Just A Quickie with... Jon Ansell of The X Factor's nice pop opera boys G4,

who play the Grand Opera House, York, on Thursday.

How did G4 come together?

"It started when we went up to the Guildhall School of Music. We'd do musical theatre, operetta, Gilbert and Sullivan, lots of Mozart arias for me.

"I was spotted busking with Mike (Michael Christie). We'd begun in Neal Street, off Covent Garden, then got a licence in the market place at a pitch where there tended to be more dramatic acts, such as jugglers, and the audiences didn't seem to warm to us! But we then had a licence outside Tate Modern at Millennium Bridge and that went really well!"

How challenging was performing on The X Factor

"The four of us had always done things like Nessun Dorma, the Lion King medley and an a cappella version of Bohemian Rhapsody, although it sounded very different to how people know it now.

"All the vocal arrangements were done by us and we pride ourselves on that, but when you're given something to do at short notice, like when we were given O Holy Night with an hour and a half to put it together, that's when it was really challenging!"

On the subject of challenges, did you enjoy working with legendary producer Trevor Horn on the Lion King Medley and My Way for your debut album and the single version of Bohemian Rhapsody?

"It was fantastic. When we were told we'd be working with him, you think of whom he has produced and you think of his own work, and he had these amazing studios. To hear the final production he put to our music was wonderful.

"He was in the studio the whole time to give us advice, and it tended to be about the emotional intensity, the nuances, he wanted in the songs. He was looking for the perfection he's known for."

Pop careers can quickly go from The X Factor to the ex factor. How are you going to maintain your chart-topping momentum?

"We've got talks under way for a new album to come out in November, and we've recorded four tracks already.

"The exciting thing is the collaborations we're doing.

"Like doing Barcelona with Lesley Garrett, which we were lucky enough to sing with her at the Royal Albert Hall, and we sang The First Of May with Robin Gibb there too.

"It angles us toward different things, Robin for pop, Lesley for classical, and we've been in touch with Brian May too."

Never mind the upcoming G8 summit, what could a G4 summit achieve?

"There's so much to do, we'd have to sit down for a few months. Maybe our contribution should just be to sing. If we can make the world smile, that would help."

G4, Grand Opera House, York, Thursday, 7.30pm. Sold out.

Updated: 09:35 Friday, June 24, 2005