He's one of the best-loved one-hit wonders in pop and now he's making his musical mark. Tamzin Hindmarch talks to the one and only Chesney Hawkes, who is heading for the stage in Hanley

IT'S only a few days before Chesney and the rest of the cast of Can't Smile Without You, arrive in Hanley.

Despite the fact the show features more than 30 of Barry Manilow's hits, it tells the story, not of the famous singer, but of a fictional character called Tony.

Played by Chesney, Tony is the frontman of an aspiring young band who, on a visit to New York, is snapped up to appear on a television reality show to find the next pop sensation.

Disaster strikes however, when he is left fighting for his life.

Suffering from memory loss and with his dreams in tatters, the only thing Tony appears to remember are songs from the past. Enter Barry Manilow classics such as, Could It Be Magic, It's A Miracle, Mandy, and, of course, Can't Smile Without You.

"It's not quite my musical debut," says Chesney, "but it's certainly my first at this level."

His previous stab at it was at the 1995 Edinburgh Fringe in a musical based on Robert Louis Stevenson's Kidnapped.

"It's like playing live and having the crowd bouncing back at you. It's instant entertainment, right there and then, and the buzz I get from it is that it's all in your hands," he says of being on stage.

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Video of Chesney's classic hit, The One And Only

While West End musical mogul Bill Kenwright offered Chesney tips on how to act, the most valuable advice he has had for his latest role has come from the man himself – Barry Manilow.

He says: "My memories of Barry Manilow when I was growing up in the 1980s were through my mum, her sister and my aunt who loved him. I remember seeing a video of him playing live and it had an impact on me even then.

"There is something mesmerising about him on stage. Through his melodies and lyrics he connects emotionally with people.

"I joked to him about the amount of key changes he has in every song, and he said, 'All you need to do is listen to the lyrics you are singing and feel them, and the key changes will look after themselves'."

Looking back on his own flirtation with fame as a 1980s teen pop idol, does Chesney ever wish that, like Tony, he'd lost his memory once those heady days of television appearances and screaming fans ended?

"I look back and it's like looking at another person," he says.

Now aged 37, he says: "I was only 19 and it was like being in the eye of a storm. It was an amazing time and it was everything I had ever dreamed of at the time. It was crazy. But I'm glad I am where I am now."

While his memories of being in the spotlight are fading fast, the popularity of hit single, The One And Only, a UK chart number one single for five weeks, are not.

The song is still a must at any live concerts he performs and he has just finished recording his new album, Another Fine Mess, after years of songwriting for others.

Can't Smile Without You can be seen at The Regent Theatre in Hanley from Monday, November 17, to Saturday, November 22. Call the box office on 0870 060 6649.