He launched his career by winning the first-ever Pop Idol.

Now Will Young has branched out into acting. He talks to Steve Pratt about his new role in Bedlam.

WHILE he may be one of the stars of new TV drama Bedlam, don’t be surprised if Will Young ends up watching it from behind the sofa.

Forget the creepy goings-on in the converted mental asylum, the Pop Idol winner just hates seeing himself on screen.

“Because I’m so vain, I pick up on the things I don’t like about my face and don’t concentrate on the things I should be concentrating on, like my acting,” he says.

The 32-year-old first shot to fame in 2001 when he auditioned for Pop Idol, stood up to Simon Cowell in front of millions of viewers and went on to win the series ahead of favourite Gareth Gates.

A string of pop hits later, he branched into acting and made his movie debut alongside Judi Dench in Mrs Henderson Presents in 2005. He’s since acted on stage in Coward’s The Vortex and taken guest roles in Skins and Marple, but it seems he just can’t get used to watching himself.

“I hated the premiere for Mrs Henderson Presents.

I left halfway through and found loads of other people from the cast and crew in the foyer as well,” he recalls.

In Bedlam, Young plays geeky Ryan who moves into Bedlam Heights, a pre-Victorian mental asylum which his flatmate Kate (Charlotte Salt) is converting into a block of luxury apartments. Unfortunately, it seems some of the former residents haven’t quite left.

Young says the ghostly element was one of things which attracted him to the drama. “When I was reading the first two scripts for the auditions, I found it really frightening. I think that’s a really good sign, as a reader and potential viewer, that I was perplexed, interested and wanted to know what happened next.”

Filming proved to be equally nerve-racking.

“One scene was very scary and I ended up tripping over in the dark. The director said ‘great acting.’ I went, ‘thanks’ and didn’t tell him it was an accident. Then I had to do the trip for every other take.”

Young admits to having an open mind when it comes to all things supernatural. “I believe in energies, I’m not sure if it’s the whole white sheet thing.”

As a kid he also had a few odd experiences: “I remember running through a friend’s very old house and seeing some curtains, that were tied back, close behind me. Also his Scalextric – showing my age, there – used to go round on its own. I didn’t like staying over.

“I also believe that my house in Cornwall is haunted, but I think she’s a nice ghost.”

Bedlam is a place for him to grow as an actor, he says. “I feel I’m probably in my acting where I was five years ago in my singing. Having the opportunity to do a series has given me time to learn and watch from the cast and directors.”

He admits some critics have been cynical about his leap from pop star to thespian, but he’s trying to win people round.

“You have to be as good as you can be because you want people to take a punt on you. The main thing for me is not to be late. People expect me to be because I’m a pop star, so I try to turn up on time and know my words.”

Fans of his music needn’t worry that he’s abandoned singing for acting. He’s planning to combine the two for as long as he can. After Bedlam, he’s got another acting thing planned for 2012, and then back to music.

The fact that Young is already making plans for next year is further proof his career has far outlasted so many other talent show winners. But the one-time Pop Idol says if he were starting out today, he’d still go on a TV talent show. “You only live once and it’s an opportunity, isn’t it? I don’t think you should limit yourself.

“The important thing is to do it for a reason, not because of your ego.”

* Bedlam starts on Monday on Sky Living at 10pm