Nathan Carter: 'I'm still young, free, and single, but I'd like to settle down - that would be a dream come true'

“I haven’t watched his first couple of episodes, but from what I could see on Wednesday night when we pre-recorded the show, he was right at home. He was definitely at ease with it and got really involved. I think he’s great for the show,” added Nathan.

The RTE show was a special occasion for a couple of Nathan Carter fans in the audience. The pair, who got engaged at one of the singer’s gigs, were lucky enough to be serenaded by the star, who sang a chorus of the ballad Caledonia. The 33-year-old also performed In a Rocket, a song off his new, as yet untitled album (which will be released mid November) that he recorded with accordion player Sharon Shannon.

Nathan enjoys doing television, but admits it can be a “bit daunting”.

“I’ve done quite a bit of TV now over the last seven or eight years. It’s great fun. There’s a lot more pressure because you know in the back of your head how many people are watching, but it’s always great for new people that haven’t seen you before and to bring new fans on board.”

Nathan Carter is the dictionary definition of modern, mainstream country and Irish music.

The clean-cut Scouser hit the big time in 2012 with his version of Bob Dylan’s track Wagon Wheel and since then his musical ascendency seems unstoppable. Always immaculately presented, a model of country music wholesomeness and unfailing humility, Nathan, whose parents Ian and Noreen are originally from Newry, has been singing and performing since he was a child.

“I was brought up with country music always playing in the house,” he says. “My nan and grandad played the likes of Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton, Philomena Begley and Joe Dolan, so I was surrounded by that stuff growing up and I always loved it.

“I used to sing a lot of the songs and at family parties I would be thrown up on the table to entertain everyone and sing to them.”

He left school at 16 and started singing country songs in the pubs and clubs around England.

His performances also extended to Ireland, and it was on a trip to Donegal in 2009 that he met songwriter John Farry, who was hugely impressed with his talent and style. He was invited to start his own band, which had always been his dream, and has gone on to release 13 studio albums and six live albums, five of which peaked at number one, and four live DVDs.

And the hard-working star is back on the road with dates around the UK and Ireland, including slots in Scotland this weekend.

“We’re mad busy all through December and January around Ireland and Northern Ireland. We’re very excited. We generally do a different show for the Christmas gigs; I did a Christmas album many years ago and we do a lot of songs from that, so it gives us a chance to freshen the whole thing up.”

​So, does he have any rituals before he goes on stage?

“No, generally we talk through the gig back stage and then we go and do it. We do that many gigs throughout the year that it just becomes the norm. I think if you were a band that only tours once a year you’d sit and think about the whole thing a lot more, but we gig all the time so it just becomes the norm.”

And in terms of afterwards, there’s no lavish backstage rider demands like crates of Cristal champagne and caviar.

"We are really boring. We have tea, coffee, biscuits and a few bottles of beer. There’s no red or blue M&Ms,” he laughs, referencing Van Hallen’s legendary demand that all brown M&Ms be removed from bowls of sweets in his dressing room.

Nathan - a former head chorister in the Liverpool boys choir – moved to Ireland when he was 18 and has lived in Co Fermanagh ever since. He’s recently bought a new lakeside bungalow and is looking forward to doing it up.

“I sold my vast house last year and moved not too far away – it’s only 15 minutes up the road. It’s a new project for me to start working on next year.

“I’ve lived in maybe 10 houses since I was kid. My dad’s a builder and we used to move every other year. He’d buy a house and do it up and sell it and then do another one up and sell that, so I think it’s kind of in me. I don’t get attached to the one house, because I’ve never been in one house for more than two or three years.”

Unsurprisingly, he loves nothing more than watching property shows on the TV.

“If you look at my Channel 4 history, all I seem to do is watch Grand Designs, Location, Location, Location – any shows like that, I’m obsessed with, sadly.”

In the past he has been romantically linked to fellow country singer Lisa McHugh. So, what everyone wants to know is if he’s dating at the moment or is there is someone special to watch those property shows with?

​"Nothing at the minute, I’m still young, free and single – well, young in my head, I’m not that young anymore, but I still think I’m 21. But who knows. I’d eventually like to settle down. That would be a dream come true.

“I was chatting to my grandad about it the other day and he said ‘I only got married when I was 32, so you are only a year behind me, but if you are still feeling young, don’t worry, keep going the way you are’.”

It seems Nathan is more circumspect about many aspects of his life these days, including his work commitments, saying the Covid pandemic forced him to take stock.

“I loved the pandemic at the start because we had been gigging that much, we’d never taken a break – in maybe 11 or 12 years – but then after about three months I just struggled to find the purpose of doing anything; because I’d gigged all my life it was kind of weird when we weren’t allowed to do it.

"Then obviously when we got back again I was more thrilled than ever to be back on stage and appreciated it a lot more. I looked at it a bit differently as well. Because I’d had the time off I decided to schedule in holidays and just not live for work.

"Next year we are gigging a lot, but I’m taking certain months off in the year when I’m just going to concentrate on writing and seeing my family and just enjoying life away from gigs.”

He adds: “In the past I would have just said ‘yes’ to everything, where I’d literally be killing myself trying to do everything – charity events or friends would ring up and ask ‘...this one’s getting married, can you sing at the wedding’. I’ve learnt to say ‘no’ a bit more since the pandemic.

"You’ve got to look after yourself rather than doing everything to please everyone else, you’ve got to spend more time on yourself for your mental health as well.”

With Christmas not far off, he’s looking forward to spending time with his family – but he’ll let the others do the cooking.

“My mum and and and my sister are all coming to me. Jake is living in Dublin a good part of the time with his partner, so we’ll spend Christmas at my house, which will be nice as it’ll be the first Christmas in Ireland in a while.

"Unfortunately, I am the worst chef ever. I think if I did the cooking the whole house would be on fire. My dad’s very good and my mum’s good at doing spuds and stuff like that. I’ll buy all the stuff and let them do it. I’ll pour the drinks.”

And when the Christmas spirit is in, does he enjoy a good sing song? "Because I sing so much, I let others do it. If my grandad is with us there’ll always be a bit of sing song round the piano.”

*Nathan Carter is preforming the following dates in NI: ​​​​​December 14, Bangor Elim Church; December 15, The Millennium Forum, Londonderry; January 19, Tullyglass Hotel & Residences, Ballymena; January 20, Armagh City Hotel.