‘My dad would look at me, this daft kid. ‘You know,’ he’d say, ‘he’s got a head full of magic.’ He was right. There was something inside me, building up. I had only one thought – I want to perform.’ Will Mellor is one of British television’s best-loved actors and entertainers, known for standout roles in Mr Bates vs the Post Office, Hollyoaks, Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, Coronation Street, Line of Duty and Casualty. A fan favourite on Strictly Come Dancing 2022, he reached the semi-finals before bowing out in the final dance-off. But Will’s path has been anything but straightforward. His story is one of exhilarating highs and devastating lows – a lad from Stockport, Greater Manchester, who by all logic shouldn’t have made it, yet whose grit, determination and the will to keep going refused to be extinguished. In this no-holds-barred memoir, Will reflects with trademark honesty on the moments, relationships and turning points that shaped a turbulent life. Beginning on the Strictly dancefloor – an emotional journey made even more powerful by the recent loss of his dad, Bill – Will travels back to his childhood in a loud and frantic council house with his mum and four older sisters, one of whom was mentally and physically disabled, and a father who spent time in prison. It was in that house that Will first dreamed of stardom. He genuinely wanted to run away to the circus. But this working-class kid from Stockport had no idea how to make those dreams real… until a chance encounter changed everything.
