Duncan James
Encyclopedia
Duncan Matthew James Inglis (born 7 April 1978) is an English singer, actor and television presenter. He is best known as a member of the boyband Blue.

Early life

James grew up an only child in Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...

 and was raised primarily by his mother and grandparents after his father abandoned his mother before he was born. He was raised a "strict Catholic" and educated at Dumpton School
Dumpton School
Dumpton School is an independent day school in Wimborne, Dorset, South West England, for 2½ to 13 year old children.-Notable Old Dumptonians:*Ore Oduba - Children's Presenter*Duncan James - Singer in band Blue*Michael Absalom - Children's Presenter...

 (where his grandfather worked as a music teacher), the Milldown School in Blandford Forum and Corfe Hills School
Corfe Hills School
Corfe Hills School, is a purpose built secondary school in the urban fringe between Poole and Wimborne, located in Broadstone, Poole, England. In 2001, the school was given Technology College status. The school has over 1600 students and over 100 teaching staff...

 in Corfe Mullen
Corfe Mullen
Corfe Mullen is a village in Dorset, England, on the north-western urban fringe of the South East Dorset conurbation and is part of the rural district of East Dorset. The population is 10,147 ....

 and Sidmouth College in East Devon. At 15, he played Puck
Puck (Shakespeare)
Puck, also known as Robin Goodfellow, is a character in William Shakespeare's play A Midsummer Night's Dream that was based on the ancient figure in English mythology, also called Puck. Puck is a clever and mischievous elf and personifies the trickster or the wise knave...

 in A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream is a play that was written by William Shakespeare. It is believed to have been written between 1590 and 1596. It portrays the events surrounding the marriage of the Duke of Athens, Theseus, and the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta...

. He also played Dr Watson in Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...

for Sidmouth Youth Theatre. James also worked for Haven Holidays as a Havenmate on the Isle Of Wight and at West Bay in Dorset.

Blue

In early 2000, James, along with Antony Costa
Antony Costa
Antony Daniel Costa is an English singer-songwriter and actor. He is best known as a member of the boyband Blue.-Career:One of Costa's earliest television roles was as a pupil in Steven Moffat's sitcom Chalk...

, convinced Lee Ryan
Lee Ryan
Lee Ryan is an English singer-songwriter, actor and member of the British boy band Blue.-Early life:...

 and Simon Webbe
Simon Webbe
Simon Solomon Webbe is an English singer-songwriter, actor and music manager. He is best known as a member of the British boyband Blue.-2001–2005: Early Career And Blue:...

 to form the group Blue. Blue's R&B-influenced pop allowed the group to achieve commercial success in the United Kingdom and many other countries, including Ireland, Portugal, Belgium, Italy, France, Australia and New Zealand. From May 2001, when the group released its first single, "All Rise", until 2004, when the band released its final chart-qualifying single, "Curtain Falls", Blue had achieved 11 Top 10 singles in the UK, three of which went to Number 1.

James along with the other members of Blue represented the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011
Eurovision Song Contest 2011
The Eurovision Song Contest 2011 was the 56th annual Eurovision Song Contest and was won by Eldar & Nigar performing "Running Scared" for Azerbaijan. The event took place in the Esprit Arena in Düsseldorf, Germany, following Germany's win in the previous year...

 in Germany, finishing in 11th place with 100 points, as well as being the spokesperson for the same country two years earlier.

Solo career

In October 2004, James collaborated with Keedie
Keedie
Keedie Green is a British classical crossover soprano, with three octaves in her voice that reaches a top A above a top E.-Background:...

 to release the single "I Believe My Heart", which entered the UK singles chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

 at Number 2. He returned to the solo music scene in May 2006 with his single "Sooner or Later", releasing the video in early May and planning to release the single commercially on 5 June 2006. The video reached Number 2 on The Box and Number 5 on The Hits
The Hits
The Hits was a music video channel in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, owned by Box Television.-Overview and availability:The channel showcased a range of pop centering on chart hits and current favourites...

. However, the single was no commercial success and entered the British charts at Number 35, before slipping down to Number 72 in its second week. "Can't Stop a River" was James's next single. Released on 21 August 2006, the track could only reach Number 59 in the UKRe, and Number 97 in Ireland. In continental Europe, where "Can't Stop a River" was released the day prior to the UK, it similarly proved unpopular, dropping out of the singles charts in many countries such as France, Turkey, Germany, and Belgium. James' album also fell short, selling less than 1,000 copies in the UK in its first week (and failing to reach the Top 50). The album sold a total of 412,350 copies around the world. Although his debut album did not do as well as hoped (with the exception of Italy, where the album reached Number 2 on the chart and has been certified platinum for shipments of 80,000 copies), on 2 February 2007, music channel B4 premièred the video for "Amazed", his new single which was scheduled to be released 12 March 2007. However, there was once again a lack of interest. The release was cancelled and James was dropped from his recording contract. He has since announced he has quit least his solo career.

