Michael Crawford unrecognisable as he reunites with Andrew Lloyd Webber after Phantom role

Michael Crawford breaks down in tears on All Star Musicals

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Michael Crawford, 79, who is the original star of The Phantom of the Opera, left fans taken aback when he joined his former colleague Andrew Lloyd Webber, 73, for a chat in celebration of the hit musical’s birthday. The British tenor and actor looked unrecognisable as he spoke to Andrew via video call in October last year, in a clip which the latter shared in view of his 218,000 Twitter followers at the time.

Andrew wrote alongside the video: “I thought I’d catch up with a very special friend of mine, @CrawfordMichael, as a surprise for you all to celebrate @phantomopera’s birthday today. 

“Enjoy. – ALW,” the composer signed off.

During the pair’s conversation, Andrew recalled being nervous over whether Michael would say yes to taking on the role of the Phantom.

Reflecting on their early memories, Andrew said: “Then you came round to my flat and I played you the overture and I was really worried because I thought, ‘God, Michael Crawford, is he going to say yes to this? I don’t know!’

“And then I remember half way through the overture you just turned round to me and I said, ‘the chandelier rises up’, and you said, ‘I’ll do this!’”

Michael replied: “I remember the hairs stood up on the back of my neck when I heard it and the concentration listening to it.

“I found myself in the position that I actually used in the character.

“My shoulders lifted and my head went down, and I could feel the power of being! 

 

“And it was a very memorable morning.”

Fans flocked to the comments section of Andrew’s video call with Michael, with many commenting on how “well” the singer and comedian looked.

Twitter user Jan Whiting wrote: “Great to see Michael looking and sounding so well. Thank you for bringing this to us, made my day.”

Trevor Ashman agreed: “AW, so wonderful hearing from Michael again, he’s looking excellent.”

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GreenEyedGirlGA added: “Absolutely love this. At age 14 Michael Crawford was my first love and now at 44 he still makes my heart skip a beat. Love to see he is doing so well. So wonderful to see Andrew looking great as well. Hopefully the chandelier will rise again soon.”

Michael Crawford fan penned: “OMG now that IS a surprise i absolutely LOVE him – it’s great to see our guy looking so well.”

Lesley Ford wrote: “How lovely to see Mr Crawford. I was only thinking about him yesterday!!!”

Philippa Ratcliffe Springman commented: “What a lovely interview. Great to see you looking well Michael, sending you love. X.”

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera opened at Her Majesty’s on  October 9 1986.

In the original production, Crawford starred opposite Sarah Brightman as Christine.

Alongside his iconic role as the Phantom, Crawford played Frank Spencer in BBC sitcom Some Mothers Do ‘Ave ‘Em, which ran from 1973 to 1978.

The series centred around Crawford’s accident-prone character Frank, who struggled to navigate the simplest tasks of day to day life, while also trying to take care of his wife and baby.

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