Quotes from Sophie Ellis-Bextor

Some people are really good at packaging themselves, but that's not really me.

I've got a thing for footwear; I have about 200 pairs of shoes from all over the world.

I was an only child, but then my parents resettled with different partners, and I am now one of six.

Philately is normally a boys' hobby but for some reason it was in vogue at my junior school. Between the ages of eight and ten I collected avidly. I'd pore over my Stanley Gibbons book, obsessively checking my collection's value. I always hoped I'd stumble across a really valuable one, a Penny Black or an Inverted Jenny, but it wasn't to be.

You should make an effort on stage because it's a performance. The stage should be glittery and camp, but I don't go down the shops in full stage gear.

I do find it a bit disconcerting when your name becomes a brand.

I'm a sucker for sad disco pop.

I never manage to get to bed early on Sunday night but this doesn't matter, as I don't know one level of exhaustion from another.

I'm really interested in fashion but at the same time I find it quite competitive. Second-hand stuff leaves you more open to whatever your own personal style is rather than feeling dictated to by shops.

I'm big in Russia, but no one's quite sure why.

There's so many singers, you watch them and a lot of it is waving around. You don't get this feeling that they're really thinking about what they're saying.

There are a lots of clowns in our family - our house is a fun house.

On my wedding day. I didn't want a natural, blushing-bride look - I had a full-on hairdo and red lips. I thought it would be disingenuous to do the whole virginal look, so even though I had the white dress, I had pink net underneath.

I love getting dressed up. Being a pop star is the most brilliant job for that. A lot of girls love shopping, but they might see the most amazing outfit and think, 'When am I going to wear that?', so it's my duty to exploit the fact I do have events I can wear these things to.

In terms of clothes, everything is on the same level for me. If I like it, it doesn't matter if it cost £200 or £2.

I've got quite a curvy shape so I try to wear stuff that's tailored.

I think I'm fairly good with money, but I've developed some strange tics - in shops I don't like to go to the counter unless I've got at least two things to buy. If I'm walking around with just one thing in my hand I'll put it back and wait a few weeks because that doesn't seem like a proper purchase.

'The X Factor' is great entertainment, but it doesn't prepare people for getting chewed up and spat out by the music industry.

A good song is a good song whatever your age.

I didn't feel so great when I was a teenager, but who does?

But I quite like that the public has a very short attention span. If I haven't been on telly for a little bit, I can sense it. People don't take as much notice of you, it's really quite palpable.

You have to apply yourself because you'll never get a better opportunity than the one you have right now. Having said that, people know by now if they like me or not. I don't need to prove anything.

Someone had my number and they started text-stalking me. I've never replied to them. It was tempting to write back, but I resisted.

Everybody remembers Robbie Williams said I had a face like a satellite dish.