Bernie Nolan

The Irish-born singer, actress and Nolan Sister, Bernie Nolan has sold over 25 million records worldwide.

Bernie originally found fame as lead vocalist of the Nolans - a pop group which included her five sisters who enjoyed hits such as as 'I'm in the Mood for Dancing', 'Don't Make Waves', 'Attention to Me' and 'Gotta Pull Myself Together' in the 1970s and 1980s, before leaving to pursue he acting career.

She was equally successful on the theatrical stage, appearing in the stage play The Devil Rides Out and the hit west end play Blood Brothers. In 20 she joined the cast of Channel 4's soap opera Brookside before leaving in 2002 to play Sheelagh Murphy in the ITV police drama series The Bill.

Bernie recently starred in 'Flashdance The Musical' at Plymouth's Theatre Royal, but will she still be in the mood for arias after her on screen vocal workout?

What does Bernie say about her opera challenge:

"I can definitely take what I've learnt here back to my pop career. Pop singers tend to lose their voices a lot more than opera singers, and now I know why. With pop singers, the voice comes from the throat, which wears it out. With opera singers, it comes from the stomach which makes it last much longer."

"The other day, the teacher told me, 'you have to sing from the diaphragm'. And I replied, 'that's funny - I don't even wear one!"

"Boy is it difficutl! You're learning a new way of singing and breathing, and in a foreign language. I can't refer to anything, and I might be putting intonation in the wrong places. And if I lose my place in the lyrics, I've had it!"