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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Massive rock, paper, scissors tournament with BIG pizza prizes takes over Trafford Centre this week
Emily Sergeant
A thousand free pizzas will be up for grabs to celebrate one of Greater Manchester’s newest restaurant openings this week.
That’s right – award-winning Neapolitan pizzeria Forbici is officially opening at the Trafford Centre.
From 11am until 12:30pm this Wednesday (5 August), Forbici will be giving away up to 1,000 full-sized pizzas, so visitors to the shopping centre will have the chance to taste what has recently been declared one of the best pizzas in the world without needing to spend a penny.
Following the opening of its first site on Cross Street in the city centre last year, before expanding over to Sheffield, this new 7,000-capacity Trafford Centre space at The Orient will be Forbici’s third restaurant in the UK and the second in Greater Manchester.
Crafted with signature three-generation ‘biga dough’, slow fermented to create a light, airy crust, alongside carefully sourced Italian ingredients, it’s no secret that Forbici offers some of the finest pizza in town.
Forbici is opening at the Trafford Centre this week / Credit: The Manc Group
And staying true to its name, every pizza is cut with scissors before being served.
The celebrations will then continue on Friday (August) as Forbici’s newest restaurant transforms into the home of Europe’s biggest Rock, Paper, Scissors tournament hosted by Manchester’s viral foodie content creator, Zack Hipps.
Across four sessions, you’ll have the chance to test your luck, speed, and strategy in a bid to be crowned champion – with tournaments taking place every hour from 11:30am.
Inspired by the pizzeria’s name, Forbici – which is, of course, the Italian word for ‘scissors’ – competitors will go head-to-head in fast paced knockout battles throughout the afternoon, with prizes up for grabs at every session and the winner of each game getting to take home a year’s supply of Forbici pizza.
There’ll also be a couple of exclusive local-themed pizza specials to celebrate the new opening too, including Forbici’s indulgent Manchester Tart pizza, and the Lancashire Hotpot pizza, which combines Fior di Latte, slow-cooked Lamb Ragù, and cracked black pepper on Forbici’s signature Biga base.
The Manchester special pizzas are also available at Forbici’s city centre restaurant as well, so you can feast wherever you find yourself.
Toni Dennan at Forbici said: “We’re incredibly excited to bring our innovative pizza craft to the Trafford Centre. To celebrate, we’re giving away 1,000 pizzas, inviting guests to experience Forbici on us.”
“Forbici is all about pushing pizza craft to new heights,” commented Forbici’s Toni Dennan. “Opening at Trafford Centre gives us the opportunity to share our passion for proper pizza with even more people.”
Simon Layton, who is the Centre Director at Trafford Centre, added: “We’re delighted to welcome Forbici to Trafford Centre, offering an innovative pizza concept to shoppers and leisure seekers alike. With a huge giveaway and exciting Rock, Paper Scissors tournament, Forbici’s opening week is not one to be missed and we look forward to welcoming customers down to the centre to celebrate its arrival.”
Forbici Trafford Centre is opening this Wednesday 5 August, and bookings are now live online here.
Featured Image – The Manc Group
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Why so many are excited by the Irish teenager being monitored by Man City, United and more
Danny Jones
The next generation of Irish football is looking brighter, and there’s one particular young striker currently playing in the Republic of Ireland’s Premier Men’s Division that’s reportedly attracting interest from the likes of Manchester City, Man United, Chelsea and more.
Still just a teenager and having barely just broken into senior football, Michael Noonan is the youth player presently starring for Shamrock Rovers FC at just 18 years old.
Anyone who followed their recent run in the UEFA Conference League last year will know the kind of box office moments he’s already supplied fans of the South Dublin side, but he’s still a relatively new and somewhat unknown quantity to most, and one that’s already on the radar of some big clubs.
But just to put things into perspective, Irish football journalist Darryl Geraghty has gone so far as to dub him as “probably the hottest prospect in Irish football right now.” Here are just some of the reasons why…
Speaking to Betway (who have ironically just been announced as United’s new principal partner and official sponsor for their training gear), the sports writer said the increasing number of suitors floating in and around the youngster at such a crucial stage in his career comes as no surprise.
Turning 18 last month, the former St Patrick’s Athletic academy graduate is now free to entertain deals from other suitors, with the likes of Arsenal, Everton, Nottingham Forest, Ajax and ‘several’ others claimed to be circling his signature; Noonan is already said to have visited the Dutch giants for talks.
“A who’s who of European football are vying for his signature and it’s easy to see why”, says Geraghty. “Natural goalscorers are incredibly difficult to find, and Michael has that instinctive ability that elite clubs are always searching for.
“He doesn’t need five chances to score one goal. He has that natural striker’s knack of arriving in the right place at the right time, while his movement and pace off the shoulder constantly ask questions of defenders.”
“What’s impressed me most is how much his all-round game has developed. He’s become more involved in build-up play and is learning how to affect games even when he’s not scoring, which is essential for modern forwards.”
He also reiterated to Betway that “perhaps the most impressive thing is how unfazed he seems by the attention and expectation around him”, adding that “talent gets you noticed, but mentality is what convinces clubs to invest in a young player.”
Having helped ‘The Hoops’ to lift another title and a domestic cup, as well as growing an even wider experience base by representing his country in the national team’s youth ranks – most recently at the highly competitive under-21s level – this year could be a big turning point in his career.
Naturally, comparisons to the likes of Robbie Keane have already been drummed up, especially given how much talent he’s already shown at such an early age.
It’s “not because they’re identical players”, clarifies, “but because of the intelligence of his movement, his instinct for goals and his ability to fit into almost any attacking system.”
You only have to see some of his highlights for the resurgent Rovers to see his neat footwork in tight spaces and ability to drive into the right areas with conviction.
According to Geraghty, it’s merely “a matter of when rather than if“, and whoever snaps him up (more likely in the January window, it has been suggested) will be signing “one of the most exciting young strikers Ireland has produced in years.”
You can see his thrilling European debut performances against Norwegian side Molde FK down below.
At only 16, he became the youngest scorer in the competition’s history.
Emily Sergeant -
19th January 2021 
