Director praises Kylie as 'hardest working woman'

Kylie Minogue is the "hardest working woman" according to the Coventry director who created the I Should Be So Lucky musical, based on the Australian singer's back catalogue.

Debbie Isitt, who also created the Nativity series of Christmas films, wrote and directed the show and even came up with a role for the pop superstar, after one of the producers suggested that Minogue might want to take part.

"She is the hardest working woman, she never stops and she's travelling all over the world all the time, so she is quite serious about getting things right" she said.

Minogue is currently the subject of a three-part documentary about her life and career on Netflix.

I Should Be So Lucky uses eight songs by the former Neighbours actress, all of which were written by Stock, Aitken and Waterman.

Isitt said she had to have a virtual meeting with the pop diva, who was in Melbourne at the time, to tell her the story of the musical and convince her to come to the UK to film a scene that would feature in the stage show.

"She was so excited to revisit her old tracks and she came to meet me and then to rehearsal and I filmed her as a hologram of herself - she appears as in the mirror throughout the show. She looks amazing in this production," Isitt said.

The stage show debuted in Manchester in 2023 before touring the UK in 2024, with the video of Minogue in every performance.

Isitt, best known for creating the Nativity! series of films starring Martin Freeman, David Tennant and Celia Imrie, said working with Minogue gave her an insight into how the diva approached her career.

"She never stops and her time is very precious. So she is quite serious about getting things right, she's really professional and she really wants it to work," she said.

"She's fun, but she really takes the work seriously."

Isitt said she enjoyed working with the star, because they both have a background in acting.

"She's a good actress and I think we forget that at times," she added.

"But she is a really decent actress and I'd like to work with her again in more of an an acting capacity and she's still going strong.

"She's a real pocket rocket."

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