Michael James Hucknall (born 8 June 1960 in, Manchester, England) is a British singer. Hucknall (also known as "Mick 'Red' Hucknall") is the lead singer of British band Simply Red.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Music career 3 Politics and philanthropy 4 Personal life 5 Trivia 6 External links

Early life

Hucknall was born in St Mary's Hospital, Manchester, the son of Reg and Maureen Hucknall. Hucknall's mother left the family when Hucknall was 3. [1]. He and his father lived very briefly in Bredbury before settling in Denton, where he grew up. Hucknall attended Audenshaw Grammar School for Boys.

Music career

Hucknall claims to have been among the people present at the Lesser Free Trade Hall in Manchester in June of 1976, where the Sex Pistols were playing. His interest in the music scene led to the launch of his career in the late seventies, when he was part of the formation of the band Frantic Elevators.

The Frantic Elevators released four singles, including a version of "Holding Back The Years", which he would later record with Simply Red.

As lead singer and core member of Simply Red, he has become the identifiable face of the band. His face, including his long curly red hair, was featured prominently on album artwork and in videos.

Hucknall is also one of the founders and financial backers of the successful reggae label Blood and Fire. He also manages the record label "simplyred.com".

Politics and philanthropy

Hucknall is active in politics, and is a prominent celebrity supporter of the UK Labour Party and is a close friend of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

It has been claimed Hucknall's resentment for former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher is evident in three of Simply Red's songs; "She'll Have To Go" on the Simply Red album A New Flame, Your Mirror and Wonderland on the Stars album.

Following the Asian Tsunami, Hucknall made a public statement of support for the charity SOS Children and asked his fans to consider following his lead by supporting the charity.

Personal life

During much of the 1980s and 1990s, Hucknall gained a reputation as a ladies' man. A Daily Mail article indicated that he had dated Catherine Zeta-Jones, Helena Christensen, and a number of other models, actresses and dancers in the UK.

He and partner Gabriella Wesberry had a baby daughter, Romy True Hucknall, together in June 2007. [2]

Trivia

• Hucknall had the dubious honour of having a now defunct website named after him called "1000 People More Annoying Than Mick Hucknall" (created by members of www.dogbomb.co.uk).
• He owns a vineyard in Sicily that produces the red wine Il Cantante (The Singer)
• Hucknall is an avid Manchester United supporter.
• Along with Johnny Depp, John Malkovich and Sean Penn, Hucknall part-owns the Parisian restaurant-bar Man Ray
• Hucknall sang the song Gangsta's Paradise with rapper Coolio on a TV programme in 1995
• Hucknall was parodied on the adult sketch show Bo' Selecta! Their version of Hucknall had a prominent, hooked nose, a big chin and one really long arm, with which to grope lovely ladies (and men, in the case of mousy-haired Mark Owen from Take That).
• TVGoHome parodied him with an (imaginary) programme entitled Mick Hucknall's Pink Pancakes, in which he pressed his scrotum against a variety of publicly-viewable transparent surfaces
• Hucknall also believes that derogatory references to his red hair and others of his ilk is a form of bigotry. [3].

External links

• Simply Red Official Site
• Guardian article (March 21, 2003)
• Interview with Mick Hucknall (USA, 2003)
• Mick Hucknall at the Internet Movie Database
• Blood & Fire
• Frantic Elevators - Unofficial site
• Simply Red at Glastonbury 1986
• Download David Jensen's interview with Mick Hucknall recorded for Capital Gold UK Radio in March 2007

He Also dated ex-Eastender Martine McCutcheon, who threw up in his infamous locks after a heavy night out, it was due to this incident that Hucknall had to cut off the dreadlocks.