ISSUE 49 November 17th 2000
		H O M E L E S S . . . . I love pop stars that look beyond their ‘gold plated windows’, and see those of us who are less fortunate than themselves. Remember Phil Collins’ ‘Another Day in Paradise’? Well, Phil was clever enough to write a song about poor old homeless freaks at Christmas. The whole nation lapped it up, as ‘bum face ’Phil sat on his fat arse and watched it climb to the top of the charts. It made him millions, which guaranteed him (quite literally) ‘Another Day In Paradise’. Well, this week it was Mel C who has just announced that all proceeds from her new single ‘If That Were Me’ will go to the UK homeless charity ‘Dirty, Thieving Bastard Peasants’. Mel told me: "I just wanted to help those who have nowhere to go. They may feel lost and cold, especially at Christmas. If I can help them in anyway I will. I know what it’s like to be homeless, because two years ago I too had nowhere to live. Then I bought a £3 million penthouse in Knightsbridge." Already proceeds from the single are flooding in, so I spent a night on the back streets of Soho to see if Mel’s single really was making all the difference. I spoke to a young homeless man, who up until five years ago had a thriving career and huge house in the country. His name was Gary. Gary Barlow. He told me: "Thanks to Mel my life has changed for the better. I’m now full of Christmas spirits. Mainly Vodka, and Whisky." BEN