A journalist who sat down with pop star Kylie Minogue has revealed how the singer's demeanour shifted dramatically when she highlighted a devastating experience they both shared.
A Netflix documentary chronicling her life launches today (Wednesday, 20th May), exploring her often tumultuous romantic history with former partners including ex-Neighbours co-star Jason Donovan and the late INXS frontman Michael Hutchence.
Kylie has also confronted cancer on two occasions. She received her initial breast cancer diagnosis in May 2005. The singer, 57, had a lumpectomy, but the disease returned in 2021, detected early during a routine health examination. She chose to keep the diagnosis confidential at the time before disclosing it in her documentary.
Vassi Chamberlain sat down with Kylie for The Times ahead of the Netflix documentary's release. Having been forewarned by the superstar's representatives that Kylie favours brief interviews — typically 20 to 30 minutes maximum — the journalist attempted to extend proceedings by highlighting three areas of shared experience between them.
Regrettably, the final commonality resulted in Kylie "retreating into her protective shell". The journalist writes: "Her team had warned me in advance that Minogue likes her interviews short, 20 to 30 minutes max. Determined to break that rule, I try to put her at ease," reports the Daily Mirror.
"Guess what, I say, we've got three things in common. 'Oooh what?' Well, I used to live on the same street as you during the 90s and 00s.
"'Shut up!' she says, screaming. I've got such good memories of that time. What are the others?' I'm 5ft 1in too. We both agree life is better in heels. 'But I have recently succumbed to the trainer,' she adds, rolling her eyes.
"'And what's the third?' Well, we've both had cancer. 'Oh,' she says. She asks when I was diagnosed, but then quickly retreats back into her protective shell. We leave it for now.'"
Kylie revealed she chose to keep her second cancer diagnosis private, following the intensely public reaction to her first battle with the illness.
She explains in the Netflix programme: "Thankfully, I got through it. Again. And all is well. Hey, who knows what's around the corner, but pop music nurtures me ... my passion for music is greater than ever."
Kylie admitted she struggled "to find the right time" to share her cancer diagnosis publicly, even amid the enormous success of her Grammy-winning 2023 single Padam Padam.
She said: "I don't feel obliged to tell the world, and actually I just couldn't at the time because I was just a shell of a person. I didn't want to leave the house again at one point.
"Padam Padam opened so many doors for me but on the inside I knew that cancer wasn't just a blip in my life. And I really just wanted to say what happened so I can let go of it. I'd sit through interviews and every opportunity I thought, 'now's the time', but I kept it to myself."
Her 2023 track Story, taken from her album Tension, touches on the period in her life during which she privately fought cancer. The song includes lyrics such as: "I had a secret that I kept to myself...turn another page, baby take the stage."
