Adam Rickitt on his upcoming his return to pop music

I sat down with Adam to talk about his shock success at 18, being arrested for inciting a riot in Bangkok and his return to pop music at the Live at Arley festival last weekend.

Tell us about your childhood

I’m the youngest of four boys and was born in Cuddington. My brothers are Sam, who will be 50 this year, Mark, 52, and Tim, 54. They are, and always have been, my best friends. My dad was a merchant banker and Mum was a housewife, although it transpired she had the most interesting life out of all of us, as she was an army child and was born in India, raised in Germany and became the babysitter for the Archduke of Germany. She moved to London and became the personal shopper for Asprey, Roger Moore, the Beatles and Sean Connery.

Where did you develop your love of acting?

I followed in the footsteps of my brothers, father, grandfather, great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather and went to the same boarding school as they did, Sedbergh in Cumbria, from the age of seven to 18. I was very sporty at school and played rugby, but I always wanted to be an actor because of my uncle, Bill Weston. He was a successful stunt man in the James Bond films, Star Wars and Titanic and was stunt co-ordinator for the Harry Potter franchise. In 1987, I went to the cinema to watch The Living Daylights with my family and there was a scene where a kung fu bodyguard, disguised as a butler, had to protect an asset from the Russian spy. My mum yelled: ‘Oh look, it’s Bill!’ Uncle Bill was the bodyguard butler and from that moment on, I wanted to be a part of building these magical worlds.

Adam Rickitt at Power in the Park. (Image: Supplied)

What happened after school?

When I finished my A levels, I got a place at Cambridge University but I told my dad I wanted to be an actor. He had spent an awful lot of money on my education and so wasn’t that keen on me pursuing it, but he made a deal with me. He said I could take a year out to see if I could make it as an actor. If nothing happened, then I would take my place at Cambridge. So I went to the library and found a copy of Spotlight, which lists all the agents, and I phoned Nigel Martin-Smith, who was based in Manchester. At the time (1997), he was looking after Take That and running drama classes. I sent his agency a photograph and explained that I hadn’t done any acting but would really like to learn. They thought I had a good look, so could do some modelling for them and agreed for me to join the acting class the following Thursday, but in the meantime, could I go down to Granada studios for an audition that afternoon?

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They told me I wouldn’t get the role but it would be a great experience and show exactly how an audition works. So I went along – that audition was for Coronation Street to play Nick Tilsley. An hour after my audition, I got a call from Nigel telling me that I had got the job and I would start on Monday.

Your life must have changed overnight

It did. I didn’t have any acting experience and suddenly I was on television in front of 20 million people. But soap is the greatest drama school you could wish for, as it not only teaches you how to act, it teaches you how to be professional, to learn your lines, hit your marks and always be on time. It was a privilege to work with some great actors such as John Savident, who played Fred Elliott, but had also been in films including A Clockwork Orange and Gandhi and was in the original cast of Phantom of the Opera. I was like a sponge around these actors, getting as much knowledge from them as possible.

What was it like being a part of such an institution?

I had never watched an episode, so I had no idea of how big a beast it was. We filmed four weeks in advance and on one occasion, when I was picked up from the studios by my mum, I asked her to stop off at the supermarket as I needed to get some cereal for the morning. It should have been a five-minute pop in and out. I must have been in there for two hours, as my first episode had just aired and it was as if the whole supermarket descended on me.

As an 18-year-old, that must have been overwhelming

I had just gone from an all-boys boarding school to being in the biggest show on British television and while some of the attention was great, especially from girls, the tabloids could also destroy you if they wanted. So it did start to have a negative effect and I became very introverted. I have been stabbed four times: twice with a smashed bottle, once with a knife and once with a screwdriver, each time because a girl would start talking to me in a bar and her boyfriend would get jealous. But even after being stabbed, I would still apologise to him, because I knew if I retaliated, the headline would be something like ‘Adam Rickitt beats up ex-choir boy’. It wouldn’t be ‘Adam Rickitt defends himself from being stabbed’. Now I’m friends with quite a few of the journalists who wrote about me.

