A New Zealand Teen Magazine May 2000

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Emily Corcoran is a young Kiwi actress living in London. A real girl about town, Emily reports on her experience, encounters with stars and crazy jobs. She is living in a city of nine million people: a place where stars can be made and broken overnight. This month Emily rubbed shoulders with a Spice Girl, the ever-sporty Mel C.

There were only a few clues when we first arrived to interview Mel C. Two burly bodyguards and a black Mercedes parked outside. But al in all – to my photographer JP and I – it looked like you average typical English pub. This was the secret rendezvous organised for us to meet Melanie Chisholm – aka – Mel C from the Spice Girls.

Finally, we are taken upstairs and when we get there we see a camera crew packing up, a makeup artist, various other record label dudes and a small blonde girl I walk straight past. I REWIND! it’s MELANIE!! She is so much smaller than she seems on screen and in photos – I hardly recognise her. I say hi! She says hi! Back.

Then once again a record label guy takes us into a lovely sun-filled room with velvet couches and low coffee tables and says we can set up.

I leave JP to do all that stuff and go and gawk at Melanie hanging out with her team of helpers who are all quite obviously good friends. I can see this because she gives one mate a big hug, jumping up to reach as he is very tall.

In fact Melanie does a LOT of jumping: she is a vibrant ball of energy. She jumps up and down on the spot, jumps out the window onto the balcony for fresh air, even jumps on a couch so she can look in the mirror to adjust her honey blonde hair around her cute elfin face. She tells me she’s growing it cause she didn’t like the photos with it spiky. Her petite figure is encased in a funky black hooded top, black jeans and finished off with sporty spice trainers.

When she speaks, it’s a language full of enthusiasm. She does nothing by halves and always answers to her best ability: her speech is very fast in light Liverpudlian accent.

Mel C: I like your jumper

Emily: You like it? (Cool, Mel C likes MY jumper!)

Mel: (Melanie gives a big yawn and stretches) You’ll have to excuse me I’ve not been getting much sleep lately because I’ve been so busy.

Em: I saw that your single is doing really well in the charts.

Mel: (Nods and smiles) Mad innit?

Em: Is that one of the reasons you have been under a bit of pressure?

Mel: Yeah, but I’ve been really happy about it.

Em: I’ve also heard you will be the first Spice Girl to do a solo tour.

Mel: Well, I mean that was inevitable really, I sold a record, it’s not a big deal.

Em: What inspired you to do your solo album?

Mel: It’s something I always wanted to do, but of course, I never dreamed I’d be lucky enough to be in a band like the Spice Girls. And once that took off it enabled me to go on and be a little bit more serious about my music, which has always been in my heart. But it’s now given me the opportunity to go ahead and do what I wanna do.

Em: When you first met the girls, what was your impression of them?

Mel: I think my impression of them hasn’t really changed that much – I think your initial reaction to someone is usually quite right isn’t it? I thought Mel B was crazy and loud, as was Geri, she’s crazy – an absolute lunatic. We were all really hungry and ambitious, we all shared the same vision. Everyone’s really cool and very funny. We just have a lovely and supportive relationship and we’ve been through so much together.

Em: With so much media attention, it must have been pretty full on.

Mel: Yeah, it’s made us closer though. And we can say anything to each other.

Em: Do you miss just being able to go down to the supermarket?

Mel: You know I was just talking about this before! Sometimes. It’s a lot easier when I’m on my own than with them (The Spice Girls). I mean we can do anything, [it’s just that] people will look at me and come up and ask for my autograph, which is nice – it’s part of the job and I can’t complain. But, quite recently I’ve entered into a celebrity relationship…

Em: OH! (This means the rumours about Mel and J from FIVE are true!)

Mel: Yeah, well we’ve not been out in public together yet cause, you know – everyone wants a picture. And I can’t be bothered. I mean Victoria did it, and you can see all the hassle they have had. They are like the two biggest celebrities in the country. I don’t think J and I will be like that.

Em: So what’s he like?

Mel: He’s gorgeous!

Em: Was it his looks that attracted you?

Mel: (Laughs) I didn’t really think very much of him. I thought he was a bit of a gobshite really.

Em: (Laughing) What about his music?

Mel: Well, I quite like the music, for pop. Because they work with our producer who is a very good friend of mine. So they do great stuff. But no, I didn’t really think much of him until I met him, then he just completely changed my opinion.

Em: There you go – there’s a first impression that wasn’t accurate!

Mel: YEAH! Well actually, it is so bizarre as I get to know him, he grew up like 10 minutes down the road from where I grew up, and we’d been to the same clubs, and I’ve walked past his house – where he grew up when he was a kid. It’s just so freaky!

Em: You have a lot in common. So, is he as much of a laugh as you?

Mel: Mmmm yeah! He makes me laugh.

Em: Is he a good kisser?

Mel: Oooooh, I can’t divulge that. But I’ve got no complaints!

Em: Is it true that you went out with Anthony Keidis from the Chili Peppers?

Mel: I didn’t go out with him, but he’s a really good friend. In fact Flea has a farm in New Zealand.

Em: Do you think you will ever travel to New Zealand?

Mel: Yeah, most definitely. I mean I went to Australia a couple of times, and people really liked us there. There are places I didn’t get to with the Spice Girls that I definitely want to go to on my own.

Emily: Have you read Geri Halliwell’s book If Only?

Mel: No it doesn’t interest me really, cause umm you know. Actually she gave me the manuscript before the book was published.

Emily: She did?!

Mel: Yeah and I felt like I was prying.

Emily: But she’s published it anyway!

Mel: I don’t even know what the book contains, I’m not that interested. And if there is anything written about myself or the girls, it’s from her point of view and you’ve got to remember everyone sees things differently.

Em: What was the last movie you went to?

Mel: The last film I saw at the pictures was American Beauty, which was brilliant. There are loads of films that I’ve wanted to see but it’s just getting the time to go. I do watch a lot of movies, but I watch most of them on aeroplanes.

Em: What would be your perfect day, especially now you have a new boyfriend!

Mel: I actually think I had quite a perfect day the other day when I went out to lunch with my friends, my old school chums and found out my single was Number One. In the evening we all went to see FIVE, and afterwards I stayed at J’s. That was a perfect day.

Em: Who is the one person that has made the biggest impression on you?

Mel: It would have to be my Mum really. You know when I was little, I thought everybody’s mum was a singer, because my Mum was a singer. She’s still in a band now and still doing it.

Em: Who haven’t you met that you would love to meet?

Mel: I’d love to meet Michael Jackson.

Em: You haven’t met him? I’m sure it wouldn’t be a problem!

Mel: Well when you’re meeting a lot of celebrities I still get very starstruck and a bit hot and sweaty.

Em: Did you do any horrible jobs before you became famous?

Mel: BIG TIME! I travelled for miles one day for about $UK20 or something to dance at army barracks. It was in front of these soldiers, and it was just so degrading. I was so scared, because they could have done anything. I used to work in a chip shop as well. I know that it’s difficult starting out in this industry. Other people have had it a lot harder than me. But I’ve paid my dues to a certain extent.