If Paul Heaton’s status as a national treasure was not yet concrete, this incredible act of kindness did the trick
The Beautiful South and Housemartins star was honored as the latest Q Award recipient, being called « Britain’s greatest living pop star » by the folded magazine
And the decision to give him the Q’s All-Time Classical Songwriter Award was made even easier after Heaton made a nice gesture to the magazine’s staff, after announcing earlier this year that the music magazine was closing after 34 years
Former editor Ted Kessler opened up about Heaton’s generosity in a Twitter thread, explaining the 58-year-old’s reaction after winning the award
Kessler wrote: “We had booked the Roundhouse for two nights for the Q Awards next week We didn’t have any talent sorted when we had to cancel Covid in April, but Nadine Shah was there and both concerts were Liam Gallagher one evening, Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott the other
« The only award we knew for sure was Paul Heaton’s, because we had heard he never won one Think about all the brilliant songs he wrote for The Housemartins, Beautiful South , etc Millions of records sold No Q (or Brit) award for his writing So we knew he would be a classical composer
‘Then, a few days after Q shut down, we got a message from him saying that to thank Q for all the support we had given him for 35 years, he was going to donate a large sum to thank us in our turmoil Obviously, I politely refused
« He insisted I accepted the donation and shared it with over 40 staff and freelancers working for Q at the time, all of whose minds – like mine – were blown away It was really there most incredibly kind, selfless and generous act For some, it meant that a bill could be paid
« We won him this award at the end Britain’s Greatest Living Pop Star A True Legend »
Kessler then shared a photo of the award, along with a plaque that read: « Paul Heaton, Q’s all-time classic songwriter Thank you for everything »
Fans and reporters praised the Caravan Of Love frontman on his generosity and shared their own stories about Heaton – including remembering the star offering his back catalog for nationalization, so the royalties go back into the public treasury
We had booked the Roundhouse for two nights for the Q Awards next week We didn’t have any talents sorted when we had to cancel Covid in April, but Nadine Shah was there and both shows were Liam Gallagher one night, Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott the other
And Ally Fogg tweeted: « I see Paul Heaton trending just to be a nice guy I’m not sure if this is common knowledge yet, so excuse me if I embarrass him, but about 10 years ago , the transmitter died at our local community radio station, ALLFM &, we couldn’t afford to replace him Paul quietly wrote a check «
As Heaton was following the trend on Twitter, he filmed a short video thanking Ted and Q for the award, saying, « I just wanted to thank you so much for my award You don’t have to do that, always is so nice if you «
Explaining his donation to the magazine, the Happy Hour singer said, “It was just, as I said in the emails, to make sure people weren’t left on their own * * e And I know you yourself, Ted would have been incredibly upset about the closure and upset for your staff And me too «
The star added that Q had never been ‘mean’, saying, ‘It would be critical, sarcastic, funny, but never really ripped up in bands, especially pop groups like me. was that they were music fans, and that also upset me when it was announced that it was closing «
Heaton ended her video by saying her prize would be kept in her daughter’s room among her lyric books and a few teddy bears
The married father of three has been one of Britain’s most beloved songwriters since the mid-1980s when he formed the Housemartins, which produced hits such as Caravan Of Love and Happy Hour
Heaton formed The Beautiful South in 1989, which released classics including Don’t Marry Her, Rotterdam and Perfect 10, and released four solo albums and four albums with Beautiful South collaborator Jacqui Abbott
Paul Heaton
News from around the world – GB – Paul Heaton congratulated on his nice gesture to the Q staff after the magazine was folded
