Blimey! Did I say I'd do a transcipt from a live broadcast!? How ambitious am I? Forget it, I can't type that fast!! Those who can go to
www.theatreradio.co.uk and listen from there - it's a nice interview!
I said i'd do a transcript once OMG it's hard!! no worries..anyhoo
here's another Linzi interview from the Times. (Thanks Roxie)
From The Sunday Times
May 6, 2007
Mamma Mia star shuns the plastic
Linzi Hateley, who plays Donna Sheridan in the West End musical, has never had a credit card, she tells Ali Hussain
ACTRESS Linzi Hateley has appeared in many top West End musicals, including Mary Poppins, Chicago, Grease, Les Misérables and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
Born in Birmingham, Hately, 37, trained at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in London. She is currently appearing as Donna Sheridan in Mamma Mia at the Prince of Wales theatre. The role will be played by Meryl Streep in the film production, which is to be released next year.
Hateley lives in rural Buckinghamshire with her husband, Peter, daughter Meg, aged eight, and dog, Lottie.
How much money do you have in your wallet? I have £35. I normally have about this much for things like parking. It costs me £12.50 to park when I go to work in the evenings in central London.
Do you have any credit cards? I don’t actually. I only have a debit card. I’ve never used a credit card. I’m a bit scared of them, to be honest.
Are you a saver or a spender? I’d like to say I’m a bit of both. If I have a good contract like the one I have now with Mamma Mia, where I know I have a good solid year’s worth of work, I feel more comfortable about splashing out.
I am also a saver, though. I like to put aside about £3,000 a month if I can.
That may sound like a lot but I don’t have a mortgage because Peter was paid a large lump sum when he left his previous job as a football coach and we used it to pay off the mortgage.
I have a savings account with ING although I’m a bit disappointed that it has not passed on the recent rises in interest rates.
How much did you earn last year? Last year wasn’t great because I had a number of short contracts doing Chicago, filling in as the lead – Roxie. I had to train for several months to play the role.
It’s really handy to be able to dip in and out of a show like Chicago when people can’t make it, especially if you have nothing else on the go.
It doesn’t work out great for any length of time, though, because I earn more on longer-term contracts. In a good year I make about a six-figure sum.
Have you ever been really hard up? When I was 17, I went to Broadway to perform in my first show. I played the part of Carrie in the theatre version of Stephen King’s novel.
It was a huge flop. I was there for about four or five months and I came back with absolutely nothing.
I ended up having to stay with a group of friends in Camden. Luckily, about five months later, I was offered a role in Les Misérables.
What is the most lucrative work you have ever done? Did you use the fee for something special? Doing Joseph with Jason Donovan at the Palladium. It was the early 1990s and he was such a huge star. He brought in a completely new audience to musicals. He was so big, but he was – and is – very down to earth and laid back.
We did a cast album and that went platinum within a week.
The first cheque I received from album sales after six months was for £10,000. I’m still getting paid royalties every six months, but it’s nothing like as much as it was back then.
I used the first cheque to put down a deposit on a house – a small place in Amersham, Buckinghamshire.
Do you own a property? I now own a four-bedroom 1950s detached house in a quaint little village in Buckinghamshire. It’s down a beautiful country lane.
We bought it about six years ago for £430,000 and it’s now worth about £650,000.
It was quite run down when we bought it and the idea was to do it up in stages as we could afford it.
We’ve knocked a few walls down and made it very open-plan. We’ve also redone the kitchen. We started downstairs and are slowly working our way up.
Do you invest in shares? I don’t.
Do you have Peps and Isas? I have a cash Isa into which I contribute £150 every month by direct debit.
Do you have a pension or other retirement plan? No, I don’t have one of those either. I don’t intend to retire. I can see myself playing the bird woman in Mary Poppins when I’m in my seventies – there’s always a part for old women.
My property is my pension, I suppose. Peter’s a teacher so he has a pretty good pension, too.
Do you believe pensions are a good thing? I have more confidence in property. I worry because of all the disaster stories you hear.
What has been your worst investment? Cars. If I get a good job, I tend to treat myself to a new car, but every time I’ve done it I’ve lost money on the depreciation. I bought a silver Mini Cooper four years ago, which I didn’t like very much – I felt every bump I went over. I bought it for about £15,000 and sold it a year later for £10,000.
I’ve just treated myself to a silver Mercedes Coupé C180 for getting the Mamma Mia job. It cost £21,000. It’s very flashy and very unlike me.
And your best? Hopefully the house. We’ve probably spent about £50,000 on it, but we’re hoping it will make us a good profit.
Do you manage your own financial affairs? I’m pretty useless with my money, but Peter is a maths teacher so he helps me out a lot. I also have an accountant who deals with things like tax.
What aspect of our taxation system would you change? I really don’t know enough to say other than we’re probably paying too much.
What is your financial priority? To live to a standard we all enjoy and to make sure my daughter is always going to be okay.
Do you have a money weakness? I’m sure I could be more frugal when I do the weekly shop. I can also spend a little too much on luxuries sometimes – the car, for example.
What is the most extravagant thing you have ever bought? The new car. I paid for it outright a couple of months ago. I think I’ll keep this one for a while, though. I enjoy driving it.
Do you play the lottery? The only time I play it is on my birthday. I tend to buy one for myself and one for each of my friends at the dinner table with me that night. I’ve done it every year for the past five years.
Don’t ask me why – it has just become my thing. I’m not sure what I would do if one of my friends won the jackpot – that would be an interesting one.
What would you do if you won? I would probably invest in another property in Italy or France.
I’d also get my dad a car of his choice, I’d get my mum a hip replacement and probably lots of alcohol to make her feel better. I’d buy Peter a four-seater Morgan, which he has always wanted, and I’d get my daughter a bigger bedroom.
That’s just for starters. I’m sure I’d do clever things with it if I had time to think about it.
What is the most important lesson you have learnt about money? That it’s hard work getting it, so don’t forget to enjoy at least some of it.
