Michael Ball (born Michael Ashley Ball, on 27 June 1962 in Bromsgrove, England) is a British actor and singer, best known for musical theatre roles such as Marius in Les Misérables, Alex in Aspects of Love, and Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Although born in England, Michael Ball is half Welsh, and says jokingly that he considers himself "Wenglish" and proud to be British [1]. He studied Drama at the Guildford School of Acting and graduated in 1984. His first major break was a star part in the production of The Pirates of Penzance at the Opera House, Manchester. Next came a brief stint in Rep. Cameron Mackintosh saw him and cast him as Marius in Les Misérables. Next came Raoul in the second casting of Phantom of the Opera, and Alex in Aspects of Love, both in London and on Broadway, and Giorgio in Stephen Sondheim's London production of Passion. Alone Together was Michael's one man show first performed at The Donmar Warehouse (which was reprised in 2004 for the Singular Sensations season at the Haymarket). In 2002 Michael took on the role of Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang which was largely considered his comeback role. In 2005, at 10 days' notice, he replaced Michael Crawford, who had to leave the show due to ill health, as Count Fosco in The Woman in White, and gave a popular and critically-acclaimed performance.
Other performances include singing at the BBC's St David's Day concert, at the Les Misérables Tenth Anniversary Concert in 1995, and the fiftieth birthday party of Andrew Lloyd Webber in 1998. He is a dramatic baritone known for his range, expression and power.
Michael is an accomplished concert artist and tours frequently around the UK. He has also performed concerts in Australia and America. Since reaching the top of the British charts with "Love Changes Everything" (from Aspects of Love) Michael had small successes with follow up singles but in the main he has concentrated on releasing albums, all of which achieved Gold status within weeks, and in the case of The Movies album in 1998, Platinium in 7 weeks{was released Oct 26th confirmed Platinium status in interview on 12 Dec}. Michael represented the UK in the Eurovision Song Contest 1992, singing the song "One Step Out of Time", which finished second.
Michael has also turned his hand to presenting both on TV and radio and has presented The National lottery, Children in Need and This Morning, and had his own series on TV and radio (Ball over Broadway on BBC Radio 2) (which is in its fourth season), The Greenroom, and several specials for BBC Radio 2 on subjects such as Nat King Cole, Cameron Mackintosh, and Cy Coleman.
In September 2005, Michael made his NYC Opera debut as Reginald Bunthorne in Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience with the New York City Opera.
In October 2005 Michael released his latest album "Music". The album went into the UK charts at number 11, and spent 10 weeks in the top 75. The album finished the year the 99th best selling album of 2005.
In November, 2005, Michael returned to Broadway as Count Fosco in The Woman in White, which transferred from London's West End. However, he was forced to leave the show due to a reported viral infection caused by the fat suit required for the role, which reportedly raised Ball's body temperature by several degrees during the show. The suit is also thought to have been the cause of Michael Crawford's premature departure from the show in London. The show closed early, in part due to the health problems of Ball and leading lady Maria Friedman.
Michael spent the first quarter of 2006 on complete vocal rest, following the illness that caused him the leave Woman In White on Broadway. By the middle of July, Michael had taken part in the Royals Court's celebratory performance of The Rocky Horror Show, recorded a new album (called "One Voice", due for release on 30 October 2006) and made a guest appearance on Julian Lloyd Webber's album "Unexpected song". Then came the summer concerts at Aberdeen, Bath, Southport, Oakley Hall and Cardiff. In August, Michael sat in for Michael Parkinson on his Radio 2 show. He was interviewed for Radio 3's "Stage and Screen" programme, and recorded a tribute to Anthony Newley at Hackney Empire, also for Radio 2. Michael then took part in 'Proms in the Park' in Singleton Park, Swansea. He sang two tracks from his forthcoming album, 'One Voice'; the title song and 'Hero'. Michael also sung show stoppers, 'This is the Moment', 'Anthem' and 'Love Changes Everything'. In November, Michael will be releasing a new DVD containing all the best songs from his 'Live in Concert' DVDs. They will be split into five sections: Musicals, Love Songs, Personal Favourites, Party Time and Unplugged. The DVD will also include a brand new "Unplugged" session which Michael has recorded with just 4 other musicians in the studio especially for this DVD. It will be released on November 20 2006. Six days later he will join Petula Clark in concert at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane in London. (In 2004, he co-starred with her in a production of Lloyd Webber's Sunset Boulevard at the Cork Opera House in the Republic of Ireland, which was later broadcast by the BBC. Michael has lots of promotional activities coming up at the end of the year with the release of his new album 'One Voice'.
