How did you feel about being offered the coveted lead role?

“I didn’t know anything about musicals or Blood Brothers and I couldn’t believe I was being offered a part that Barbara Dickson, Kiki Dee and Stephanie Lawrence had played. I YouTubed it and I went from there.

What kind of Mrs Johnstone are you?

“I make it completely my own, it’s completely different to how any of the others have played it. Lots of people say I’m the feistiest Mrs Johnstone they’ve ever seen! I play it as if they’re my own kids and that certainly makes you feisty. I come from a close family and if someone was trying to take one of my kids, I’d rip their head off! I’ve been described as Julie Walters with a voice!”

How do you juggle your career and motherhood?

“I’m lucky that I have a supportive family as I am a full-time mum and I do have to go away for work or commute. I’ll be dragging my teenagers out of bed or taking my mum to the hospital or just normal things you do and then have to go off to do three shows in five days. I’ve been with my husband for 22 years and we met and had a family really young so we had no choice but to support each other!

“I remember having an eight-month-old child, working in a garage all night and then going back to look after a baby all day and trying not to fall asleep. I know where Mrs Johnstone is coming from. I come from a working class family and nobody told me to have a child, I wanted a baby so I had to care for it come rain or shine.”

Which other role do you most covet?

“Donna in Mamma Mia! Or the Lady of the Lake in Camelot. I’d love to have a go at either of those. Or perhaps Paulette in Legally Blonde, that’s a fun show and maybe a bit more suited to my personality. I’m a bit of a cheeky girl really, but X Factor just gives you a box and people expect you to fit into that box.”

How did the X Factor experience change you?

“It changed me in that you are then known as the person off the X Factor. Everyone that’s on it thinks they’re going to be superstars, but it hasn’t changed me or the life I love. I’ve just changed my job, now singing and acting is my job. I haven’t changed at all. But I might never have had the whole leading lady experience without X Factor so I’m very grateful for it.”