Lulu has reached a milestone few musicians can claim: the 60th anniversary of her performing career. To mark it she’s going out on tour, and taking on your questions. Born Marie McDonald McLaughlin Lawrie, Lulu vaulted up the rungs of a singing career: professional at 12, signed at 14, and a Top 10 hit at 15 – namely her raucous version of the Isley Brothers’ Shout. And she was still in her teens when she had her first US No 1, the theme song to the 1967 film To Sir, With Love – which she also acted in – and when she became the first British female singer to perform behind the iron curtain, touring Poland with the Hollies.
She extended her multi-hyphenate talent into being a TV host, with the likes of Jimi Hendrix passing through the studio, and won the Eurovision song contest in 1969 with Boom Bang-a-Bang – “a rotten song”, she later admitted to John Peel. That year she married Maurice Gibb of the Bee Gees, staying together until 1973, then had a brief affair with David Bowie and covered his song The Man Who Sold the World, reaching No 3 in the UK charts.
She’s also done a Bond theme, recorded at the legendary Muscle Shoals studio, appeared in a Monty Python film, duetted with Bobby Womack, written for Tina Turner, reached UK No 1 with Take That, and generally been a force of nature in British pop culture.
So there’s tons to ask her about as she embarks on her Champagne for Lulu tour – also celebrating her 75th birthday as well as those 60 years in showbiz – which kicks off in Glasgow on 9 April and then heads to Manchester, Southampton, Birmingham and London.
Post your questions in the comment section below before 11am GMT on Thursday 1 February, and we’ll publish her answers on 9 February.
