A Benidorm cast member has revealed he swapped his role of singing and acting on TV to secretly becoming an ASDA delivery driver throughout the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
But some eagle-eyed superfans still spotted who he was.
Asa Elliott – best-known for appearing as a bar singer in the ITV cult sitcom, which ran from 2007-2018 – was left without work when singing jobs on cruise ships were cancelled in as a result of lockdown restrictions being put in place last March, just two weeks after the birth of his first child, but fears over his income pushed him to apply for ‘normal’ jobs, and since July he’s been delivering shopping to Hull residents, all without publishing anything on social media.
The 39-year-old – originally from Denton in the Greater Manchester borough of Tameside – has work booked on a number of P&O cruises booked for June, but until then, he’s been perfectly content singing in his van and only mentioning his career when asked about it.
Although when he finally revealed the secret of his new career direction to his 21,000 Twitter followers last week, it didn’t come as a total surprise to some of his local fans.
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Some had recognised him at their doorstep, and even a few of his new colleagues recognised him in work.
“I didn’t tell anybody at first about the job I did or who I was, but there were a few Benidorm fans who worked in-store and they started to pull me to one side and we’d have a natter.” Asa explained.
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“When the customer gets a text message telling them who’s delivering it and it has my name on, it’s not a run-of-the-mill name so some fans have thought it might be me.
“I delivered to one lady and she just had this big smile on her face and she said she thought it was going to be me delivering it, but don’t worry as she wouldn’t tell anybody on the Benidorm forum. I’ve [also] had people who’ve found out and they’ve messaged me saying they’re starting to get Asda deliveries now in the hope that I deliver their shopping.
“I was like ‘oh my word’.”
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He continued: “I’ve had a good laugh and chat with everybody and told them some Benidorm stories. It’s great because you get to know the customers because you do the same rounds every week.
“I’ve got a Christmas album that I did and I gave out a few CDs to the regulars and they were chuffed with that.
“There was [even] a bloke in work who didn’t know I was a singer, and I was singing away normally and he said I should go on The Voice as I’m ‘pretty good’.
“I just thought, ‘if only you knew’.
“I didn’t put it out there at first, not because I didn’t want people to know, but more that I didn’t want anybody to think I was doing it for any other reason than supporting my family.”
Asa and his wife Natalie were sadly both out of work by March of last year.
While the government freelance support scheme and Natalie’s maternity pay from her sexual health job helped, it wasn’t enough to make ends meet, and so Asa decided to join Asda, saying: “We’d stretched ourselves as much as possible to get the best house we could, and I was thinking 2020 was going to be the year that I made big strides in my career.
“I envisaged being away for a couple of weeks every month and I’d take the family sometimes, but we ended up just sitting around the house.
“I’d cleared my diary to spend some time with my wife and the baby at first, but after that there was real panic stations about what I was going to do. It was really stressful. I had a cruise booked for May and there was a glimmer of hope that was going to happen, but when that got cancelled I had zero in the diary for the whole year.
“We needed the break from just sitting around the house and we needed the money [and] what we were earning at that time just about covered the mortgage and that was it.”
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Asa has appeared in 13 episodes of Benidorm, with the first coming in 2010’s Christmas Special before he became a regular character in series five and six, where he could often be seen singing on stage at Neptune’s Bar as drama unfolded around him.
He also performed in Benidorm Live’s theatre tour in 2018 and 2019, and was spotted to appear on the show while performing on the Benidorm circuit in real life.
“I’ve only been fully employed as an entertainer on and off for the past 15 years, so because I’ve had all kinds of jobs, I wasn’t scared to get my hands dirty.” Asa continued
There were a few people in the entertainment industry that started at the same time as well, [and] people who have had all sorts of jobs before [the pandemic].
“Everyone has a story to tell.”
His wife will return to work in February, so he’s proud to claim “the end is in sight” – but until he’s back on the cruise ships, he’ll continue to enjoy his delivery work at Asda.
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People are just finding out Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh studied at Man Met
Emily Sergeant
It’s fair to say that Michelle Yeoh is by far one of the most talked-about actresses in Hollywood at the moment.
Born in Malaysia to Chinese parents, she first rose to fame in the 1990s after starring in a series of Hong Kong action films, before she made a name for herself with major roles in the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), and Ang Lee’s martial arts film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000), as well as Memoirs of a Geisha, Danny Boyle’s Sunshine, Kung Fu Panda 2, Crazy Rich Asians, and more.
Most recently, of course, she began gaining further global recognition for starring as laundromat owner and overwhelmed mother, Evelyn Wang, in the absurdist comedy-drama film Everything Everywhere All At Once.
The film was released to universal critical acclaim in 2022, and cemented its place as a 2023 awards front-runner shortly after.
