Thanks to Luke Peterson and Eternal Melanie C for the transcript

Ugly Phil: Okay, and we're ready! Hello Mel C! Sorry, we had to keep you waiting on the line a little there...

Melanie C: Oh, it's okay! It was interesting to your news from.. you know
more stuff about England than I do!

[They all laugh]

UP: Ah ha! There you go! Yeah, I was just saying on the air before, and you
know it yourself, when you know a newspaper does an article with you and
they're all nice and warm and friendly with you and then like, you know you
read the article the next day and it's just a bunch of crap, that you never
said. D'you know what I mean?

MC: Ah, absolutely. Not only that, not only things you didn't say, sometimes
they say you've spoken to them and you haven't.

UP: Yeah.

Jackie O: You haven't even spoken to them in the first place

MC: Yeah.

JO: So do you ever bother you know setting about to, to set the record
straight or do you just let it go because there's too many stories out
there, to even bother with?

MC: Well, over the years, you know I've really ehm.. been able to, I dunno.
You never get used it, but I spose you expect it. But quite recently there
was ehm.. a slanderous piece written about me in the newspaper, and it was
you know, concerning a friend of mine as well and, and her family were
involved, and things like that and there just so, it was so, it was so many
lies are printed and so much you know was out of order that I did, I was
going about sueing the newspaper. You just can't, you can't win them.

UP: But there has been.. I guess people do want to find out the gossipy
stuff and there has been a lot of things written about your sexuality
lately. Is there anything you just, you know, you won't touch, that you just
give a no comment to or I mean..

MC: Ehm... no I mean really, with the whole sexuality thing you know, I just
thought, you know I thought it was quite comical at first, but now it's,
it's starting to bother me because I've got a lot of fans who are gay, you
know they often ask me, when I'm gonna come out, um, the thing is I'm not
gay. I'm never gonna come out, and it's unfair that the newspapers betray me
as a liar. You know I'm not a liar. I'm not decieving anybody, and I'm just
sick and tired of them saying that, so that's what I had to, I did actually
put the record straight in one magazine over here.

UP: Sure. So if you were gay you'd have no drama coming out then, it
wouldn't be an issue for you at all, cos I know that..

MC: Not at all. I think, you know the kind of person that I am, if I was gay
I would be very proud, and I would be fighting for the cause.

UP: Yeah, yeah.

MC: But the thing is, I just don't happen to be gay, that's all.

JO: So why do you think they're saying these things continually then, and
questioning your sexuality. Like why do you think they're pinpointing you?

MC: I think, I think, ehm.. firstly all this ehm, interest in me has been
since you know my solo record has been so successful especially with the you
know the last single, Never Be The Same Again, so it's like I spose they
think, you sell records, you sell newspapers, you know and there's not
really a lot to be said about me because I do spend most of my life working
and I don't really ehm, go to many celeb parties with boys on my arm. So um,
I suppose it's obvious innit, there's not much left to write about me.

UP: Okay, uh, listen moving onto other things and better things, and I say
better or positive things, you went number 1 in the UK. Well done!

MC: Yes, thankyou very much.

UP: So uh, I mean this is your first solo number 1 in the UK, is that
correct?

MC: It is.

UP: Right, okay!

MC: Fantastic though. I was so pleased, but I think something else which is
even better than that is that, it's been successful all over Europe and even
in you know I believe, did it get to Number 3 in Australia?

UP: The single?

JO: Yeah, it's been really successful here people love it.

[Luke's note: Actually to date the highest it's gone is Number 2, not number
3 as Melanie said. This week it's back down to Number 3, so that may be
where she got her info from. Destiny's Child still got the number 1 possie,
and Britney debuted in at Number 2, so that pushes Melanie C back down to
three as she was 2 last week. Not sure if it's got a chance now at number 1
after being pushed down, but it may.]

MC: Yeah, so that's my biggest hit over, over your way.

UP: Yah.

MC: So ehm, that's cool, and you know if people are interested in Melanie C,
then I'll be back to do some live shows later in the year.

UP: You know, I gotta tell you. When I saw you doing Goin' Down and then
Northern Star. Northern Star is one of those songs that actually grows on
you, you know about 3 or 4 listens down the track. So I think the song
should have been more successful over her for you than it had been. Was it a
hit in the UK?

[Luke's note: Silly of Phil to say that, if he thought that he could of gave
it some help by chucking it on his countdown, instead of waiting for it to
enter the Top 5, like he did with NBTSA. I know I voted for Northern Star,
when it was out.]

MC: Ehm, yeah, I think all my singles have been er.. very successful. The
first two singles were in at number 4 in the UK charts, and it was just you
know they swung like sisters [? I have no idea what she said there, it
sounds like she said "swung like sisters" but I very much doubt it. Maybe
she said something of her latest single because that kinda makes sense with
what she said after], hung around for ages and it's getting greater play and
it's just really broke the album again which is great, you know cos i wanna,
i wanted to be able to appreciate it, because it is a great album.

UP: Absolutely. Lets have a listen to that track right now. We'll be back
with your questions to Mel C in just a moment, on the countdown at 17 with
Lisa Left Eye Lopes. Never Be The Same, thanks to Coca Cola.

[To which he plays Never Be The Same Again]

UP: Mel C, Lisa Left Eye Lopes on the countdown as voted by you. Mel C on
the line at the moment. Any more new tattoos?

MC: Ehm, yes actually. But it's only tiny. I've got a star on my hand. It's
my little northern star.

UP: Oh, okay.