It has been announced that Ball will be taking the lead role in Kismet in June/July 2007 for the ENOdetails can be found on the English National Opera website.There will also be a tour but exact dates are not known yet{Michael confirmed this during his Stage and screen interview}.
He is currently sitting in for Johnnie Walker on his Sunday afternoon BBC Radio 2 show.
All For Nothing
Michael Ball Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
One would cling to my heart and soul
One who never let go
I knew right from the moment I met you
You were the sun who would shine down on me
And fulfill every dream
And I can't belive it
How we let it drift away
Was it all for nothing
Has our love reached the end
Tell me have I done all that
If it's all for nothing
Then why is it true
I would do it all once more for you
I will always remember the good times
Never look back to an innocence lost,
Left us counting the cost
So one night you will listen
You will hear my heart will cry
Was it all for nothing
Will someone up above tell me
What I have been guilty of
If it's all for nothing
Then why is it true
I would do it all again for you
And love like ours will surely never die
Was it all for nothing
I finally give in
But I still want you back again
If it's all for nothing then why is it true
Then why is it true
When you know it's true
I would do it all once more for you
The song "All for Nothing" by Michael Ball is a heartfelt reflection on lost love and the regret that comes with it. The lyrics express the artist's deep feelings of longing for a love that once existed but is now lost, questioning what led to their eventual separation. The singer recalls how he had a vision of love that would be eternal, a love that would never let go, and how he believed that he had found it in the person he is singing to. However, the couple allowed their relationship to drift away, and he now wonders if it was all for nothing.
Ball's lyrics speak of the pain of lost time and lost love, and the sorrow that comes with realizing that something beautiful has ended. He looks back on the good times he shared with his lover, and longs for the innocence he feels they lost. He questions whether he was guilty of anything that led to their separation, and in the end, comes to the conclusion that he would do it all again for the person he loves.
Overall, "All for Nothing" conveys a sense of deep emotion and a longing for a love that once existed. The lyrics are introspective and thoughtful, and the melody of the song complements the words, creating a moving and poignant tribute to lost love.
Line by Line Meaning
Time was I had a vision of love
I once had a dream of finding a true, pure love
One would cling to my heart and soul
Someone who would hold on to me, both physically and emotionally
One who never let go
Someone who would stay with me through thick and thin
I knew right from the moment I met you
I had a strong feeling that you were the one for me from our very first encounter
You were the sun who would shine down on me
You were my source of light, hope, and inspiration
And fulfill every dream
You would help me achieve all my aspirations and desires
And I can't believe it
I am in disbelief that our love has drifted apart
How we let it drift away
We allowed our love to slowly fade and disappear
Was it all for nothing
Did our love have no purpose or meaning?
Has our love reached the end
Is our love over and done with?
Tell me have I done all that
Did I do everything I could to make our love work?
If it's all for nothing
If our love has no value or significance
Then why is it true
Why do I still feel its impact and importance?
I would do it all once more for you
I am willing to start over and relive everything with you
I will always remember the good times
I will cherish the happy moments we shared together
Never look back to an innocence lost
I won't dwell on the fact that our relationship has changed from how it used to be
Left us counting the cost
We are now paying the price for the mistakes we made in our relationship
So one night you will listen
Someday you will hear me out and understand how I feel
You will hear my heart will cry
You will realize how much my heart yearns for you
Will someone up above tell me
I wish there was a higher power who could give me clarity on our love
What I have been guilty of
What have I done wrong to deserve the end of our love?
And love like ours will surely never die
Our love will always exist, even if our relationship has ended
I finally give in
I am ready to give up on trying to forget about our love
But I still want you back again
Despite everything, I still yearn to be with you
Then why is it true
I still can't deny the power and importance of our love
When you know it's true
Deep down, we both know that our love had a profound impact on each other's lives
I would do it all once more for you
I am willing to go through everything again for a chance at our love
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
John Maguire
on Wherever You Are
This song was probably written by Graham Gouldman and Andrew Gold