Carol Ann Decker (born 10 September 1957) is an English singer and musician. She is the lead vocalist of the band T'Pau, which had international success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Although Decker is mainly associated with the group, she also released "One Heart," a solo single in 1995, to support the centenary of the formation of the Northern Rugby Football Union (the Rugby League code) and sometimes performs solo at shows and festivals. Decker's personal record label is GnatFish.

Life and career

Decker was born in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...

(now

Merseyside Merseyside ( ) is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Mersey Estuary and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wi ...

) and educated in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...

. In addition to her musical achievements, Decker has also acted on both stage and screen, including the role of Steven Berkoff's wife in the 2002 film ''

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''. TV appearances include '' Hit Me, Baby, One More Time'' (in which she reached the final round, ultimately being beaten by

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). Decker also appeared in the British comedy series '' Trigger Happy TV'', in which she appeared in a "bull in a china shop" sketch (the joke being that she had previously had a hit with the song, " China in Your Hand"), and in another sketch where she accompanied Dom Joly as he pretended to be a door-to-door salesman. In 2003 she appeared in the play ''Mum's The Word'' (written by Linda A Carson, Jill Daum, Alison Kelly, Robin Nichol, Barbara Pollard and Deborah Williams) at the

Albery Theatre Albery is a name. It may refer to: ;People by given name *Albery Allson Whitman (1851−1901), African American poet, minister and orator ;People by surname: *A. S. Albery, British politician *Bronson Albery (1881−1971), English theatre director ...

in London. Decker took part in the prime time

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show ''

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'', which began on 2 January 2007. However, despite singing duets with

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and

Natasha Hamilton Natasha Maria Hamilton (born 17 July 1982) is an English singer and a member of girl group Atomic Kitten. Hamilton has so far released 19 singles and three studio albums with the band including three number one singles, their biggest being the 2 ...

, she and her singing partner

Gregg Wallace Gregg Allan Wallace (born 17 October 1964) is an English broadcaster, entrepreneur, media personality, writer and former greengrocer. He is known for co-presenting ''MasterChef'', ''Celebrity MasterChef'' and '' MasterChef: The Professionals'', ...

were the first to be eliminated from the show after singing

The Jacksons The Jackson 5 (sometimes stylized as the Jackson 5ive, also known as the Jacksons) are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was founded in 1964 in Gary, Indiana, and for most ...

' "

Blame It on the Boogie "Blame It on the Boogie" is a song released in 1978 by English singer-songwriter Mick Jackson. It has been covered by numerous other artists, including The Jacksons. The song was performed on ''Musikladen'' (January 1979), ''Aplauso'' (February ...

". Decker appeared in the video for Peter Kay and

Matt Lucas Matthew Richard Lucas (born 5 March 1974) is an English actor, comedian, writer, and television presenter. He is best known for his work with David Walliams on the BBC sketch comedy series ''Little Britain'' (2003–2006, 2020) and '' Come Fl ...

's charity single "

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" for

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. She released the single "

Just Dream "Just Dream" is a song by English vocalist Carol Decker of the band T'Pau, released as a non-album download-only single in 2007. It was written by Decker and T'Pau's ex-rhythm guitarist Ron Rogers. The song was produced by Decker, Rogers and Jez A ...

" in download-only format in September 2007. In 2018 she made a guest appearance in an episode of the British comedy TV series '' Benidorm'', as herself. In 2022, Decker released her first Autobiography entitled "Heart And Soul".

Personal life

T'Pau member Ronnie Rogers was her boyfriend at the time, and they co-wrote the majority of the band's songs. Decker began a relationship with restaurateur Richard Coates in 1996. They have two children, Scarlett (born 1998) and Dylan (born 2002), and married in 2006. That same year, Decker became a joint tenant of the Cherry Tree Inn at Stoke Row near Henley, which Coates had established. Although it closed in 2012, it has since reopened under new ownership. The couple live in Henley-on-Thames.

References

External links

T'Pau official website

Gnatfish Records
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Decker, Carol 1957 births Living people English women pop singers English rock singers English television actresses Women new wave singers Musicians from Merseyside People from Huyton People from Wellington, Shropshire