MURDERS Acting is the

same instinct as music—it’s about

communicating by speaking instead

of singing the lyrics of a song It’s the

same performing instinct

…BEING INDUCTED INTO THE

MICHIGAN ROCK AND ROLL

LEGENDS HALL OF FAME—it was

great to be recognised in my home

state It’s always nice to achieve

something but my greatest award

came in October 2016 when I became

an Honorary Doctor of Music—I received my award at Cambridge University and that’s hard to beat They just contacted me and said,

“Would you be willing to accept?”

I said, “Are you kidding? Of course I would.” It was a very humbling experience

…MY HUSBAND, RAINER HAAS, WAS A PROMOTER. We got together pretty quickly—three months from the first kiss to getting married He

“I AM A ‘WALK THROUGH FIRE’ TYPE OF PERSON I DON’T HIDE FROM PAIN, I WILL GO STRAIGHT INTO IT AND GET BURNED”

Posing with her parents

R E A D E R ’ S D I G E S T

MARCH 2019 • 35

basically looks after me now—we

don’t use the word “manager”—

because I am very independent, but

he looks after me We are actually

quite a good team; if we argue, we

listen to each other I will listen to

reason; if you can tell me how I am

wrong, I’ll take your suggestion He

always says I am unmanageable He

goes, “You don’t need to be managed

because you’ve got a brain yourself.”

…MICKIE MOST WAS MY

MANAGER FOR QUITE A LONG

TIME We are both Geminis so

we were very similar, but

not very easy people We

are very complicated—

we have quicksilver

moods, but we got

along well, Mickey and

I We understood each

other completely and

we talked the same

language I worked with

him from 1971 up until he died

He was my luckiest break—he’s the

one who discovered me and the

band in Detroit and offered me a

solo contract

…MY TOUGHEST TIME WAS

PROBABLY THE YEAR THAT I WAS

SINGLE after I split from my first

husband, Len Tuckey, because when

you are with somebody for that long

it’s very hard to break up; we had two

kids as well, which makes it even

more emotionally difficult He left

the house in October, then in December my mother died, and ten days later my ex mother-in-law died

It was a really confusing year I got through it by spending a lot of time alone and working out who I was and just becoming stronger, and comfortable with myself You have to

go inside yourself I am very much a

“walk through the fire” type of person I don’t hide from the pain, I will go straight into it and get burned but my strength comes from walking back out the other side

… MY MOTHER ALWAYS SAID “NEVER SAY NEVER,” WHICH ALWAYS STUCK WITH

ME. I try not to put the blocks down, because

if you do that then you don’t allow yourself to change and I am very open to everything All my channels are always open I try not to have any regrets because I believe that every mistake you make

is meant to teach you—you have to have your life‘s lessons So I try not to regret, I try to learn I’ve always been the kind to analyse—have I done wrong, why I did it, what it means to

me now—and I don’t do it again n

As told to Joy Persaud

Suzi is performing in the Legends Live UK Tour in April Book now via legendslive.org

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