JOE McElderry was born in 1991, so he missed out on the Eighties, but the decade left an impression on him.

He’s starring in Club Tropicana, a lively musical featuring 80s pop classics, including Take On Me, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, Fantastic Day and Relax.

“It’s a fun, family-friendly show you can sing along to,” says Joe. “I don’t remember these songs on the radio but I must have heard them many times because when we first had a read-through I knew the lyrics to nearly all of them. That’s the impact 80s music had on me even though I wasn’t even born then.”

When a bride and groom-to-be get cold feet, they each jet off, separately, to a sunshine resort. But, wouldn’t you just know it, they’ve checked into the same hotel - the Club Tropicana, Eighties answer to Love Island - and are faced with big decisions about their big day.

Joe - joined in the cast by comic actress Kate Robbins, EastEnders actor Neil McDermott and former Sugababe Amelle Berrabah - plays club rep Garry, who has a killer line in barbed one-liners. “He’s camp, witty, flamboyant and sassy,” smiles the 27-year-old from South Shields. “I’ve never played comedy before but it’s really fun. There’s no rules with Garry - he’s probably me after four or five vodkas.”

It has been 10 years since Joe was the cute 18-year-old winner of X Factor. “I was looking for longevity; people used to ask what I wanted to do and I’d say: ‘I want to still be doing this in 10 years time’,” he says. “The fact that I am is crazy. It’s been a huge learning curve but I’ve had a good time and grown up a lot.”

He adds: “There was that pressure of being thrust into the public eye with lots of people telling me to do this or do that. I had to learn to navigate through that, but I have a strong tight-knit family.”

To celebrate 10 years in the industry, he’s been writing a new album.

“I’ll be doing something on stage but first I’ve got Club Tropicana,” he says, gazing at a life-size image of himself on a promotional poster.

What would ‘Newcastle Joe’ say about that? “He’d say: ‘You don’t look like that when you wake up’,” laughs Joe. “It’s humbling to see yourself on a poster outside a venue. It makes me appreciate that not everybody gets to do what they love, I feel lucky to have experienced as much as I have.”

Joe’s musical theatre career took off in 2015 with Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat.

“I was stepping into a role people were loved for - Philip Schofield, Jason Donovan, Donny Osmond. I didn’t want to be the worst person to play it!” Over the decade he has won TV’s Popstar to Operastar and The Jump, and released five Top 20 albums.

Despite his success, he remains in the North. “I’ve fought living in London because I love Newcastle, it’s where my sanity is. My childhood friends are there. I do all the crazy work then head back to normality. I work in a wonderful industry, but it’s not the be all and end all.”

l Club Tropicana runs at the Alhambra from February 4 to 9. Call (01274) 432000.

Emma Clayton