'I'm so beside myself that I got picked

Singer and actress Alexandra Burke on her TV acting debut, family life and keeping her mum's memory alive

- KENZI DEVINE

After welcoming her second child last September, Alexandra Burke is in her element as she embraces life as a mum while working in the job she loves The singer, 35, who became a household name after winning The X Factor in 2008, shares two children aged nine months and 23 months old - with footballer boyfriend Darren Randolph. The couple have kept their little ones' names and genders private.

And while it's not even a year since she gave birth, Alexandra hasn't slowed down one bit with music on the back burner while her acting career thrives.

She is currently starring alongside Ruth Jones in the theatre production of Sister Act, and has bagged a role in the new Paramount+ TV series Curfew, which is being filmed this year.

But Alexandra has had tough times too she's been grieving the death of her beloved mother Melissa Bell, who passed away following a stroke in 2017. Since then, the singer has founded The Melissa Bell Foundation in her honour - which raises money for young people and offers scholarships to the Sylvia Young Theatre School.

Alexandra has also set up an annual Spring Ball with PR guru Nick Ede, which raises money for the charity, stroke survivors and drives all-important awareness.

Chatting at this year's bash at Lio London near London's Leicester Square, Alex shares how she is keeping her mum's memory alive and why having kids has given her purpose...