Lee Mead’s a busy bee. A few weeks ago, he was at the Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury as part of a national tour with the musical Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. From a cast of many, he’s now going it alone, taking his solo album on the road.

“I will miss Chitty Chitty Bang Bang,” said Lee, 35.

“It was the first musical I’d done for about four years. Being part of a company and a show for the first time in so long was great – being part of a team, going out after the show, it’s a shame it had to end.

“It is difficult being out there on your own after that but it’s also exciting going out on tour. I’ve been doing this for 10 years now so I’m used to it. It’s gone really quickly!”

Mixing the tour with his responsibilities as a father to his daughter Betsy, who lives with mum Denise Van Outen, near Biddenden, is tricky for Lee, but he says: “You do have to be quite single minded to have a good career, but my daughter comes first really. It is a hard balance but in the end life’s about family.

“I know 90% of the population work 10-hour days so things are different in this business. I have a little one to think of. I have got most of November off and I tour seven months of the year. Betsy is in Year 2 now.”

But his date in Tunbridge Wells means not only being able to see Betsy – he can also nip home to Southend.

Coming straight out of the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang tour hasn’t given Lee much time to rehearse his songs, but he is keen to get out there and perform them.

“This is my sixth album. A lot of the musical theatre songs have been done before, so I wanted a nice balance of songs people know and new songs that haven’t been heard before. There are 17 numbers in the show. Some of these wonderful songs were written as far back as the 1930s. I hope people will love them.”

And when he’s finished on tour panto beckons – he’ll be Prince Charming this year – and he’s not ruling out a return to Casualty.

“I have been given a year off from the show. I needed a little break for a while but I haven’t been killed off!

“I would like to go back at some point. The public seem to warm to Lofty. He is quite a funny character.”

DETAILS

Lee Mead in Some Enchanted Evening will be at the Assembly Hall Theatre, Tunbridge Wells, on Thursday, October 27, at 7.30pm. For tickets at £22 call 01892 530613 or visit assemblyhalltheatre.co.uk

STAGE AND SCREEN

Since winning Andrew Lloyd Webber’s talent show, Any Dream Will Do, in 2007 Lee Mead has carved out a career on the stage and small screen.

He has starred in shows including Wicked and Legally Blonde, and is a household name as nurse Ben “Lofty” Chiltern in BBC1’s Casualty.

Fresh from playing Caractacus Potts in the critically-acclaimed Chitty Chitty Bang Bang national tour, Lee’s back out on the road with a solo tour, Some Enchanted Evening. It features his recent top 20 selling studio album featuring classic songs from Hollywood musicals. Songs include Some Enchanted Evening from the 1949 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific, Singin’ In The Rain, from the 1952 MGM musical comedy starring Gene Kelly and Luck Be A Lady from Guys and Dolls.