Susan Boyle given Paige boost

Tuesday, 3 November 2009

Susan Boyle's nerves were calmed by a meeting with Elaine Paige.

Elaine decided to approach Susan after seeing a video of her breakthrough performance auditioning for 'Britain's Got Talent' on the internet.

She said: "I felt I knew what Susan was going through - the full horror of it all. You could see it in her eyes. I knew she was putting on a front. This girl was clearly terrified. She'd had an awful, awful shock.

She added: "I needed to explain that, before she knew where she was, she'd think her head was going to explode. And it was worse for her. I'd been to stage school. I hadn't been very confident when 'Evita' changed my world, but I was a professional."

Elaine invited Susan onto her Radio 2 show, but Susan's record label turned her down. The two finally met when Susan was interviewed on NBC's breakfast show and Elaine appeared part way into the interview as a surprise to the Scottish singer.

Elaine revealed to Yours magazine: "All she could say, over and over, was, 'Oh my God!' I sat down beside her and we started chatting.

"I gave her what advice I could and then, out of the blue, she asked me whether I had trouble sleeping at night. I wasn't surprised. It's a question only someone who has been in that situation would dream of asking."

Elaine believes Susan is now over the initial shock of her fame, and that she believes her "Scottish grit" and the team around her will "protect and look after her."