Michelle Yeoh alongside Ke Huy Quan and Stephanie Hsu in Everything Everywhere All At Once / Credit: A24
Golden Globe, Critics’ Choice, SAG Awards, and countless critics and film circles accolades for the career-defining role also followed for Yeoh, proving that the 60-year-old is one of the finest actresses of her generation.
Although clinching the coveted Academy Award for Best Actress at the 95th Oscars just last week had to be the cherry on top though, right?
In taking home the long-awaited and richly-deserved win, Yeoh not only beat out heavy-hitters Cate Blanchett, Michelle Williams, and Kerry Condon, but she also broke several records along the way.
She became the first Asian and the second non-white woman to win the Best Actress Award, and the first Malaysian to win an Academy Award in any category.
But, aside from all of that, did you know she has strong links to Manchester?
In a fact that many film fans are only just finding out about now, or probably still aren’t aware of, it has recently been revealed that Michelle Yeoh studied at and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Creative Arts with a minor in Drama from Manchester Metropolitan University in 1983.
A big congratulations to Michelle Yeoh on wining the Oscar for Best Actress. 🎉👏
Michelle graduated with a bachelor's degree in creative arts and drama in 1983 and is understood to have studied at our former Cheshire campus.
— Manchester Metropolitan Uni (@ManMetUni) March 15, 2023
Yeoh never really dreamed of becoming an actress, and actually moved to the UK with her parents when she was 15 to begin studying at the Royal Academy of Dance in London – however, when a spinal injury prevented her from becoming a professional ballet dancer, she later transferred her attention to choreography and other arts.
This is when she enrolled in the Crewe & Alsager College in Cheshire, or what is more-commonly known as Man Met’s now-closed Cheshire campus.
Following what can only be described as a dramatic 90-minutes for the Red Devils against Fulham yesterday in the Quarter Finals of the FA Cup, the Austrian midfielder was asked by reporters to give his take on the match – which saw three straight red cards given and a brawl break out, all before he netted his first goal for the club.
The 29-year-old – who was signed on a loan from Bayern Munich until the end of the 22/23 season – was asked by ITV Football’s Gabriel Clarke in his post-match interview whether or not United won the game, or rather if it was a case of Fulham losing it.
And his “straight-talking” response to the question has seen supporters calling for him be signed on a permanent deal.
"Very happy, it was an important goal for the team!"
Marcel Sabitzer discusses Man Utd's dramatic win over Fulham and his first goal at Old Trafford! 🙌
It all came after a late second-half meltdown at Old Trafford, where Fulham winger Willian was first sent off for a handball on the goal-line in the 72nd minute, before Fulham goal-scorer Aleksandar Mitrovic then started squaring-up to the referee, and several other players subsequently joined in leading to an on-pitch commotion.
Mitrovic was also shown a straight red card shortly after, as was Fulham manager Marco Silva for dissent.
Sabitzer then scored his first goal in a United shirt quickly after in the 77th minute.
Two United goals ⚽️ Three Fulham red cards 🟥 Five minutes 🤯
After speaking on the game as a whole, when the reporter asked whether it was United that won or Fulham who lost, the midfielder shrugged his shoulders and said with a completely straight face: “We won it. Why not?
“We scored three, they scored one. We concentrated and were focused.
“I think we deserved the win.
“We had some chances that we missed. Second half, we were 1-0 down, but, as I said, we came back and that’s the important thing.”
Marcel Sabitzer scored his first goal in a United shirt during yesterday’s dramatic FA Cup clash / Credit: Manchester United (via Facebook)
The Austrian international’s answer to the reporter’s question has seen United supporters heap praise on him, taking to social media after the match to urge the club to sign him on a permanent deal after his loan ends at the close of the current season.
“The way he said “we won it”. Absolutely love this guy,” one fan said on Twitter.
“Sign him for this interview alone,” another United fan said on Twitter, while a third added: “Cold AF. Love it,” and a fourth commented: “Love how Sabitzer handled this interview despite the usual moronic questions.”
Another fan added on Twitter in response: “Sabitzer interview brilliant. For the goal and interview alone he has to be a red next season.”
Sabitzer also spoke to Manchester United’s official MUTV channel after the match and described his first goal for the club as “massive” for him.
“I was overwhelmed,” he admitted.
“Scoring the first at Old Trafford in front of these amazing fans. And that important one, at 2-1 it was a massive one. I am very happy at the moment. I couldn’t reach it with the right foot, so I was just trying to hit it with the left foot and it worked out.”
“It’s massive win,” he continued. “We wanted to go back to Wembley, we did it. 1-0 down was tough, but we come back and it was a good one.”
With the prospect of another trophy on the horizon as United head to Wembley for the second time this season in the FA Cup Semi Final, Sabitzer said he’s prepared for another clash in the capital.
“As I said, before the game we were very focused to go back to Wembley and we did it,” he declared, “We know we are going to face a tough opponent, strong opponent. But we will prepare well for it and we will be ready to go to the final.