Sting has opened up about his "fairytale" life and his tricky beginnings.
The former Police singer spoke about while promoting his new stage musical, The Last Ship, in a new interview with Extra.
In this interview, Sting, whose real name is Gordon Matthew Thomas Summer, spoke about his childhood horror of having to work in a "hellscape".
"I was born next to a shipyard", he said. "It's a noisy hellscape, infernal row, very dangerous work. I wanted to escape that. I watched thousands of men every morning walk to work past my house and I'd think, 'Is this my destiny? Is this what I have to do?".
The singer went on to explain how he managed to get passed that tough beginning by earning a place at a decent school, which provided the springboard for a hugely successful music career.
"I did everything in my power to escape it," he shared. "So, I got a scholarship to a school and I became a musician, a successful one".
Sting also credits his previous career as a teacher for keeping him grounded.
"Until the age of 25, I was a schoolteacher," he recalled. "I had a mortgage. I paid tax. I voted. I was a citizen. I didn't just go from school to being a celebrity, which I think is very difficult, so I'm grateful for my normal life because it makes the one I have now... it balances it out".
Sting's former band, The Police, garnered their first UK number one in 1979, with Message In A Bottle, as well as being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003.
Speaking of The Police, it was announced back in January that Sting had paid €686,000 to his former The Police bandmates after legal action was launched over alleged unpaid royalties.
This comes after the singer and his company, Magnetic Publishing were accused of owing over €1.7 million in so-called “arranger’s fees” to drummer Stewart Copeland and guitarist Andy Summers, which traces back to the band's long-standing royalty agreements apply to income generated by music streaming.
Read more on this story from Nova here.
