Pretender to the throne of 'The King'

"THERE’S a guy works down the chip shop swears he’s Elvis,” sang the late Kirsty McColl.

Thu, 13 Apr, 2017 - 01:00

Marjorie Brennan

In this case, the guy other people swear is Elvis is out walking his dog. Ben Portsmouth, hailed as one of the world’s best Elvis impersonators, is chatting to me on the phone from the UK as he takes a stroll and a much-needed breather from his exhausting schedule.

‘The King’ has been a huge part of Portsmouth’s life since childhood. “My dad would listen to Elvis, Buddy Holly, and Neil Diamond and I’d hear it in the car as a child. Obviously, Elvis stood out because he had an amazing voice and sang some amazing songs.”

A crucial element of any tribute act is getting the look of the performer right, and it’s clear Portsmouth has that one nailed.

“I would say no one really looks like Elvis because he was so unique-looking, but obviously when I’m on stage I try to create an illusion, so I dye my hair black like his, have sideburns, use some make-up — then I put on the outfit and hope for the best.”

In 2012, Portsmouth was crowned the “worldwide ultimate Elvis tribute artist” in the music legend’s spiritual home of Memphis. “A friend egged me on and I went to Collingwood in Canada, one of the biggest Elvis festivals in the world. I won that and it got me through to the big competition in Memphis, which I was lucky enough to win, the first non- American to do it.”

That led to Portsmouth reaching a whole new audience with an appearance on the legendary David Letterman Show in 2013. “It’s like a boxer with a big title belt; it got me on Letterman, which was an amazing opportunity to perform my favourite Elvis song, ‘An American Trilogy’. I was very nervous, it was in New York in the Ed Sullivan Theatre, where Elvis himself played. It’s a small theatre but I was trying to hit the high note at the end and looking into this camera and thinking what was beyond it, it was quite daunting.”

As for Portsmouth’s upcoming performance in Cork Opera House, audiences can expect an uplifting and poignant musical journey through Elvis’s extraordinary life.

“The first half tells the story of his life, from his first big record, That’s All Right, Mama, from the Sun Studios era to the death of his mother, to joining the army and going into movies. I wear the relevant costume for every period, and we finish off that first half with the ’68 comeback show. The second half of the show is like one of the 1970s Vegas concerts. Obviously, he was struggling to be the man he had to live up to be, and I like his voice better then. So, hopefully I capture that.”