Born in West Yorkshire, Ricky Wilson, 42, taught at Leeds College of Art before becoming the frontman of Kaiser Chiefs. The band’s hits include I Predict A Riot and Ruby; last year they released their seventh album, Duck. Wilson is a celebrity sitter for Portrait Artist Of The Year on Sky Arts. He is engaged and lives in London.
What is your greatest fear?
Very deep water.
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Impatience.
What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Lateness.
What was your most embarrassing moment?
My dad checking that I was invited to my friend Louise’s party when I was 17. She was having a secret party while her parents were away but, when my dad phoned, they hadn’t left. The party was cancelled. Thinking about it, I am crumbling inside.
What is your most treasured possession?
My grandad’s Swiss army knife.
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
That I am on the borderline of fat and thin, good-looking and ugly. On a day-to-day basis, I can fall either side of that tightrope.
If you could bring something extinct back to life, what would you choose?
The McRib.
What do you owe your parents?
£459: they paid off my credit card bill when I was 18.
What is your most unappealing habit?
I am not good at cutting my fingernails. It’s not that I like long nails – I just don’t like the sensation, so avoid it.
What did you want to be when you were growing up?
Older.
What is the worst thing anyone’s said to you?
An English teacher at school said, “Enough of the cabaret, Mr Wilson” when I was acting up. It’s a very good way of making someone feel very small very quickly.
Is it better to give or to receive?
Give. You know you’re getting older when other people opening their presents is more exciting than opening yours.
What is your guiltiest pleasure?
Sleep.
What does love feel like?
A positive panic attack.
What is the worst job you’ve done?
There have been things within the Kaiser Chiefs I’ve hated – some corporate gigs that I didn’t feel good doing.
If you could edit your past, what would you change?
I might have carried on doing The Voice.
How do you relax?
Murder, She Wrote.
What has been your closest brush with the law?
When I was about 18, I took my trousers down in front of a police officer but, thankfully, he found it whimsical.
What keeps you awake at night?
Travelling on a tour bus.
Tell us a secret
At the back of my wardrobe are loads of toys that I’m too embarrassed to get out. They’re ones that I couldn’t afford when I was a kid and now that I can, I keep buying them on eBay.