How did you navigate your way through that? Did you have any support?

There was none. I would just suppress it all and not go out. I focussed on the work but then I became obsessed over what people would think of me. The saddest thing for me was that at a very young age, I had every kid’s dream handed on a plate. It was like Christmas had come and I had incredible gifts but then I opened them all and realised

I didn’t want any of them. Everything I thought that I wanted, such as the validation and attention, I actually didn’t want. Even though I was 18, so technically a man, I had led a very sheltered life at boarding school and was quite naive. So I had to create two personas: Adam Rickitt the brand and then the real Adam Rickitt.

How did you get your first recording contract?

I was only due to be in Corrie for 18 months but my character became so popular that Granada was talking to me about films and my own series. I wanted to do other things and learn more but the problem was that

I was only known as Nick Tilsley and getting job offers that were similar to that character. Nigel had heard me sing and suggested we do a pop album, which would allow people to see Adam Rickitt and not Nick Tilsley and would appeal to my fan base. It was also coming off the success of other soap stars such as Kylie and Jason Donovan. I signed a six-album deal with Polydor, and naively presumed I would be doing live concerts. The reality was that it was all about driving single and album sales so it was all about press, from photoshoots and interviews for publications such as Smash Hits, to radio and TV interviews, but zero live performances.

I fell out of love with the pop industry very quickly and asked to be released from my six-album deal. They agreed to let me go after I had promoted my debut album. My first single, I Breathe Again, did really well and made it to No.5 in the UK charts, but the next one made the top 20, while the third only made the top 30. The album did OK and so the record company recouped its money, so was happy for me to leave the contract as long as I would do a little tour of South East Asia for them. Little did I know how popular I was going to be over there. I was Thailand’s biggest-selling artist. In Bangkok, I was supposed to do a gig for 10,000 people in the town centre but 200,000 turned up. There were riots in the streets and my tour manager and I were arrested as they said it was all our fault. When I got back to the UK, the record company could see the international benefit and so refused to let me exit the contract.

I had to go to court to get released. Another example of ‘living the dream’ but really not wanting it.

You have also acted in musical theatre. How did that come about?

After I left Corrie I was approached to do lots of theatre and one offer was to be in Rent. I’m really not into musical theatre and had never seen the show but the producers were really persistent and flew me over to Broadway to watch it. It took my breath away because in my opinion, it’s not a musical, it’s a rock opera. It’s raw, engaging and controversial. We toured it for a year and we were about to open in the West End when 9/11 happened and it was pulled as the producers thought it was wouldn’t attract audiences.

However, I thought it would work as it’s set at Christmas time in New York and is a story of finding hope in the darkest situations. So I raised the money and we were, at the time, the most successful Christmas opening the West End had ever seen. We ran for four months at the Prince of Wales Theatre and people saw it as a way to celebrate New York.

After Rent, I lived in LA and was offered a three-month acting contract for the TV drama Shortland Street, in New Zealand. Apart from Rent, it’s been the only acting job I’ve truly loved.

When I returned to the UK I took two years off from acting and got a job for the third sector as a media and fundraising consultant for charities like the RSPCA, BDSA and WaterAid.

Adam and Katy Rickitt (Image: Adam Rickitt)

How did you meet your wife, Katy?

It was in 2011, while I was working with the RSPCA, and we were doing a capital appeal.

I was the face of it and so it was a day of doing lots of 20-minute press interviews. Then I saw a girl, stroking a dog and it was Katy, who was reporting for ITV. We ended up chatting and filming for four hours.

I rang my mum that night and told her I had met the girl I was going to marry. Katy inspired me to get back into acting as I could finally share it with someone.

Is that when you joined Hollyoaks?

