Martin Kemp: ‘I like having alone time on tour – it’s why my marriage is still going strong’
How do famous names spend their precious downtime? In our weekly My Saturday column, celebrities reveal their weekend virtues and vices. This week: Martin Kemp
9am
I DJ at the weekends around the country, so I need a lie in. Usually I’m up at 6am and out into the garden with a coffee and my two toy poodles, but not after a late gig. I’ll be up in my hotel room ordering room service: scrambled eggs and smoked salmon with a strong coffee.
10am
Jump in the shower and pull myself together. Unless I’m playing games on my phone. I’m currently playing Woodoku – I’m addicted! I like my alone time on tour. I’ve always said that’s why Shirlie [Kemp’s wife of Pepsi & Shirlie fame] and I are still going strong after 35 years. Our time when we’re together is so much more important.
11am
Check out of the hotel and head off in the tour bus to the next venue. I don’t have time to work out at the weekend but in the week I’m in my home gym on the treadmill most days. I’m in pretty good shape currently but exercise is also a workout for my brain – it gives me headspace when I’m busy.
I don’t think about my brain tumour [diagnosed in 1995] any more. It was like a black hole in my life that lasted about four or five years. I think we’re all more aware of our mental health nowadays. My son [Capital FM DJ] Roman has done a lot to raise awareness [after his best friend died by suicide in 2020], but I’m most proud of the person he has become.
We worry as parents if you’re making the right decisions when they’re younger, but seeing him now as an adult, I am so proud of him.
12pm
On the road. I’m not a big eater, so I’ll just have a protein shake on the journey. Saturdays have always been about football. I’ll listen to TalkSport for hours. I’ve been an Arsenal fan all my life, having grown up in Islington.
3pm
Arrive at the next hotel. If I’ve got some downtime, I get my laptop out and do some writing for a few hours. I’m about to release my first fiction book The Game [about a fallen ’80s pop star who gets drawn into the East End’s underbelly – out 9 November]. I spent about two years writing it, but the character has always been in my head. I get all my ideas while in the bath – it’s my meditative time where I end up in storyland.
7pm
Get ready. I have a collection of shirts I wear on rotation, which are a bit like my costume. Clothes have always been important to me. No matter how funny you might think the New Romantic style was, it was the fashion of the time.
8pm
Arrive at the venue and have a salad. It’s not that glamorous, but I make up for it in the week. Our house is practically teetotal but I don’t deny myself a couple of glasses of wine if we go out. Shirlie is vegetarian and I was for some years, but now I allow myself to eat a steak every now and then. I try not to apply too many boundaries.
9pm
I play ’80s tunes to about 1,000 people, who sing every word in every song. It’s such a euphoric atmosphere, I love every second of the 90-minute gig. My favourite tune at the moment is probably Erasure’s A Little Respect. I enjoy my work so much, I would never dream of retiring.
1am
I’ve learnt to manage the post-show adrenaline. I head to my hotel room and watch whatever rubbish is on TV to unwind. I sometimes use night cream if I feel a bit dehydrated – especially around my eyes – and wear an anti-snoring nose strip. I sleep like a baby.
Interview by Louise Burke