Kylie Minogue

On the back of her role in the internationally aired Australian TV soap opera 'Neighbours' Kylie Minogue became Europe's top selling female pop singer of the 80s.

She was born Kylie Ann Minogue on May 28, 1968 in Melbourne, with an older brother, Brendan, and younger sister Dannielle. Growing up, it was Dannii who was always wanting to be taken to auditions, Dannii who had her heart set on becoming "a star". Both sisters got their "break", around the same time, with acting roles on the TV drama series 'Skyways'. In 1982 Dannii joined the singing dancing cast of 'Young Talent Time', alongside Tina Arena. At the end of 1985 Kylie won the her star-making acting role as Charlene Mitchell, the tomboy mechanic in 'Neighbours'. She left school and became a professional actress. Charlene and Scott Robinson's (Jason Donovan) romance and wedding took the 'Neighbours' series to new heights of popularity both in Australia and England.

Kylie had just become the youngest star ever to win the Silver Logie for Most Popular Actress, and 'Neighbours' had just become Australia's top rating program when she agreed to appear at a Carlton Football Club charity with friends, singing the 60s Little Eva hit 'Loco-Motion'. There are two versions of what happened next. One version says that Kylie had such a good time during that performance, a tape was sent to Mushroom Records. The other version says that English producer Mike Duffy witnessed the performance and decided to take Kylie into the studio. Duffy was in Australia working with synth-pop group Kids In The Kitchen. Whichever way it happened, Duffy recorded a proper version of 'Locomotion' for Mushroom, featuring some of the members of Kids In The Kitchen. The group wrote the single's B-side.

For their part Mushroom did not see Kylie as a priority. Record label head Michael Gudinski had to be talked into signing Kylie. Michael's young son's voice was one of the loudest. 'Young Talent Time' producer Greg Petherick, and Kaj Dalstrom boss of Sing Song Studios put up $10,000 for the recording costs and video, offsetting some of the expense with product placement in the video for a body spray and clothing retail store. It took 'Locomotion' just two weeks to reach No.1 nationally. Mushroom found Kylie a manager, Terry Blamey.

Watched by 20 million Brits a week Kylie was due in London as part of a 'Neighbours' promotion. Mike Duffy and Mushroom both had connections with England's very successful songwriting and production team, Stock Aitken and Waterman, and it was arranged that S-A-W would supervise Kylie's next single. She wasn't a priority for them either. Stock Aitken and Waterman forgot that Kylie was coming, and while she waited in their foyer, they quickly came up with a song for her, 'I Should Be So Lucky'.

Kylie became a pop sensation. Stock Aitken and Waterman begrudgingly included 'Locomotion' on the first album, recording their own version rather than have the Australian version on a record bearing their name. Mushroom records did the right thing by Kylie and renegotiated her deal with them to pave the way for her international deal. Her success meant leaving 'Neighbours'. As the international hits kept coming and Stock Aitken and Waterman tried to control Kylie the way they controlled everyone who recorded for them, Mushroom stood by Kylie in her struggle against that control. Kylie stayed with Mushroom in Australia when in 1997 she switched to London dance label Deconstruction.

Kylie's attempts at a movie career had not borne fruit, and when her Deconstruction album 'Impossible Princess' failed to make an impact in Europe, a lot of people wrote Kylie off as finished. In Australia however it was a different story. She was more than a pop singer. She'd become a cultural icon. In 1994 'Confide In Me' had become her first Australian No.1 single for six, setting up 'Impossible Princess' which took Kylie to the top of the national album charts for the first time. Encouraged by that success, Kylie mounted her first true concert tour and met with success beyond anyone's expectations. Australia had played a major part in Kylie rehabilitating her career. Even her European detractors were forced to reconsider their assessment.

When Kylie announced her 2001 Australian tour dates, the country's biggest venues sold out within hours. Kylie had entered another phase of her career.