Yes. I had got a new agent and I asked him to test the water and straight away, Hollyoaks offered me a three-month contract, which ended up being two years. I had so much fun on that show, but I was approaching 40 and wanted to leave, so my exit storyline was that I committed suicide. It aired around the time when Covid hit and people were feeling isolated and lonely. The number of people who contacted me to say how much it had helped them see the signs of depression in family and friends, so they could get the support that they needed, made me very proud of that storyline.

The Dexter & Jones location In Princes Street, Knutsford, holds special memories for Adam. (Image: Adam Rickitt)

When did you open Dexter and Jones in Knutsford?

Katy and I agreed to buy it in the summer of 2019 and opened it just before Covid in 2020, and we then had to think of ways to make it successful during that challenging time. We introduced delivering our craft and draught beers to homes – so takeaway pints! It was a huge success and a way for us to chat with people on our deliveries, who had been isolated due to restrictions and lockdowns. One elderly gentleman burst into tears, as we were the first human beings he’d had contact with in such a long time. Every weekend we would pop round to have a chat at his front door, even though he hadn’t bought anything – we just wanted to check in on him. I see us as being custodians of Dexter and Jones because it’s all about the community and the eclectic people who come here and have a wine or a beer and chat. I’m a huge supporter of pubs as they bring people together.

What’s so special about Knutsford?

Back in the 1980s, my family and I would come down to this very building at 10 Princes Street, which was called David’s Place then, for lunch on a Saturday. In 1983, the building was divided into offices. I was the very last person in the cellar before it was boarded up and I left a little toy soldier there. In 2021, when we were knocking through in the cellar as we were expanding, I found my toy, almost 40 years later.

You’re returning to music and in May you will be performing at Arley Hall. Tell us all about that

It all started because last year we helped organise Knutsford’s first Pride and I was asked to perform in our beer garden. They set up a GoFundMe page to raise £2,500 for charity, for me to perform. The target was reached within two hours, so I had to do it. It was filmed and went viral and that’s when I got approached by record companies asking about re-signing due to the big nostalgia movement.

I discussed it with Katy and we agreed this gives me the perfect opportunity to do it again, but on my terms.

I’m really looking forward to performing at Arley – it’s going to be me on the stage, supported by my wife’s dance troupe. It’s not about singles or sales, it’s about performing and having fun with the audience I grew up with.

I want to relive the ’90s and noughties but in a positive way this time around. Plus I’m going to be performing new material, which is really exciting. There will be a new album, which is all dance music.

How do you look after yourself physically and mentally?

I have a condition called ankylosing spondylitis, which affects my spine. I do half an hour

of body weight exercises and then 15 minutes of cardio, such as cross-training. With this condition, I’m allergic to starch, so my diet is fairly restrictive; I largely eat meat, fruit and cauliflower. But I can have sugar and alcohol.

As I struggled with my mental health when I was younger, I just take each day as it comes. I have learnt you will have good days and bad days but not to glory in the good or beat yourself up in the bad.

Soap star, superstar, businessman Adam Rickitt . (Image: Kirsty Thompson)

What are your favourite skincare/grooming products?

I use an exfoliating scrub every day and a basic moisturiser. I also use a spray for my hair called Supercharged Hair Loss Treatment from The Hairloss Shop, based in Knutsford. It’s brilliant.

Where are your favourite places in Cheshire?

Dexter and Jones, of course. Beeston Castle also has a very special place in mine and Katy’s heart. And Tatton Park is magical.

What else does 2026 have in store?

Releasing the new album during the summer and performing live around the UK.

If you could say anything to your younger self, what would it be?

Don’t worry, it’s going to be OK..

Adam Rickitt will headline the Mega Y2K Friday night party on May 15, which opens the weekend of Live at Arley open-air concerts in the grounds of Arley Hall near Knutsford. It will also feature award-winning tributes to Celine Dion, Five, Blue and the Backstreet Boys.

arleyconcerts.com