I believe in love, not aggression

Pop Idol winner and animal rights campaigner Will Young on his music and acting careers and his love of dogs

- JULIE ANN TRAINOR , ZARA ZUBEIDI

They say a dog is a man’s best friend – and that’s certainly the case for Pop Idol star Will Young. As well as looking after his own pups, the singer-songwriter turned actor is an avid protester against the illegal breeding of beagles – to the extent of chaining himself to the gates of a breeding facility in Cambridgeshire in 2021.

Sharing a picture of himself alongside fellow protesters at the time, he wrote, “I spent today at the gates of MBR Acres in protest of their testing on beagles. I wanted to raise awareness of animal testing and the fact that this is a puppy farm that farms over 2000 beagle puppies a year to be sent out to their inevitable torture and death. People do not know about it in this country and that is why I’ve handcuffed myself to the gates.”

Speaking to new at the Beagle Freedom Project UK launch party in London, he said people thought he was “insane” and having a “breakdown” at the time, but it’s a cause very close to his heart – and one he shares with some of the royal family.

“They’re all animal lovers,” the 44-year-old revealed. “I remember when I lost my dog. It got back to me that Queen Camilla was really concerned about it. She’s a huge animal lover and, of course, Meghan.”