Pete Waterman
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Pete Waterman, OBE (born at Coventry on January 15, 1947) is a British record producer, songwriter, radio and club DJ, television presenter and a keen railway enthusiast. He is the owner of significant collections of both historic and commercial railway locomotives and rolling stock, a passion fueled by his first job. Waterman had left school illiterate, not learning to read until the age of 38. Following his railways job Waterman became a gravedigger and then an apprentice at General Electric Company, becoming a trade union official.
Inspired by The Beatles, Waterman became a DJ. In the 1980s he was a member of the highly successful music trio Stock Aitken Waterman before forming his own company, PWL (Pete Waterman Limited). To date he has scored a total of 22 UK number one singles with his various acts.
In 1988 he revived the name of the London and North Western Railway Company for his rail vehicle maintenance business, based at Crewe, which is now the largest privately-owned rail maintenance business in the country.
In more recent years, Waterman managed the boy band One True Voice, who were formed as the result of the UK television program Popstars: The Rivals. Waterman said to rival Louis Walsh that if One True Voice failed to reach the 2002 Christmas number one in the UK, he would commit suicide. One True Voice were beaten to the number one spot by Girls Aloud, however Waterman did not follow through on his "promise".
In the New Year's Honours List published 31 December, 2004 he was given an OBE for his services to music. Just three days later his son Paul died at the age of 33, Waterman's website announcing that he had been in hospital since June with a "serious illness". Waterman's other son, Pete Junior, had been in a near-death go-karting accident in 1999, seeing him left badly burnt in a coma.
Bibliography
- I Wish I Was Me: The Autobiography; Virgin Books ISBN 1852279001
External links
- Pete Waterman Limited (http://www.pwl-empire.com/)
- Stock Aitken Waterman fan site (http://www.stockaitkenwaterman.com/)
- Pete's model railway manufacturing company website (http://www.justliketherealthing.co.uk/)
- "Pete Waterman: Lucky, lucky, lucky" (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/uk/2000/newsmakers/1731791.stm) at BBC news