GERRY Dorsey, the man better known as Engelbert Humperdinck, must be the fastest-selling singer to appear at The Anvil this year.

The last-remaining tickets for his appearance - on Friday, March 11, at 7.45pm - were actually snapped up in the autumn of last year!

And the man himself couldn't be more pleased.

"Isn't that wonderful?" he says. "It's nice for it to happen and I appreciate you telling me. I'm looking forward to being there."

Engelbert's American-accented voice is very measured, bearing the hallmarks of wisdom achieved after 35 years in the spotlight.

Born in Madras, at the age of 10 he returned to his father's hometown of Leicester, and from there he began to lay the foundations of a career, changing his name to that of a composer - best known for the opera Hansel & Gretel - which he felt sounded more glamorous.

He was eventually added to the Guinness Book of World Records because of his achievement of 56 consecutive weeks in the charts with Release Me.

Shooting straight to number one in 11 countries, that single went on to sell 15 million worldwide.

In total, Engelbert has sold more than 130 million records, including 64 gold and 23 platinum.

"I was brought up with a very good apprenticeship," he recalls. "I did the working men's clubs and the hard work in order to gain a little bit of experience.

"I did come alive with a hit song but, when that got me off the ground, I was able to cope with success in a proper manner and take it around the world because of the amount of experience I had.

"I wanted to be a great entertainer, so I looked up to other people. I watched other people and I stole a little piece of their thunder by learning from them, and then, of course, I turned it into my own.

"After I was ill, I didn't think I was going to make it, but when I was spared and overcame that dreadful disease tuberculosis, I made a conscious effort to really, really try to get on in this business, to make a name for myself, as I had been given a second chance.

"It's my job and it's taken me everywhere in the world that I could possibly go. I've been everywhere and I've been around the world several times. For people to know my music is tremendous."

Recently he found himself back in the headlines with the release of his autobiography, What's In A Name?, in which he told the warts-and-all story of his life - including the details of his many infidelities.

His wife, Patricia, has a say, in a small chapter, on the times she would, for example, turn up to surprise him somewhere and a girl would have to be thrown out of his hotel room.

How did he find the experience of writing the book? Was it the catharsis he had hoped for?

"It's great to be able to get it off my chest, to get everything out in the open. I never ever kept a diary so I have had to really think back in time and try to remember all the moments of my life. I had to get assistance from some friends who have experienced the life with me to give me a few reminders.

"I did have the assistance of my wife beforehand, who approved of it, and I went ahead and I did it. We've had our ups and downs but it's proved one thing - that the word love means a lot if it's the true one.

"Family is very important to me. I have four lovely children who are all grown up now, but it has been a wonderful journey of my business and my family, and I hope it keeps going for a long, long time to come."

I'm sure his many fans feel the same way.