What a week!



It's music, dancing and games for Elvis impersonator Martin Elvis. Interview by ramona depares

Monday
Up at dawn, 5.30 to be precise, to work in the field for a while. Had a quick wash at around eight, no time for breakfast and then it was off to the Bugibba Holiday Complex for a full day's work. My day time job is that of animator at the hotel, I keep the guests entertained.
The day is always different: some days the residents might feel like playing table tennis, at others a scrabble competition. I always play to win, even though my manager complains about it and says that I should let the guests win! But I disagree about that: if they lose, they are bound to come back for more.
Had lunch at the Hotel with some of the residents and afterwards played some Monopoly with the kids. There's no difference between being with the kids and the adults at the hotel: when people are on holiday they all act like kids!
Afternoon set up the equipment for my evening show and then messed around on stage with some of the male residents. They were trying to sing the Bee Gees, Culture Cub and a bit of Michael Jackson too. A quick break in the canteen, had a cuppa (I drink tea all the time) and the show started at eight. It was packed, mostly with residents: started off with one hour of solid rock ‘n' roll, non-stop. But I usually vary my routine to include some ballads and some Cliff Richard, Adam Faith and Buddy Holly pieces.
Last half hour treated the residents to the Footsie dance, which really kills me but which is always really popular. I bend, I flip, do the handstand, tummy roll, I'm like a puppet on a string… Some of the residents can barely believe my stamina. Very late night – and another early start tomorrow.

Tuesday
Another morning of fun and games with the residents. Decided to go for a short, brisk walk around the Bugibba seafront, it's always good to get some fresh air! Organised some pool games for the kids: pool games are a great excuse to spend some time in the jacuzzi and get paid for it. Before knocking off for the afternoon we had an American Pool competition. Never a dull moment!
Straight off to Phylisienne Brincat to finish off recording my C.D. The CD is going to be called Revival and will include pieces from the 50s and the 60s, such as Tutti Frutti, Blue Suede Shoes, Can't Help Falling In Love and Lord You gave me a Mountain. I've been working on it for eight months now, I had to stop for a while when giving concerts in England. Hopefully it won't be long before it's launched.

Wednesday
Off today. Woke up and drove straight to Poulton's Print Shop in Qormi to finalise the paper work for Revival. I picked the cover picture after going through my photos and took care of a couple more details. Then it was time to speak to my sponsors, I had three meetings with the Hagar Qim Bar and Restaurant, the Island Hotels Group and Aquabubbles. Quite a day today, all dedicated to my CD.
Even the afternoon was busy: I had a meeting with the graphic designer, we worked a bit on the back leaflet. It ended up taking the whole evening. Finally time to go home for a nice, romantic dinner with my wife.

Thursday
Back to my day job today. Actually it was a very fun morning. I overheard some of the kids who are staying at the Hotel talking about the lizard, the Maltese gremxula. They were really fascinated by the small, elusive creature. I decided to catch some for them (without harming them, of course) so they could see the lizard at close range.
Catching a lizard, especially the Maltese wily ones, is not easy. What I did was find a couple of pieces of corn, remove the seeds from the end and then tried to lasso the lizards gently. I'm not joking, it actually works! The children were really impressed and the rest of the morning passed quickly with the lizards patiently submitting to stares and prods of admiration. Towards lunch, we released all of them back and then we all settled down to eat.
Afternoon had a quick swim with the kids and then tried to keep them quiet for at least an hour watching Cartoon Network in the TV room. Very busy day today, actually. The evening was no less busy: I was doing a private function: these events always go on well into night and I ended up knackered.

Friday
Games again in the morning. Nothing special on today – for the morning, at least. In the afternoon I had to move my equipment: it's Hagar Qim night every Friday. The restaurant is invariably extremely busy, packed to bursting. It's especially popular for hen's nights and bachelor's parties, the noise they make is incredible. The ladies are especially bad really, I usually end up the brunt of every conceivable hen night joke. Last time my wife had to wash my jeans four times, they were so messed up with the stuff they threw at me!
Oh well, it's all good fun anyway. I love the atmosphere created at the Hagar Qim, it's amazing how young people can get going when they're listening to rock ‘n' roll, it's incredible the way they dance. And Joe and Jane, the owners, are such nice people too, I like working with them! A lovely evening, as always. And as always, I was dead tired by the end of it.

Saturday
My day to relax, finally. Woke up as late as the kids would let me… Spent the morning messing around with my babies, I needed it after a whole week at work! Interrupted my play time for some rehearsals and then had lunch with my wife Carmen. Also managed to nap for a bit in the afternoon. Then off to Bugibba Holiday Complex: I perform there most Saturdays. Saturdays the Maltese outnumber the foreigners by far: I don't know if it's my singing or the great appetisers served at the bar that attract them, a mixture of both I suppose!
A pretty routine evening doing the usual stuff, which is nonetheless fun. I always make it a point to introduce variety in my shows, though. I'm now used to some of the regulars and have made friends with some of them. Two favourites of mine are Freddie (Spiru) and June and their friends, they're such great dancers. They've won a couple of competitions in the States, too, and watching them dance is a real pleasure. It's worth coming over to the bar just to see them.

Sunday
A day of rest, spent in peaceful bliss with the whole family. In the afternoon took the kids to the swings – they love it – and then went off for a drive to Marsascala. Had a couple of cream cakes, some ice cream, a cup of tea… Put on some calories, which is also a good excuse to dance even more the following week to burn it all off.
Had a quiet evening with the wife. The kids are off to school tomorrow, so it was early to bed for them.