Welcome back, Ben! It's been a while since your a1 days...
Yeah, but I'm still proud of what we achieved. a1 wrote our own songs, had two No1s and won a BRIT award. Oh, and we were responsible for Busted and McFly.

What!? How's that?
Well, I went for a meeting with some people at a big record label and they told me Busted's managers had seen a1 on Blue Peter and wanted to form a similar band.

So, where have you been for the last three years?
Sadly, after a1 split up I got quite fat, and some days just sat around in my dressing gown watching Bargain Hunt...

Yikes! Then what happened?
I got myself together. I went to the gym, lost three stone, then locked myself away in my studio. I'd start work at 7m and finish at 4am the following morning.

Did you work with any celebs on the album?
I hung out in LA and wrote some songs with Har Mar Superstar. I also met people like Leonardo DiCaprio, and Paris Hilton was everywhere I went.

Finally, what happened to your trademark curtains after you chopped them off?
I keep them in a jar. Not really!