Welsh songbird Katherine Jenkins did a bit of tube busking in November 2011. The mezzo-soprano is more used to performing in front of thousands in some of the World’s major stages.
A 45 minute stint at Leicester Square station for London commuters yielded £16 for a homeless charity, going undercover with a ‘make-under”, hiding her trademark blonde locks behind a scruffy brunette wig and casual clothes. But her distinctive vocal fooled few.
Katherine’s classical crossover style, including operatic arias, popular songs, musical theatre and hymns has won her two Classical Brit Album of the Year Awards.
After performing with the legendary Dame Vera Lynn at the 60th VE Day Anniversary concert in 2005, the WWII ‘forces sweetheart’ said Katherine should consider performing for the British troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. She did just that. Her helicopter was targeted by missiles, but she eventually landed safely when anti-missile flares were deployed.
She came second in the US Dancing with the Stars and this year ran the London marathon in 5 hours 26 minutes, raising £25,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support in memory of her father. Katherine also performed at a fundraiser in October 2011 to help relief efforts after the devastation caused by the earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand.
She signed my ‘busking’ sketch at her London office in Chiswick Lane, a couple of days after her underground debut. An earlier portrait was signed in the mid 2000s through the mail.