When she was a little girl, Melody Thornton loved to practise singing by listening to the best female vocalists of the day, including Whitney Houston. And now, the former Pussycat Dolls star is belting out her late, great idol’s biggest hits on stage as she takes on a role first played by the superstar.

Melody, who sold 55 million records and earnt a Grammy nomination as part of the hugely successful US girl group, is thrilled to be following in Whitney’s footsteps in the stage version of The Bodyguard, which is touring British theatres until the end of the year.

“Whenever you talk about the greatest singers, you talk about Whitney,” she tells hello!. “She raised the bar – that has been her contribution to music. She’s the bible for anyone who wants to sing. She’s the master and it’s lovely to honour her.”

The daughter of a prison guard and a saleswoman, Melody, 38, grew up in Phoenix, Arizona, and got her big break at the age of 19. The band, which also included Nicole Scherzinger, Ashley Roberts and Kimberly Wyatt, scored worldwide hits including Don’t Cha, Stickwitu and Buttons before splitting up in 2010.

‘Being in the band was a lot of pressure, and that is going to mould you – but I think God gives you what you can handle’

“I was in the school choir, but my family didn’t have the resources for training, so I taught myself by listening to Christina Aguilera and other singers, like Whitney,” Melody says. “I only got vocal coaching once I was in the group, and I wasn’t a dancer either, so I was making that up in the same way. “These people took a risk on a kid who didn’t know anything. I was always down on myself, feeling as though I had bitten off more than I could chew, but it was the best learning experience any performer could ask for. It was a lot of pressure, and that is going to mould you, that’s for sure – but I think that God gives you what you can handle.”

REPORTS: JUBIDA BEGUM. LAURA BENJAMIN. PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES. ITV. PAUL COLTAS. REX FEATURES. SKY

Melody is thrilled to be starring in The Bodyguard with former Emmerdale and Hollyoaks actor Ayden Callaghan (together far left), who takes Kevin Costner’s role. The singer (above, back left) found fame with The Pussycat Dolls at 19, despite having had no training in singing or dancing before she joined them

INTERVIEW: TRACY SCHAVERIEN To book, visit thebodyguardmusical.com.

The big musical influence in Melody’s life was her Mexican maternal grandmother, Antonia. “She had a distinctive singing voice that I inherited; my family say it’s eerie,” she says. “She sang in church every Sunday and that was her stage, because she was a housewife with seven children, so she didn’t have the opportunity to make a career of it. She was over the moon when I got into the band. She didn’t speak any English, so music was our language. She passed away in March 2020, but I know she’s with me. She and God are my agents.”

KEEPING IT REAL

Having retrained as an actress, Melody has appeared in pantomime, taking the lead role in Cinderella, as well as starring in reality shows such as Dancing on Ice, Popstar to Operastar and Celebrity Island with Bear Grylls. Last year, she was crowned the winner of The Masked Singer in Australia.

“I love challenging myself and learning a new skill in a short space of time,” she says. “Sometimes people don’t want to put themselves out there to look stupid, but I’m all about it. You have to look dumb for a split second and then you go: ‘Oh, that’s not how you do it – this is how you do it.’”

Melody says she’s no longer in touch with her fellow former Pussycats. “We’re all busy,” she says. “One of my bandmates has had three kids and one looks like she’s working around the clock.”

As for her own personal life, she has resolved to put more effort into finding love. “I haven’t had a lot of luck, but I think I’ve been avoidant in a lot of ways,” she says. “I didn’t know that it takes work, so I’m trying to do that now.”

In the meantime, she will be busy performing songs including I Will Always Love You, I Wanna Dance with Somebody and So Emotional in The Bodyguard, based on the 1992 film in which Whitney stars as singer Rachel Marron, who falls for Kevin Costner’s former Secret Service agent. Melody originally played the part on stage during a six-month tour of China.

“I don’t know what’s next, but I’d love to be a part of something scripted in film or television, with some singing too,” she says. “I bet that spirit has some plan for me. That’s my hope.”

DON’T MISS THIS WEEK…

BOOK NOW FOREST LIVE

Experience a forest adventure like no other as music stars including Anne-Marie, Jack Savoretti and Tom Grennan hit the stage in a series of live events set in natural woodland around the country, from Cheshire to Suffolk (right). The concerts also make a difference: income generated from ticket sales helps Forestry England look after the nation’s forests sustainably. From 8 to 18 June. To book, visit forestryengland.uk/music.

FILM A GOOD PERSON

Academy Award nominee Florence Pugh (left) stars in this compelling drama about a young woman whose world falls apart when she’s involved in a fatal car accident while recovering from an opioid addiction. As she forms an unlikely friendship with her wouldbe father-in-law (Morgan Freeman), can she move on from her grief? In cinemas now or available on Sky Cinema from 28 April.

TV SIX FOUR

When detective Chris (Grey’s Anatomy’s Kevin McKidd) finds out that his daughter has gone missing, he makes an unsettling connection with a previous case. He and his wife (Vinette Robinson, together right) take matters into their own hands as they uncover corruption and betrayal, in this adaptation of Hideo Yokoyama’s novel. Streaming now on ITVX.

KIDS SPONGEBOB: THE MUSICAL

Dive into family fun as SpongeBob SquarePants (Lewis Cornay, left) and friends including Squidward (played at some venues by Gareth Gates) put on a stellar show. When the citizens of Bikini Bottom discover that a volcano is due to erupt, the group must join forces to save their home. On tour from 5 April to 9 September. To book, visit spongebobstage.com.

BOOK STARS IN AN ITALIAN SKY

From Jill Santopolo, best-selling author of The Light We Lost, this book sees Vincenzo and Giovanna fall in love in 1940s Italy, but their passionate affair ends badly. Fast-forward to New York in 2017, and when artist Luca asks his grandfather and his girlfriend’s grandmother to pose, past and present collide. Out now, published by Hodder & Stoughton, £21.99.