Gareth Gates has revealed he's interested in pursuing a move from the stage to the small screen with a role in a soap. The 33-year-old, who's currently starring in the West End show Footloose, opened up about his acting ambitions in an interview with HELLO! Online.
"I'm doing a lot more acting now. With this role that I'm playing in Footloose it's purely an acting role really, I only get to sing the one song and so it's pretty much all dialogue, which is great for me," Gareth said. "Especially for a guy with a stammer, and the struggle I have to go through with that. Playing a role and a character and learning a script is a great kind of release for me because it's strange, the moment I'm on stage and acting it's never ever an issue."
Gareth Gates is interested in pursuing an acting career
He added: "That's really made me think, 'well I could maybe do some more acting, TV and bits and bobs like that'. Watch this space I guess."
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What show would he love to star on? Although Gareth's long-term girlfriend Faye Brookes stars in Coronation Street, he has a rival soap in mind – Emmerdale. "If I had to choose a soap – I'm from Bradford, so I'd have to go for a Yorkshire soap like Emmerdale," Gareth said, adding: "At least it's on ITV still."
Gareth's girlfriend Faye Brookes stars in Coronation Street
Gareth has played Willard in Footloose since early 2016, and is performing at The Peacock Theatre in London until 30 September. And although he has to spend a lot of time away from home while he is touring, two of his biggest fans – his girlfriend Fay and daughter Missy, eight, come along to the show whenever they can.
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"She's watched the show, many, many times. She absolutely loves it, she insists that she sits on the front row every time. She really loves watching daddy perform," Gareth said about his daughter.
As for Faye, who is based in Manchester while filming Coronation Street: "She works Monday to Friday so she has every weekend off, so she travels around the country to wherever I'm performing and she has to watch the show a lot."