FROM chart-topping pop acts and theatre stalwarts to legends of TV - 2009 has been a busy year for The Entertainer.
To round off the decade, the newsteam looked back on some of the year's most memorable celebrity interviews to bring you the story behind the story.
David Waddington
THE surge in top name acts visiting the North Wales coast has certainly been noticeable during the past 12 months, but few visitors have made me as starstruck as Des O'Connor.
While admittedly not the prime-time entertainer he once was, he is, nonetheless, an undeniable and truly deserved celebrity.
Following one of the warmest welcomes I have been given, any slight nerves soon evaporated as the interview quickly transformed into a friendly chat.
Genial, forthcoming, and throwing out anecdote after anecdote, I was hooked on every word before noticing the '10 minute phoner' had quickly become 30 minutes.
No complaints from Des though who was always ready to give me "one more story".
Bands and songwriters like Bloc Party, Cerys Matthews and Sharleen Spitteri were fantastic interviewees in 2009; all eager to talk about their music and enthusiastic about their place in such a changing industry.
But an impromptu offer of a chat with Rochelle from pop-princesses The Saturdays yielded mixed results.
Straining to hear the chirpy singer over the noise of the traffic while she was en route to a studio was difficult in itself, without also contending with a chewy sweet of some kind being enjoyed.
And I felt her attention was not entirely focused on our quick confabulation as a distant, trailing answer broke down into my having to repeat the question.
Nevertheless, her excitement at reaching number two in the charts was infectious and the group's hard work at reaching the coveted spot obvious.
"When you're on stage you have so much make-up on. A moisturising face-wipe to take it off is essential." - Rochelle from The Saturdays divulges her 'can't live without it' item to take on tour.
"We don't have any luxury items, we tend to go the opposite. We always carry Pot Noodles." - Gordon Moakes from Bloc Party goes a different way.
Matt Jones
AFTER seeing psychic Tony Stockwell ridiculed by television critic and renowned psychic doubter Charlie Brooker I was relishing the opportunity to interview him and try my best to confront him with my sceptic views.
Unfortunately for me it turns out that Tony Stockwell is a very nice and genuine man.
From the outset he was friendly and charming and before long I found myself happily writing down quotes like, 'I was never scared as a child, it was a lot like the film the Sixth Sense, but I never saw any grotesque things or disfigured people' without a second thought.
On a more serious note I had the chance to talk with classical boy band Blake.
Despite the fact the Classical Brit Award winners were looking to secure publicity ahead of their performance in the area, they were more concerned with plugging Armed Forces charity Help For Heroes.
With many servicemen and women spending Christmas and New Year abroad it is nice to know there are talented young celebrities out there who care.
"We love modern things but we don't mind looking to the past as well." - Oliver Barnes sings the merits of Facebook in helping the group get their start.
Terry Canty
BEING offered the chance to speak to not only Manchester music legends but recent Mercury Music Prize Winning group Elbow was one of my highlights of 2009.
After completing a standard interview, the band’s guitarist Mark Potter would contact me a further four more times in a bid to fill me in on a vital piece of information.
My return from a trip to move my car, grab a sandwich, or an impromptu cigarette break was greeted with: ”Mark has been on again for you.
For a while I was chased by a member of Britain’s Best Group - as judged by The Brits only a fortnight after our chat.
Sooty may have abandoned the legendary Matthew Corbett for his forthcoming appearance at the Pavilion, Rhyl, and opted to partner up with Richard Cadell but who care’s the little yellow fella was still one of my entertainment highlights of the year.
The interview itself however did not go well, Richard Cadell was perfectly charming, but when Sooty had nothing to say and refused to answer any of my questions.
"I don't think we liked the look of each other really." - Mark Potter recalling his first meeting with frontman Guy Garvey in the 6th form common room.
Anna Glover
BURSTING with excitement to interview star of one of my favourite TV sitcoms, Andrew Dunn from Dinnerladies, I was set for an interview with the jolly on screen character, whose humorous antics have become familiar with millions of loyal viewers.
My excitement quickly fizzled out when the star was reluctant to speak about the on-screen love story between his character Tony and Bren, played by Victoria Wood.
Refusing to give up on my quest to find out how the Llandudno theatre story would be different to the popular sitcom, he assured me there would be plenty of laughs.
Satisfied with his response I spoke about my favourite school dinnerlady, a jolly woman called Irene, and asked if he had fond memories of school dinners. His sense of humour shone through and the interview ended with great laughter, when he recalled how he was always the “cheeky chappy.”
“I was always the cheeky chappy, always greedy and always asking for extra portions." - Andrew Dunn on his dinner lady experiences as a child.
Andrew Boyd
THERE was no doubting who the high pitched voice down the line was upon answering the office phone.
Listening to the familiar warm tones of Joe Pasquale for 20 minutes ahead of his summer show at Venue Cymru was a memorable experience, the former King of the Jungle speaking with refreshing honesty and genuine enthusiasm.
Joe wasn’t afraid to admit some of his show could be viewed as “cack”, but took pride in the family friendly nature of his show.
Unlike his memorable but irritating song, Joe did certainly not get on my nerves. His easy going nature meant he did not disappoint and no childhood illusions of him being a nice guy were shattered, as he revealed how providing much laughter was the sole career for him.
Equally charming and enthusiastic was ‘Allo ‘Allo favourite Vicki Michelle, but unlike Joe there was a clear distinction from her on-screen persona still seen regularly in repeats of the BBC wartime classic.
Synonymous with the seductive French tones of Yvette, it was strange to hear a motherly southern accent as Vicki looked forward to reviving her role for the stage version of the show.
As the sole survivor from the TV series, Vicki was having to adjust to seeing new faces taking the place of old colleagues and friends who are equally so identifiable with the characters they portrayed.
“It was like deja vu when I saw the new cast for the first time and saw how similar they were to my old friends but they are great to work with.” - Vicki Michelle was pleasantly shocked by the cast of the touring show.