IT is three o'clock in the afternoon and Suzanne Shaw has just got out of bed. The former Hear'Say singer is recovering from a painful bout of laryngitis that struck in the middle of her nationwide Summer Holiday tour, in which she stars alongside Christopher Biggins.

However, Suzanne is well used to performing in adverse circumstances, having spent 18 months in Hear'Say, the reality TV show band that combusted in spectacular fashion last year.

Ironically, Suzanne's character in her new show, a stage version of the Cliff Richard film, is a run-away pop star who disguises herself as a boy in order to cower away from the limelight and lead a normal life.

"It does ring bells," says Suzanne although however bad things got, dressing up as a boy was not something she considered. "There were a couple of times on the road when it got a little bit too much and I just couldn't handle it.

"It did get hard, particularly the attention paid to my private life. I did get upset a lot of the time."

Certainly, The Lowry theatre's stage in Manchester must seem a million miles away from a jam-packed Wembley stadium where Suzanne performed with Hear'Say in September 2001.

For Suzanne the change is a positive one, allowing her more interaction with the audience.

"It's really nice to be able to perform to an audience which wants to watch what you do," she claims.

"Fans scream and shout and it's an amazing feeling, but this time people want to watch you perform and get involved. It's more intimate."

Bury-born Suzanne insists she is still living her dream, despite her radical change of direction since Hear'Say.

"I always wanted to act. Before I got into Hear'Say I was acting, so it's a dream come true."

When, eventually, she was picked from thousands of hopefuls to join Hear'Say it was, Suzanne says, like hitting the jackpot.

"It was an amazing feeling -- like winning the lottery. I think being in a pop band makes you a little bit untouchable

Despite her experiences, she says she is still in favour of shows like Popstars, provided they focus on the entrants' talent, rather than the judges' put-downs.

"I suppose we started it all off -- the craze for all those shows," she said. "People are getting a bit fed up with them now.

"You do get treated well, although I think they should focus more on the contestants' talent."

While she claims she is still good friends with her fellow ex-Hear'Say members, Suzanne would not consider joining another pop group.

"It's nice being in a band, but the annoying thing is you have to conform. I'd rather do it by myself.

"If you're a solo performer, you can control things a bit more. If you're in a band you have to stick to being a certain character. I became known as the one that didn't talk that much.

"I have got opinions, but generally I had to keep them to myself. Now I find I'm allowed to talk a bit more."

With preparations for a new album well underway, Suzanne has watched the other ex-band members' progress with interest.

"Kym Marsh has done really well for herself and her album's brilliant," she says of Hear'Say's first defector. "We're good friends still and we offer each other advice all the time."

Her own album, says Suzanne, will veer more towards her own rock music tastes than anything Hear'Say did.

"I'm taking it slowly because I want to be extremely confident with all the music, rather than going into things rushed as we did with Hear'Say.

"I'm trying out all different kinds of sounds.

"I love rock music, so it's definitely going to have a different sound to anything I've done before.

One sound that won't be featuring on the album will be anything resembling Cliff Richard's greatest hits!

"It's been brilliant doing the show and I can't wait to come back up to the North West. It's really nice to go back home. It's like a safe haven for me," she said.

You can catch Suzanne in Summer Holiday at the Lowry Theatre from June 23-28. Call (0870) 1112000 for details.