He’s one of the hottest guys in showbiz right now and the talented LGBT artist has been going from strength to strength in recent years as he regularly dominates the Billboard music charts.
And now, Olly Alexander has turned his hand to judging as the singer songwriter is set to join the star-studded panellist on The Masked Singer this weekend.
The 31-year-old catapulted to fame in 2015 when his band Years & Years managed to reach No1 in the UK charts with their hit single King.
Since then, the northern star has gone on to become a triple threat as he stretched his wings and quickly established a successful career in acting in addition to his thriving pop group – and is even one of the rumoured stars to be taking over the lead role in Doctor Who.
But as the award-winning singer prepares to grace our screens and provide his unique insight on who he believes is behind the elaborate costumes, the Daily Star has taken a deep dive into his impressive career over the years.
Humble beginnings
(Image: IMDB)
Olly Alexander was born in Harrogate, in the heart of North Yorkshire back in 1990 and he studied at Hereford College of Arts after he completed his GCSEs.
However, the singer songwriter later dropped out of art school to pursue a career in acting and singing.
And his performance career first kickstarted in 2008 when he starred in the children’s TV series Summerhill in addition to his several appearances in the 2009’s Tormented and 2014’s The Riot Club.
The CBBC series also starred Harry Potter actress Jessie Cave, who played Lavender Brown in a number of the films.
In addition to carving out his acting career, Olly also formed his pop band Year & Years in 2010 with Mikey Goldsmith and Emre Turkmen.
Personal life
(Image: Getty Images)
Olly previously spoke out about once dating a straight guy when he was younger, telling BBC News: “He told me he was straight and we became friends, and at a certain point the relationship tipped over into something more intimate – and it felt like we were becoming lovers.
“And suddenly, there was just an explosion of pain and conflict.
“I’ve been out as a gay guy for nearly 10 years, and I know how that journey of coming to terms with your own identity can be really painful.
“I wanted to write something that spoke to that experience.”
Olly also split from Clean Bandit musician Neil Milan back in 2015, admitting the pressures of fame and producing music had driven them apart.
He told Attitude magazine at the time: “We’ve had less and less time to spend together and the time we did have together were such short periods it put so much pressure on our relationship.
“don’t feel differently towards him. I still have a lot of feelings towards him and that hasn’t changed. I think I need to give it time and see how I feel… We’re still in touch. We’re just giving each other a bit of space. It’s still pretty new to be honest.”
Band success
(Image: Redferns)
The pop group gradually grew in popularity in the UK over the years as they released their debut single I Wish I Knew in July 2012.
But it was in 2015 that the up-and-coming band finally became a household name after they topped the charts with their track King that propelled them to stardom.
Their debut album Communion also stole the top spot on the UK Albums Charts while their second album LP Palo Santo was critically acclaimed two years later in 2018.
Other popular hits include It’s A Sin, If You’re Over Me, Desire and Shine all of which have been hugely popular in the UK singles charts.
However, the band announced that they had broken up back in January 2021 after which Olly carved out his solo career, though continued using the same name as the band.
Solo career
(Image: JMEnternational for BRIT Awards/Getty Images)
In the short time that the singer-songwriter has been a solo artist, the star has already had a lasting impression on audiences.
Olly gave viewers a taste of his vocal talent after he after sang a jaw-dropping rendition of It’s A Sin with the one-and-only British legend Elton John at the BRIT Awards last year.
And viewers couldn’t believe how incredible the pair were together as they dominated the stage with their duet with Elton showcasing his musical talent on the piano as Olly performed an intricate routine with a large backing group.
(Image: JMEnternational for BRIT Awards/Getty Images)
But this wasn’t the only impressive performance the artist has given in recent months, after he headlined the New Year’s Eve celebrations on BBC One alongside The Pet Shop Boys as they sang their legendary single.
The star was joined by special guests Kylie Minogue and boyband frontman Neil Tennant for the festive tradition as Big Ben chimed out across the country.
Acting roles
(Image: Shared Content Unit)
After the star went solo in 2021, the Yorkshire lad returned to his passion for acting after he took on the role of Ritchie Tozer in the Channel 4 five-part series also titled It’s A Sin.
Written by former producer Russell T Davies, the show followed the lives of four gay men and their friends living through the HIV/AIDS epidemic which shook London in the 1980s.
It is reported that the show’s subject matter was initially a hard sell to pitch to broadcasters after BBC One and ITV declined to develop the show.
Since then, the critically acclaimed drama went on to win a National Television Award back in September and has been streamed on All4 in its entirety more than 6.5million times.
(Image: Channel 4)
After the former noughties Doctor Who producer announced his return to the BBC One sci-fi show, fans of the British singer have theorised that he could be in line to be the next doctor taking over from Jodie Whittaker.
Although the actor has ruled himself out of the race multiple times as budding actors flood to the producer’s doorstep as they send off their audition tapes for the role of the 14th Doctor.
The singer told the Press Association late last year: “I’m definitely not going to be the Doctor but it’s going to be so amazing, Russell’s Doctor.
“I mean, it was before and it will be again and it has been great. So I’m excited to watch the show because I’m a fan.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