Theatre

In 2007, James appeared in the West End production of Chicago
Chicago (musical)
Chicago is a musical set in Prohibition-era Chicago. The music is by John Kander with lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Ebb and Bob Fosse. The story is a satire on corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the "celebrity criminal"...

. He completed another 10 weeks in Chicago from 10 December 2007 until 9 February 2008. James has been cast as one of the leads in the musical Legally Blonde
Legally Blonde (musical)
Legally Blonde is a musical with music and lyrics by Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin and book by Heather Hach. The story is based on the novel Legally Blonde by Amanda Brown and the 2001 film of the same name. It tells the story of Elle Woods, a sorority girl who enrolls at Harvard Law School to...

(adapted from the film Legally Blonde
Legally Blonde
Legally Blonde is a 2001 American comedy film directed by Robert Luketic, written by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith, and produced by Marc E. Platt...

) as it transferred from Broadway to London's West End in December 2009. He plays opposite Sheridan Smith
Sheridan Smith
Sheridan Smith is an English actress and singer who is best known for her contributions to the British sitcoms Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, Gavin & Stacey and Benidorm. She has also become a recognised face in West End theatre, where she has appeared in Little Shop of Horrors,...

 as Elle, and Aoife Mulholland
Aoife Mulholland
Aoife Mulholland is an Irish actress and musical theatre performer from Salthill, Galway. Aoife is a successful leading lady in London's West End...

 as Brooke. In December 2009, James appeared as 'Warner Huntington III' in the West End production of Legally Blonde.

Television

James has worked occasionally as a television presenter, having presented the 95.8 Capital FM's Party in the Park
Party in the Park
Party in the Park is the generic name given to music concerts organised by various radio stations and local authorities in England and Wales, typically in large parks during the summer.-Leeds' Party in the Park:...

for the Prince's Trust (2003 and 2004), and ITV2
ITV2
ITV2 is a 24 hour, free-to-air entertainment television channel in the United Kingdom owned by ITV Digital Channels Ltd, a division of ITV plc. It was launched on 7 December 1998, and is available on digital television via satellite, cable, IPTV and terrestrial platforms. The channel has the...

's coverage of the TV series Soapstar Superstar
Soapstar Superstar
Soapstar Superstar was a reality singing competition produced by Granada Television which first aired on British television station ITV in 2006. In the competition, ten soap opera actors perform in front of a celebrity panel, which included Cilla Black, Billy Sammeth and Chris Cowey...

, along with Jayne Middlemiss
Jayne Middlemiss
Jayne Middlemiss is a London-based British television and radio presenter, originally from Northumberland. She began presenting music television shows such as The O-Zone and Top of the Pops in the mid '90s, before presenting a variety of other television and radio shows, including on BBC 6 Music...

. Other presenting work includes Pop City Live, Variety Club Showbusiness Awards 2004, T4
T4 (Channel 4)
T4 is a scheduling slot on Channel 4 from about 09:00 until 14:00 on Saturdays and 17:00 on Sundays. It also airs on weekdays in the school holidays. The slot has a separate station identification on screen graphic from Channel 4 and E4. The logo of T4 is noticeably the top right segment of the...

 Movie Special: Spider-Man 2
, Record of the Year
The Record of the Year
The Record of the Year is an award voted by the UK public. For many years it was given in conjunction with television programmes of the same name...

: Downloaded
and GMTV
GMTV
GMTV was the national Channel 3 breakfast television contractor, broadcasting in the United Kingdom from 1 January 1993 to 3 September 2010. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of ITV plc. in November 2009. Shortly after, ITV plc announced the programme would end...

's Entertainment Today. He also took part on ITV1's Dancing on Ice
Dancing on Ice
Dancing on Ice is a British television show co-hosted by Christine Bleakley and Philip Schofield, in which celebrities and their professional partners figure skate in front of a panel of judges. The format, devised by LWT and Granada Television, has been a prime-time hit in eight different...

in 2007, in which he made it to the grand final alongside rugby player Kyran Bracken
Kyran Bracken
Kyran Paul Patrick Bracken MBE is a former English rugby union footballer who played at scrum-half for Saracens, Bristol and Waterloo R.F.C....

 and actress Clare Buckfield
Clare Buckfield
Clare Buckfield is an English actress, best known for playing the role of Jenny Porter in the BBC sitcom 2point4 children for most of the nineties and Natasha Stevens in the CBBC series Grange Hill.-Biography:...

