Date: 18 February 1989
Originally published in: Hitkrant (Netherlands)
Written by:
It may sound strange, but superstars are humans like everyone else. Even your biggest ideols have wishes, shortcomings, weak spots and interests. Take Kim Wilde for instance. The world is at her feet but she stays simple. Her family, friends and being happy are more important to her than success. For your favourite magazine the4 singer opens her heart.
My family
My family is sacred to me. I love my brothers Ricky and Marty, my sister Roxanne and my parents with all my heart. Especially little Marty is so lovely. He’s only seven and I consider him almost to be my own child. Unbelievable really how much I mother over them. When mum and dad go out for a night I’m the first one to come babysitting. He can do anything and he knows it. We never quarrel. He’s just a bit naughty when he has to go to bed. I just tell him a story until he sleeps. He loves it!
Candy
I have always loved sweets. Even now I can’t say no to crisps, nuts and other stuff. But when I was in school it was much worse. I had a weekly allowance from my granddad and I spent it all on candy. I loved these sour bears most of all. I must have eated pounds of them. My parents had to step in, because otherwise I would have had fake teeth by now. I hated brushing my teeth by the way. I cleaned by teeth using candy sticks. That was much better than toothpaste!
Dolls
I couldn’t ever leave my dolls behind. I loved them all. Coco, a red clown, was my childhood friend. Everywhere I went I had it with me. Even at night my favourite friend stayed with me. When I was 8, Coco was worn out and my mum bought a new doll for me. Even if it looked just like my old companion, it took months for me to accept the ‘new’ Coco.
My first stage costume
Boy, I was so nervous when I had to perform live for the first time! I remember very well the dress I wore. For weeks we’d searched for the fitting ensemble and in the end mum, who really knows her way with needle and thread, put together a dress made of jeans with a butterfly made of beads on it. My mum worked on it for hours and the result was simply stunning. I’ve still got it in my closet. The things I wear now may be more fashionable, but the dress is still my favourite piece.
The cinema
I spent hours in the cinema as a child. For a few pennies you could go there on the Sunday afternoon for the youth film and I was always there on the front row. Except the one time when I was in the back and a few boys before me made a lot of noise. I couldn’t concentrate on the movie and I became very angry. I was so angry that I hit them on the head with my vest. Jesus! I didn’t think of the buttons. It must have hit so hard that one of the boys fell unconscious. That wasn’t my intention at all. As a punishment my father made me sit in the corner for two hours. Terrible!
Chips and mussels
I love Belgian fries. A real treat. It’s a pity it’s so bad for your weight, because I’d love to eat a bag of that every day. I just love it! And then those mussels. They are my new discovery. As I child I hated them and I refused to eat even one of them. But when I was in Holland once I got a whole plate of mussels. I had to taste them at least and it wasn’t at all bad. Since then I eat mussels at least once a month with a big portion on fries.
Gladiola
My fans can’t give me more pleasure than when they give me flowers. Every bouquet, big or small, get a place in my house. Even when I am abroad, I take them home with me. I think roses, tulips and irises are beautiful flowers and I love the smell or orchids. But most of all I like red gladiola.
Painting
I love going to museums. Art fascinates me enormously. I love to be creative myself. Looking at what other people have made, is what I love most. That’s why I’m often in London’s National Gallery or in the Louvre in Paris. Often I dream of buying a work by Chagall of Toulouse-Lautrec, but that’s practically impossible. That’s why I stick to imitations. Myself, I mostly paint landscapes and still life.
