Charlotte Church's rise and fall: From child prodigy to agritourism
Charlotte Church has become an international phenomenon. She even sang for John Paul II. Today, the 38-year-old singer lives in the countryside and runs an agritourism business. She can only dream about the vast fortune she once had. "I will have to work for the rest of my life," she admits.
Once, everyone knew Charlotte Church. Her debut album "Voice of an Angel" sold over 10 million copies. She sang in front of Bill Clinton, Nelson Mandela, and Pope John Paul II.
Immense fame of a little girl
She gained fame as a little girl. It all started with the program "The Morning," where she sang "Pie Jesu" by Andrew Lloyd Webber over the phone in 1997.
Her career then took off. The Welsh singer appeared on ITV's "Big, Big Talent Show." She also hosted her program, "The Charlotte Church Show." The interest in her exceeded the wildest expectations. People worldwide began talking about the phenomenon of the young artist.
She quickly managed to monetize her success. Even as a child, she became a millionaire. According to the "Daily Mail," by the time she was 11, she had 25 million GBP in her account (approximately CAD 43 million today).
When she turned 18, she had unlimited access to the 16 million GBP (about $27 million CAD today) waiting for her. She claimed she would manage the money wisely. However, that did not happen.
She fulfilled all her whims
As it turned out, after years, the fame and money were actually a greater desire of her father, James Church.
"When I made money, I did say to my dad when I was 14, ‘I am not sure about this showbiz stuff. I am really not having a good time’ and he was like, ‘Just stick at it as we don’t get these opportunities,'" she recalled. "I did get to a stage in my teenage years, about 16 or 17, when I was like, ‘I don’t know if I can sing this s** t anymore," she told "Closer" magazine.
The young singer's career ended quickly, and Charlotte began to lose her primary source of income.
The young singer's extravagance didn't help. As "Daily Mail" reported, for her 18th birthday, she bought expensive lingerie adorned with rubies and then went to Ibiza with her friends worth 10,000 GBP (about CAD 17,000 today).
She also easily spent large sums of money. When she got involved with Welsh rugby player Gavin Henson, the couple bought a yacht worth 800,000 GBP (about CAD 1.4 million today), anchored in Swansea. In 2013, she purchased a vast countryside home named The Spinney for 1.5 million GBP (about CAD 2.6 million today).
She squandered a huge fortune
Not much is left of Charlotte's huge fortune. "I will have to work for the rest of my life. Not because I want to, but because I have to," she admitted in a BBC documentary about her, "Charlotte Church: In Her Own Voice."
"I was very fairy-tale-like and then it gets into this dark, twisted fairy tale," she stated.
In March, the singer decided to sell her property, The Spinney, earning 1 million GBP (about CAD 1.7 million today). Recently, she has returned to recording. However, she insists that it is not solely driven by the need to get some cash.
