KT Tunstall can’t wait to turn 50. “I feel great about it,” she tells me.
“I’ve had more fun in my 40s than I’ve ever had. You just give so much less of a s*** about stuff that doesn’t matter.”
It’s a huge year for the St Andrews-raised singer.
It’s the 20th anniversary of her album Eye to the Telescope, she’s made her first foray into musical theatre with an adaptation of teen movie comedy Clueless, and she’s the poster girl for our new Courier campaign.
In June, KT will celebrate the big 5-0 by headlining a massive gig at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
Pretty much every waking moment is accounted for. How on earth does the Suddenly I See singer have the energy?
KT no longer goes on ‘benders’
“I’ve come to realise that not drinking is a bit of a superpower,” she reveals.
“I stopped for six years after my dad died (her adoptive father David passed away in August 2012).
“I’ve had problems with my kidneys since I was a kid and was having E.coli infections.
“So I changed my diet, stopped drinking for six years, got well, and now I just have a drink occasionally. I don’t go on absolute benders any more.”
For a woman approaching 50 – who hasn’t had any “work” done – KT looks fantastic.
But it’s not beauty sleep that’s her secret.
“I’m rubbish at sleep,” she exclaims. “When life’s like this, five hours’ sleep is good.
“I’ll pass out if I’ve got some days off, or stay in bed til 1pm.”
Dodging Botox – and going grey
Unlike many celebrities, who’ve felt the pressure to have Botox and cosmetic surgery, KT has avoided it thus far.
She laughs: “I’ve never had it! But call me when I’m 60! I might say, yeah, I totally had some of that done.
“I lived in LA for quite a long time so I’ve seen the crazy end of all of that. But if you’re a woman – or a man – wanting to look good for your age, then that’s great.
“But if you’re a 60-year-old trying to look 18 then there’s probably a bit of trouble at t’mill.”
When it comes to going grey, KT, fed up of constantly dyeing her hair black, has embraced the “punk grey” look.
Pre-Covid, she spent a fortune getting “chemicals” poured over her hair, but when the pandemic forced salons to close, her grey roots became highly visible.
“I had about two inches of grey,” KT recalls. “I just thought, I’m not doing this any more.
“I’ve got a great friend in America who’s a hairdresser and she spent six hours getting all the black dye out, gave me a haircut and kind of re-dyed it, so it’s the grey that I am.
“I think grey hair is really cool. I shave the sides of my hair off so at least it’s punk grey.”
How did KT reach a ‘place of peace’?
Mentally, KT is in the best place ever, saying she “sorted her house out” emotionally and spiritually in her 40s.
That involved getting therapy, deciding there was “stuff” in her life that wasn’t helpful – like “behaviour and rage” – and surrounding herself with good people.
Lockdown, and not gigging, turned out to be a hugely positive period: she could concentrate on herself and not worry about performing.
“I came out of that in such good shape,” she reflects. “I think getting yourself to a place of peace is the most important work you can do in your life.
“Knowing what you want, and what you don’t want from life, knowing who the good people are, and surrounding yourself with those people – that’s helpful.”
Losing hearing in her left ear in 2018 – a result of being in loud environments – was a big “wake up call” in terms of looking after herself, admits KT.
“The pillars of success for me now are having free time and choice in what I do. That feels like a great luxury.
“I just want to be completely present and completely clear to enjoy every moment.
“And I think when it doesn’t feel like work, you’ve got a lot of energy for it.”
Going back to her Fife roots
KT was adopted 18 days after her birth by David Tunstall, a physics lecturer at the University of St Andrews and his wife Rosemarie, a primary school teacher.
She grew up in St Andrews, attending Lawhead Primary, and then Madras College, before moving on to Dundee High School.
She returned to St Andrews for a gig at the Byre Theatre on February 8, following a performance at Crieff’s Strathearn Arts the previous night.
Both gigs formed part of James Yorkston’s Tae Sup Wi’ A Fifer tour, and featured KT and Johnny Lynch’s Pictish Trail.
The Byre gig, she reveals, was particularly poignant – it was the first place she was ever on stage, aged eight.
She was in a theatre group for kids called Stage One, run by Alan and Carole Tricker.
“I have a very vivid memory of going on stage for the first time there, and thinking, ‘this is amazing, I’m enjoying myself, and me enjoying myself is making other people enjoy themselves’,” she says.
Why was KT ‘busking’ in St Andrews?