[Melanie C laughs]

UP: Have you go to the stage where, you're thinking, where maybe I have a
bit too many now?

MC: Well for the first time ever I started thinking.. OHH!! What am I gonna
look like when I'm old?

UP: Yeah.

JO: Doesn't matter.

MC: But that's hopefully then. [at least it sounds like she said that, it's
a bit hard when there's like 3 people talking same time.]

UP: Yeah, but that's the old fallicy though about tattoos. It's like you
know it's like convicts and criminals have them, but now I think that
they're very fashionable, that I think that when you get older, you'll still
have your individuality.

[Melanie C laughs]

UP: Whaddya think? Does that make you feel a bit better?

MC: Well talking about convicts and criminals..

[Ugly Phil laughs]

UP: Oh no! Don't talk about me though! No you know what I mean, you know
when people used to think that bikies would have tattoos.

MC: Yeah, I think, you know, now it's a lot more accepted in our society,
and I suppose there'll be a lot of us getting old with um.. with drawings on
us.

UP: That's right. It'll be the thing, you know like cos I like love tattoos
too and I always wanna go get another one, and every time I get another one
I think Oh God, what about when I get older, that you know..

JO: Yeah, but by that stage they'll invent something where you can get rid
of them, quite quickly and painlessly.

UP: That's right!

MC: Yeah easy! But you know what will happen is that they'll become so out
of fashion, and when we're old, new people are like oh no! can you believe
they used to do that to themselves!

UP: Or either that, or either that or you know how everything goes around,
comes around by the time we're 80 well be hip again. People go woah! check
out those hip old dudes! Look at the flared pants and the tatts!

[Melanie C laughs]

UP: Hey listen, could I get you to speak to a couple of your fans is that
okay, Mel?

MC: Yeah.

UP: okay well do that in just a moment on the countdown.

[commercial break]

UP: Okay, Mel C's still on the phone and about to talk to Fiona. Go ahead
Fiona.

Fiona: Hello Mel C! How are you?

MC: I'm good. How are you?

F: I'm well, thanks.

MC: Good.

F: Um.. I've got a question for you.

MC: Oh, what do you wanna know?

F: I wanna know what inspired you to work with Left Eye and who are you
planning on working with in the future?

MC: Ehm.. well TLC has always been a really, you know ehm, an exciting group
ehm, for me and they were very influential in when the Spice Girls first got
together and Left Eye was always my favourite and I think she is in my
opinion the best female rapper around at the moment, just with her rhythm
and style. It was just really lucky that she happened to be in the same
place, you know that I was in there, and it all just came together like that
really.

[ They tell Fiona to wait on the phone and go to next caller.]

UP: okay, lets go to Sarah. Mels on the phone, go ahead.

Sarah: Oh hello, Melanie!

MC: Hi Sarah, what do you wanna know?

S: I was gonna say, my favourite song on your album is If That Were Me,
because it brings out a really good message. I was wondering, what's you
favourite song?

MC: Ehm, wow. It's really hard, because you know I'm fond of them all, but I
think at the moment, Why is my favourite one, cos it's quite dramatic. And
sometimes when I'm feeling a little self-indulgent, you know and it's one of
them ones where you know you go up to your bedroom and you're sulking, you
can really scream that one into your pillow. So i like that one at the
moment.

UP: There ya go Sarah. Listen hold on one second, and everytime you hear
that song now you'll know that Mel is singing it specially for you.

S: yeah thanks.

MC: he he

[Go to next caller]

UP: Let's go to Krystal. Melanie's on the phone go ahead.

Krystal: Oh, hi Mel C. I'd just like to say, congratulations on the mega
success you've had as a solo artist. It's so amazing.

MC: Thankyou, very much!

K: If a TV show or movie producer made you an offer, to use one of your
songs on their show or movie, would you accept it?

MC: ehm, I think if it was right. You know if it was somethin' that I
thought was a good project, and it was relevant that the song was used. I
wouldn't just do it for the sake of it, you know if it worked in the context
of the song and the movie or whatever, then definitely, yeah.

K: What show would you like it to be on, if you were given a choice, like
one that you actually liked?

MC: Well, I'd love to do a James Bond theme tune. I think loads of artists'd
like that.

UP: Yeah, they would. It's the epitomy, isn't it?

MC: Yeah, definitely. Um.. Gosh, I don't know. I mean Ga Ga was on the Big
Daddy soundtrack, I don't know if you saw that but that was an Adam Sandler
movie, which was really funny, so I was happy to be in that film.

UP: Right, well hang on cos I wanna find out the inevitable rumours bout the
Spice Girls breakup. We'll talk about that in just a moment with Mel C on
the countdown.

[Commercial break]

UP: Okay, bout to wrap it up with Mel C. Thanks to the folks that called up
to ask questions. Now listen, I've been bettin' with Jack [his co-host,
Jackie calls her Jack for short] that it's the last one for the Spice Girls,
so ah.. what's the update?

MC: Yeah, man. We've just finished writing and recording the album in Miami,
and it's just all that needs to be done now is for it to be mixed. We'll
have a single out towards the end of the summer, and the album will be out
in the autumn.

UP: So no truth in the rumours, again this year?

MC: Well c'mon they've been saying that since Wannabe, haven't they?

[Ugly Phil laughs]

MC: 6 years.

UP: Listen all the best, thankyou so much again for speaking with us, well
done on the single and hopefully we'll see you in Australia soon.

MC: Thankyou. Yeah, we'll see you around.. hmmm... November, hopefully we'll
be over there.

UP: November?

MC: yeah, when the weather starts getting warm!