. He came third in the contest, although was unable to perform his Bolero
Bolero
Bolero is a form of slow-tempo Latin music and its associated dance and song. There are Spanish and Cuban forms which are both significant and which have separate origins.The term is also used for some art music...

 performance. In 2007, James played himself in the pilot episode of Plus One
Plus One (TV series)
Plus One is a British sitcom written and created by Tim Allsop & Stewart Williams and made by Kudos for Channel 4. A pilot was originally transmitted in 2007 as part of Channel 4's Comedy Showcase, while a full series of 5 episodes began transmitting in January 2009;The programme centres itself...

, which was part of Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...

's Comedy Showcase
Comedy Showcase
Comedy Showcase is a series of one-off comedy specials featuring some of Britain's fledgling comedy talent. Its format is reminiscent of the much earlier Comedy Playhouse....

. A full series was broadcast in 2009, in which he played a broad caricature
Caricature
A caricature is a portrait that exaggerates or distorts the essence of a person or thing to create an easily identifiable visual likeness. In literature, a caricature is a description of a person using exaggeration of some characteristics and oversimplification of others.Caricatures can be...

 of himself called "Duncan From Blue". James made an appearance on a new show for Sky One
Sky One
Sky1 is the flagship BSkyB entertainment channel available in the United Kingdom and Ireland.The channel first launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, and is the fourth-oldest TV channel in the United Kingdom, behind BBC One , ITV and BBC Two...

 called 'Guinness World Records Smashed
Guinness World Records Smashed
Guinness World Records Smashed is a British television show for Sky1, that features record attempts, celebrity guests and death-defying stunts...

' performing with Festival4Stars
Festival4Stars
Festival4Stars is a UK based talent competition for singing and dancing open to all ages. Set up to combat the negative feedback given on main stream reality shows, each contestant gets written feedback from 2 of the professional industry judges....

 contestants. It aired in November 2008. In 2008, James became an Ambassador of Festival4Stars
Festival4Stars
Festival4Stars is a UK based talent competition for singing and dancing open to all ages. Set up to combat the negative feedback given on main stream reality shows, each contestant gets written feedback from 2 of the professional industry judges....

 talent competition after he judge a national final. He appeared in an episode of The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...

called "The Morning After" which aired on 1 January 2009. He played a character called Dan Colman. It was confirmed in February 2009 that James had been chosen to replace Denise Van Outen
Denise van Outen
Denise van Outen is an English actress, singer and television presenter. Her most notable roles to date are as a presenter on The Big Breakfast, and as Roxie Hart in the musical Chicago on both the West End and on Broadway.- Early life :Born Denise Kathleen Outen in Basildon, Essex, she is the...

 as the presenter of Grease: the School Musical
Grease: the School Musical
Grease: the School Musical is a reality TV programme that appeared on TV at the end of August 2009 following on from the popular Hairspray: The School Musical. It was the result of a competition that started in 2008. The 1,000 schools were whittled down to 10 schools, then at this point filming...

 which is the sequel to Hairspray: The School Musical
Hairspray: The School Musical
Hairspray: The School Musical is a 2008 reality TV series, broadcast on Sky1 in the UK, charting the development of a comprehensive school's production of the Broadway and West End musical Hairspray.-Format:...

. Filming of the show commenced in early 2009. In May 2009, James announced the UK's voting in the Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest 2009
The Eurovision Song Contest 2009 was the 54th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest and was hosted by Russia after their win in 2008. It took place between 12 and 16 May 2009 at the Olympic Indoor Arena in Moscow, Russia....

. He presented Hannah-Oke
Hannah-Oke
Hannah-Oke is a British karaoke game show based on the hit TV series Hannah Montana that premiered on Disney Channel UK on May 15, 2009, and airs every week at 6pm...

on Disney Channel UK, a singing dancing contest based on the popular Disney TV series Hannah Montana
Hannah Montana
Hannah Montana is an American television series, which debuted on March 24, 2006 on the Disney Channel. The series focuses on a girl who lives a double life as an average teenage school girl named Miley Stewart by day and a famous pop singer named Hannah Montana by night, concealing her real...

. He also appeared on Celebrity Are You Smarter Than A 10 Year Old? (UK)
Are You Smarter Than A 10 Year Old? (UK)
Are You Smarter Than a/Your 10 Year Old? was a British quiz show which aired on Sky1. There were two editions, one broadcast weekly in primetime, hosted by Noel Edmonds and a daily version, originally hosted by Dick and Dom, but later hosted by Damian Williams...

and raised £10,000 for his charities. In 2006, James appeared with the other members of the boyband Blue on the 26 June episode of Ministry of Mayhem, where James and the other band members were all hypnotised by UK stage hypnotist
Stage hypnosis
Stage hypnosis is hypnosis performed in front of an audience for the purposes of entertainment, usually in a theatre or club. Expert opinion is divided over whether participants' responses are best explained as being due to an altered state of consciousness or by a combination of deliberate...

