Mater

On the toss of a coin more than one fate has been sealed. Paul Potts tossed a coin: Tales we lose - Heads we win.

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Of course that’s not the way he tells it, but it is how I perceive it. He tossed that ten pence piece as a decider as to whether or not he would submit his entry form to ‘Britain’s Got Talent’. Heads he would - and did - and now his first album is number one in the charts, ahead of Justin Timberlake.

I listened to Paul Potts this morning, on the Breakfast program. He’s a man of few words, quiet and unassuming. Not quite the celebrity package we have come to expect - but the packaging belies a wonderful talent. I wished it would be my birthday soon - just like when I was a little girl - because I knew exactly what I would want. One Chance. That’s not one chance for me, but the title of Paul Potts’ album. His singing moves me to tears - never more so than when he sings ‘Nessun Dorma’, Time to Say Goodbye’ and ‘Music of the Night‘. How can such a small man have such a powerful voice?

I can’t say that I have ever been moved to tears by a female opera singer, but a good male voice can. Paul Potts’ voice most certainly can.

I wept again this afternoon when my youngest daughter presented me with his CD - and my birthday was three months ago! And as my children and grandchildren left for home, I sat back in my chair, closed my eyes and played ‘One Chance’. That man only needed the one chance in order to make his mark.

I remember my mother telling me about listening to Pavarotti ‘live in the park’ (in Oslo). I think listening to Paul Potts in the privacy of my living room comes a good second. Not only that, I think he has what it takes to scale the Operatic heights. I might even get someone to take me to see this ordinary man and listen to his extraordinary voice when he is in concert in Cardiff early next year. As it said on the screen during his interview on Breakfast this morning:
‘Paul Potts. Opera Singer.’