A Jason once again

Jason Donovan has enjoyed something of a career renaissance since his appearance last year on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here.

The Australian first came to prominence, of course, as a clean-cut teen heart-throb in the late ’80s, crooning sappy Stock, Aiken & Waterman compositions, before an extended period of drug fuelled hedonism saw him drift into obscurity in the mid-’90s.
Donovan’s new-found rebellious streak found a suitable outlet in his role as Frank ‘N’ Furter in Richard O’Brien’s cult musical The Rocky Horror Show, which got the performer’s career back on track and was about as far away from his boy-next-door image as it was possible to get. In recent times, Donovan has also performed in a stage adaptation of Thomas Vinterberg’s brilliant film Festen, as well as a UK tour of Stephen Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd.
But despite these more highbrow ventures, it was undoubtedly Donovan’s stint on I’m A Celebrity... which won him the most exposure. Indeed, Donovan’s enduring status as a kitsch icon has been a considerable obstacle in his attempts to be taken more seriously. For all of his work in credible theatrical productions, he still feels obliged to intermittently hark back to his pop star past.
In a bid to capitalise on the publicity from I’m A Celebrity..., next month sees Donovan embark on a Greatest Hits tour around Ireland and the UK. hotpress encounters Donovan in a meeting room at the Dylan Hotel in Eastmoreland Place, where he has been giving numerous interviews throughout the day to promote the Irish dates on the tour.
This is the last scheduled piece of promo and Donovan looks both tired and, it has to be said, older than his 38 years. “But,” he says, flopping down on the couch, “the last interview is usually the most revealing one.”
I start by asking him about the apparent contradiction between performing in shows like Festen and Sweeney Todd, which seemed designed to enhance his credibility, and his decision to now wheel out his old pop hits from the ’80s.
“Well, we all start out with artistic ambition,” says Donovan. “But let’s look at the essence of things; not everyone begins in Snow Patrol or Razorlight or The Killers, and not everyone begins in American Beauty or doing Shakespeare at the RSC. I mean, Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce and Natalie Imbruglia were all in Neighbours with me. I think the playing field for people to get where they need to be is quite different these days. My point being that some people, like wine, get better with age!”
When most people think of Jason Donovan, they still see the cherubic pop star from the late ’80s, a perception he has struggled to overcome. When I ask him if he felt uncomfortable in the role of teen pin-up during those years, he seems unsure how to answer, with one unfinished thought trailing off into another.
“Anyone that walks out there and says ‘I’ve arrived’ at the age of 18 is sort of… I mean, having people scream at you is not…” Finally, he says, “No, I was never that comfortable. You’re just a cog in the machinery, really. But there’s no textbook on how to deal with it – you just run with it and hope for the best. I guess the thing is not to get carried away by the delusions of grandeur.”
Most guys at 17 are into rock ‘n’ roll with a strong anti-authoritarian streak (“and porn”, adds Donovan), yet you ended up as a sanitised pop star. Did that not jar with your own self-image?
“Of course it did,” he responds. “I mean, I used to go home at night and roll myself a big fat scoobie, you know? But that doesn’t stop me from going and playing Scott Robinson in Neighbours. And I would argue that nine of out ten university students who were listening to The Cure and New Order at the time, were just as involved in my little commercial world as they were in their own alternative milieu. There’s always been a crossover. That attempt to straddle the divide is probably looked upon as being quite brave in certain quarters.
“It depends on where your principles go. Kylie Minogue is a fantastic example of someone who started out in that world of soap operas and pop stardom, and yet she’s managed to grow as a performer and have this incredibly successful career. She’s been very intelligent in her choices.”
Although Donovan is no longer in contact with Minogue, I mention some interview footage I remember from a few years ago, in which he talked about how he almost “idolised” his compatriot Michael Hutchence. Was that because Hutchence was going out with Kylie and living the rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle to the full?
“Probably,” he admits. “INXS’ big international breakthrough was Kick, but I’d been listening to them from when I was 11 or 12, albums like Listen Like Thieves and Shabooh Shabah. They were an iconic band in Australia, not dissimilar to U2. And they were tough and strong and very cool. It was ironic that Michael and Kylie ended up together, but does that make me feel any different about Michael? Not at all. The only difference is that I’m alive.”
Did he ever meet Hutchence?
“Many times,” says Donovan. “Michael was a nice guy, very charismatic, a hugely gifted musician and singer. Such a wasted talent.”
To go back to Donovan’s days in television, what was it like working with Guy Pearce and Russell Crowe on Neighbours?
“I know Guy well,” he says. “I probably hung out with him a bit more than Russell. Russell is Russell and whatever you hear about Russell is right. He was very ambitious; I would argue that there’s a drive to those kinds of people, and an element of ‘This is the life I want, and fuck you.’ There’s a strength and conviction there.
“I did hear the great story about Russell on Gladiator. The director, Ridley Scott, handed him this scene which had just been rewritten, and the new draft had the ‘Father to a murdered son’ speech in it. Apparently Russell read it and said, ‘This is crap, I’m not fucking saying this!’ And of course it turned out to be one of the most famous speeches of all time and Russell won an Oscar for his performance.”
When Donovan himself plunged headfirst into a life of hedonism in the ’90s, was it out of unhappiness or because, with his pop star heyday essentially over, he finally felt free to do so?
“I looked into my mirror once when I was doing Joseph,” he remembers, “and I saw a loincloth, a pair of white fluffy socks, gold shoes and a technicolour dreamcoat, and I thought, ‘What the fuck am I doing?’ That was when I decided, ‘It’s time to listen to the new Nirvana album.’ So I had to explore, but the problem was I was Jason Donovan. Surely people should have went, ‘Let him do what he fucking wants to do.’ I’m not an elected politician.
“You can argue whether or not people buying your records gives you a certain kind of responsibility, but at the time people weren’t buying my records, which was fine because I wasn’t giving it my all anyway. Someone like Kylie, I suppose, didn’t go through that stage. Or maybe she did. Or maybe she might not admit that, I don’t know. I do know that regret is an emotion I can’t get into. If I started comparing myself to other people, going ‘I’ve gotta be Guy Pearse, I’ve gotta be Russell Crowe, what am I doing?’, I’d be an emotional wreck.
“I’m here, I’ve got a show, I did the I’m A Celebrity thing, which not many people do, but that’s okay, I got paid for it. My kids are going to a good school, I haven’t got cancer… it’s actually not that bad, for me. I don’t know how other people perceive me, but I feel pretty relaxed.”
The Rocky Horror Show definitely seemed to mark a turning point in Donovan’s life and career.
“The Rocky Horror Show was me being married to Frank ‘N’ Furter, the guy that I was,” he laughs. “I was just holding his hand, we were doing it together.”
Were you really partying hard every night at the time?
“Well, not every night,” replies Donovan, “but I’ll put it this way: Saturday nights were always pretty wild.”
Did Donovan meet the creator of The Rocky Horror Show, Richard O’Brien?
“A lot of times,” he reflects. “He’s pretty mad, dresses quite wildly. But he’s a nice guy. He’s made a lot of money with The Rocky Horror Show, which is essentially adult pantomime. I have a great memory of doing the show in Northern Ireland, actually. Mo Mowlam came to see one of the performances and took us all back to Hillsborough Castle, and we proceeded to get pretty mashed up. It was great fun. (Pauses) Those were the days!”
Jason Donovan plays the Millennium Forum Theatre, Derry (May 27); Waterfront Hall, Belfast (29); and Vicar St, Dublin (30).