 David Days. James appeared as a celebrity guest on 14 August 2009 on Daily Cooks Challenge. In 2010, James presented the quiz show 'Scream if You Know the Answer!
Scream if You Know the Answer!
Scream! If You Know the Answer is a British game show presented by Duncan James and narrated by Colin Murray. The games are simple general knowledge, but they are played on the rides at theme park Thorpe Park...

' where the contestants have to answer questions whilst on rollercoasters. In July 2010, he appeared as a judge on Don't Stop Believing
Don't Stop Believing
Don't Stop Believing is a British television talent show that aired on Channel 5 in summer 2010. It was inspired by the musical comedy-drama Glee, which airs in the United States on the Fox network. The series featured live shows in which musical performance groups competed against each other, with...

, a talent show for choirs. James has his own radio show on 95.8 Capital FM, every Sunday from 7–10 pm.

Personal life

According to an interview he gave to Gabby Logan
Gabby Logan
Gabby Logan is a television presenter and radio presenter, as well as a former Wales international gymnast. She currently hosts programmes for BBC Sport, mainly focusing on football.- Early life :...

 on BBC Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live is the BBC's national radio service that specialises in live BBC News, phone-ins, and sports commentaries...

 on 28 July 2007, he is a great-grandson of Herbert Chapman
Herbert Chapman
Herbert Chapman was an English association football player and manager. Though he had an undistinguished playing career, he went on to become one of the most successful and influential managers in early 20th century English football, before his sudden death in 1934.As a player, Chapman played for...

, the manager of the Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...

 football team of the 1930s. James lives in Hatfield, Hertfordshire
Hatfield, Hertfordshire
Hatfield is a town and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England in the borough of Welwyn Hatfield. It has a population of 29,616, and is of Saxon origin. Hatfield House, the home of the Marquess of Salisbury, is the nucleus of the old town...

. He has a daughter named Tianie Finn with former girlfriend Claire Grainger. Duncan James came out
Coming out
Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....

 as bisexual
Bisexuality
Bisexuality is sexual behavior or an orientation involving physical or romantic attraction to both males and females, especially with regard to men and women. It is one of the three main classifications of sexual orientation, along with a heterosexual and a homosexual orientation, all a part of the...

 in an interview with the News of the World
News of the World
The News of the World was a national red top newspaper published in the United Kingdom from 1843 to 2011. It was at one time the biggest selling English language newspaper in the world, and at closure still had one of the highest English language circulations...

on 12 July 2009.

Studio albums

Year Album details Peak chart positions
UK
FRA
IRE
BEL
ITA
2006 Future Past
Future Past
Future Past is the first and only solo album released by Blue band-member Duncan James. The album was released on June 12, 2006. Three singles were released from the album: "Sooner or Later", "Can't Stop A River" and "Amazed". The album sold less than 15,000 copies in the UK, and less than 150,000...

  • Released: 12 June 2006
  • Label: Innocent Records
  • Format: CD, LP
    LP album
    The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...

55 68 55 25 2

Singles

Year Title Chart positions Album
UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

ITA
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

2004 "I Believe My Heart
I Believe My Heart (song)
"I Believe My Heart" is the debut single from Blue member Duncan James. The song also features Keedie. The song was written by David Zippel for use in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical The Woman in White, which premiered the same year...

"
(Duncan James and Keedie
Keedie
Keedie Green is a British classical crossover soprano, with three octaves in her voice that reaches a top A above a top E.-Background:...

)
2 13 I Believe My Heart
I Believe My Heart
I Believe My Heart is an album by British singer Keedie. It was released on 18 November 2004. The album has a mixture of genres and songwriters. Two classics; "Ave Maria" and the aria "Un bel dì vedremo" are sung in English. Seven other arias feature on the album...

by Keedie
Keedie
Keedie Green is a British classical crossover soprano, with three octaves in her voice that reaches a top A above a top E.-Background:...

2006 "Sooner Or Later" 35 3 Future Past
Future Past
Future Past is the first and only solo album released by Blue band-member Duncan James. The album was released on June 12, 2006. Three singles were released from the album: "Sooner or Later", "Can't Stop A River" and "Amazed". The album sold less than 15,000 copies in the UK, and less than 150,000...

"Can't Stop A River
Can't Stop a River
"Can't Stop a River" is the second single released from Duncan James' debut solo album, Future Past. The single was released on August 21, 2006, and peaked at #59 on the UK Singles Chart...

"
59 23
"Amazed
Amazed
"Amazed" is the title of a song written by Marv Green, Aimee Mayo and Chris Lindsey. The first version of the song was recorded by the American country music group Lonestar, whose version was released in March 1999 as the second single from their 1999 album Lonely Grill...

"
71

External links

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