Glamorous soprano Laura Wright made a name for herself during the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations last year by performing more often than any other artist in front of Her Majesty – an incredible seven times. And her run of right royal recitals looks set to continue. She’s the first singer confirmed to perform at Westminster Abbey and at Buckingham Palace for this year's Coronation festival, and she’s going for her first Guinness World Record as she prepares to lend her impressive vocals to a – hopefully - record-breaking flashmob.
To help celebrate the launch of the DVD version of Oscar-winning film Les Miserables, the glamorous 22-year-old – who’s the England rugby team’s first ever official national anthem singer - will be belting out Do You Hear The People Sing at London’s St Pancras Station next month, inviting fans across the country to stop whatever they’re doing at 1pm and join in. There will be flashmobs all over the UK, with large presences in Cardiff, Manchester and Bristol. It will then be submitted to the Guinness Book of World Records as the first official mass participation performance of a song from the musical. "Standing in the middle of Twickenham stadium with a 90,000 strong crowd is an exhilarating experience but sometimes when you're on your own with such a large crowd, you can feel a bit like a little fish in a large ocean and you want everyone to join you on the pitch and join in!" she tells HELLO!. "So, it will be great to be performing in a bustling station leading the song." Laura – who admits her favourite tune from the musical is A Heart Full of Love – "who wouldn’t want to sing a love song with Eddie Redmayne," she giggles - is ambassador for the Nordoff Robbins charity – and those participating in the flash mob can text to donate to the cause. All this is no mean feat for a 22-year-old who’s just finishing her studies at the Royal College of Music. "Anything to do with singing for Queen and country is something I'm proud of," she tells us. "It is really exciting and I feel incredibly honoured to carry that on and be singing at the Coronation concert." Unsurprisingly, the Queen is a big fan of hers. "I was particularly honoured when the Queen took me aside for a one-to-one chat after I sang at her Marlborough House lunch last year and she said, ‘Thank you for singing for my jubilee and for what you are doing supporting the Commonwealth," she remembers.
Laura, the first female singer since Katherine Jenkins to shoot to number one in the classical charts with her album The Last Rose, is also the England rugby team's first ever official national anthem singer. And she caused quite a stir earlier this year while she was belting out the national anthem for England versus France at Twickenham – when the windy conditions meant she showed her legs to 81,000 in the stand and millions on TV. “It was actually the same Jasper Conran-designed dress that I wore when I was hoisted on the shoulders of England's men’s team to launch my role as official anthem singer. The dress has built-in white hot pants, and so I wasn’t wearing thermal knickers as some speculated,” she laughs. “I didn't go out to shock or cause a stir. My main concern is always to focus on my singing. I would point out, there were 30 other bare pairs of women's legs on the pitch when England Ladies played France the same evening!” Les Miserables is out on DVD on May 13. Support music charity Nordoff Robbins by getting involved in National ‘Sing Your Day’
