Beverley Knight has joined the panel of Starstruck, ITV’s newest TV talent show.
The singing competition gives Brits the chance to transform into their favourite artists and perform their own renditions of their songs.
Beverley said: “This country loves a talent show and a quiz show and this is the perfect combination of both.
“It’s perfect Saturday night television.”
So who is the soul singing diva?
Here’s what we know…
Who is Beverley Knight?
Beverley Knight is a British soul singer and musical theatre actress.
She released her first album – The B-Funk – in 1995, having been heavily influenced by American soul artists such a Sam Cooke and Aretha Franklin.
Beverley has now notched up a whopping eight studio albums.
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She also starred in BBC music TV series Just The Two Of Us and hosted four seasons of her own BBC Radio 2 show, Beverley’s Gospel Nights.
In 2013, Beverley decided to launch her career in musical theatre and performed in award-winning shows such as The Bodyguard, Cats and Memphis.
Beverley blew everyone away with her emotional performance in The Bodyguard – her first foray into musical theatre.
She took on the lead role of Rachel Marron, which was played by Whitney Houston in the film.
After a night of slipping into Whitney’s shoes, she told Metro: “I never got to meet her, which is a huge regret for me.
“I would have loved to have met the lady behind that voice.”
How old is Beverley Knight?
Beverley Anne Smith was born in Wolverhampton, England, in March 1973.
This means that Beverley turns 49 next month.
She’s achieved an awful lot since starting out in the fame game.
Beverley was awarded an OBE in 2006 in recognition of her contribution to British music.
Wolverhampton University also made her an honorary Doctor of Music the previous year.
What did Beverley Knight sing?
The singer is best known for her hit songs including Shoulda Woulda Coulda, Flavour Of The Old School and Get Up!.
She’s also released Greatest Day, Come As You Are, Piece Of My Heart and Keep This Fire Burning along many others.
What group was Beverley Knight in?
In 2017, the music icon formed a supergroup called the Leading Ladies.
Beverley started the group because she wanted to try something new after her health scare, which led to her having a hysterectomy.
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She recruited Glee star Amber Riley and Beautiful’s leading lady Cassidy Janson.
They released an album together called Songs From The Stage and toured the globe performing hits from shows such as Rent and Cats.
Why did Beverley have a hysterectomy?
Beverley revealed she was diagnosed with uterine fibroids in 2007, a common benign tumour that is more common and more aggressive in women of Afro-Caribbean descent.
She subsequently had to undergo a hysterectomy after doctors told her she could “die if I didn’t have urgent medical treatment”.
Speaking on Loose Women, Beverley said: “A hysterectomy changes everything… permanently.
“I did feel as though my superpowers were draining.”
The operation meant that Beverley never got to have children.
She has previously admitted they were never really on the agenda. However, she has said that not being able to have them was still a blow.
She told You magazine: “To be told you need a hysterectomy is a thunderbolt, even at 44.
“I had never wanted children because I always felt my work was so full on, I couldn’t be the mother I wanted to be, but in the back of my mind there was always an option.”
She added that her immediate thought when hearing she needed the op was: “That’s it. I am never, ever, going to give birth.”
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Beverley collapsed mid-song at a concert
In 2016, during a Children In Need in memory of Terry Wogan, Beverley also suffered a health scare when, off camera, she collapsed mid-song.
A witness told The Sun: “She was singing I Will Always Love You when it happened, she just dropped to the floor.
“Everyone in the audience was shocked, we just hope she’s feeling alright now.”
A spokesperson for the star said after the incident: “Bev is fine now.
“She was in a very hot dressing room back stage and left to go straight on stage where she suddenly felt faint mid-performance.
“Medics saw her backstage afterwards and said she had low blood sugar but after 30 minutes she felt much better and they signed her off to perform the number later in the evening – which she did without further issues.”
Is Beverley Knight related to Gladys Knight?
No, but she is asked this a LOT.
Beverley’s surname is Smith, but she did actually take her surname inspiration from Gladys Knight of The Pips fame.
Beverley explained: “It sounded right – and so many people have since asked if she is my auntie!”
What movies and TV shows has she been in?
Beverley has also taken on a couple of acting roles.
In 2021, the star played the role of Queen Tatiana in the latest Cinderella movie, which featured many other British stars including James Corden and Rob Beckett.
She also had a small part in TV drama The Halcyon.
Beverley also provided a song on the soundtrack of 2020 comedy The Loss Adjuster.
Plus she’s a regular on the likes of Loose Women, This Morning and Steph’s Packed Lunch.
What is Beverley Knight’s net worth?
Beverley has bagged quite the fortune since her rise to fame.
The music icon has an estimated net worth of £2 million – a figure sure to be bumped up by her judging role on Starstruck.
Is Beverley Knight married?
Beverley married production technician James O’Keefe in 2012.
The pair met on the set of one a TV shoot and she claimed that he was “the man of my dreams”.
Previously speaking to the Express, Beverley admitted she was “blissfully happy”.
However, she added that never in a million years did she think she’d end up with “a skinny white Irish man”.
Beverley told the paper: “I was always sure I’d end with a big, strapping Idris Elba type, instead I married a lean white man of Irish descent.
“But I walked into a TV shoot and saw him up the ladder doing the lighting, beautiful face, beautiful smile. We chatted and I just knew, immediately.”
She said she “didn’t dare” get his number but they me by chance two months later.
“We went on our first date and I was freaking out. I could feel something happening. Within a week I phoned my mum: ‘I think this is the one – you and Dad need to meet him.'”
Catch Beverley on Starstruck Saturday (February 12) at 8.30pm on ITV.
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