KT enjoyed a walk round St Andrews and did a bit of ‘busking’ down at West Sands – where she was filmed for our new campaign.
Fans were transfixed as she whipped out a guitar and played her best-known songs.
Her make-up artist for the campaign was St Andrews-based Poppy Fenton, the daughter of her friend Chris.
“I had my first kiss at school with Chris!” KT reveals. “I remember meeting Poppy as a baby – and now she’s my new bestie.”
The singer’s mum came to see the Byre show with some old neighbours, and KT toyed with a trip to the East Neuk to see Kenny Anderson, aka King Creosote, who she describes as one of her “biggest mentors”.
She was disappointed to miss Lawhead Primary’s 50th anniversary, adding: “I’d have gone to see the kids if it was a week day!
“I’ve got such good memories of the school, particularly of the music and art departments.”
And she also missed her pal Tony Fusaro, who runs Luvians in St Andrews.
KT worked in the coffee shop when she was 15, and then again in the bottle shop in her early 20s.
“Tony was a constant in my early life. He’s off to Las Vegas so I missed him,” she laments.
Fond memories of Fife
While KT doubts she’ll move back to St Andrews any time soon – she upped sticks to California in 2013, and now lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, with her partner and dogs – she has fond memories of her life in Fife.
“It was lovely being out with James Yorkston and Johnny Lynch from Pictish Trail because they were there, back in the day,” she muses.
“James has known me since I was 15, doing gigs in The Vic, the Westport Bar, and the Cellar Bar in St Andrews.
“We used to take the van and go off to the Twa Tams in Perth. It was a really good way of cutting your teeth.
“When you’re playing in small venues you’ve got to win them over.”
Throughout her 20s, before she became famous, money was tight.
And there’s a story that tells of KT being so skint that she stole broccoli from a farmer’s field.
Is there any truth in that? She laughs. “There’s probably a bit of hubris in that.
“We wouldn’t have starved to death. Our favourite meal then was pasta with ketchup, garlic, cheese and a bit of milk.
“I actually want to try it again to see if it’s disgusting. I remember it being delicious.”
How KT became a star
It wasn’t until 2004 – when KT was 29 – that her live, electrifying performance of Black Horse and the Cherry Tree on Later… with Jools Holland, propelled her to fame.
In 2005, the song was named Track of the Year by Q magazine – and her debut album, Eye to Telescope, was nominated for the Mercury Prize.
She’s since gone on to sell seven million records.
What’s happening in 2025?
So to the future, and KT is brimming with excitement and energy for what’s to come.
Her 50th on June 23 will be spent headlining a concert at the Royal Albert Hall, which she describes as a “dream come true”.
A few days later, on June 27, she’ll support Simple Minds at Glasgow’s Bellahouston Park.
And then there’s the new Clueless musical, for which KT wrote the soundtrack. It opened in London’s West End on February 15.
“I didn’t love musicals growing up – I thought they were cheesy,” she admits.
“So I’ve tried to do music for a musical so that people who think they don’t like musicals have a brilliant time.
“Cluleless is so fun. It’s such a joyful musical. Every song references a big hit from the 90s, from Green Day to NSYNC to Beastie Boys.
“It’s such a cool movie, and it’s based on Jane Austen’s novel Emma.
“People could easily write it off as bubblegum pop, but there’s a whole deeper level.
“It’s a beautiful story that everyone can relate to.”
KT’s voice is in hot demand
Another feather in KT’s cap is doing voiceovers. She’s been narrating adverts for car company Skoda since 2022.
“That’s my favourite job!” she enthuses. “I just go into the recording studio in my pyjamas.
“They like my voice – and I love a Skoda. You’ve got to say ‘Schkoda’. You can’t say it with an S. ”
She also did voiceovers for Icons of Football, a BBC Scotland series.
“That was funny because I know nothing about football!” she laughs.
Proud of her Scottish roots, KT is being careful not to develop an American accent.
“I’m back a few times a year, so I’m not losing touch with Scotland,” she says.
“I’m very glad I’m not getting that hybrid accent – it’s awful!”
Poster girl for our new campaign
KT is fronting our new Courier campaign – Local Stories Make Us – which launches on March 10.
Her ‘busking’ session in St Andrews will feature on promotional STV and Sky adverts – and will also be hosted on The Courier’s website and social media channels.
The campaign celebrates the people – like KT – and moments that shape Tayside and Fife.
Broughty Ferry RNLI coxswain Peter Hay is also featured in the campaign, highlighting his incredible service to saving lives in our community.
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