Singing waiter Ian Bloomfield takes us on an riveting journey through his career – from singing with the English National Opera to busking in Covent Garden.

Ian Bloomfield has worked as a professional singer performing with English National Opera, the Royal Opera House, Phantom of the Opera and many other notable theatres and companies. However, when Ian fell from favour he found himself busking in Covent Garden flower market and singing in restaurants. From the lowly echelons of street entertainment Ian started a company called ‘Opera on the Run’, in which he was to become Bodget, the singing waiter from Eastern Europe.

As well as performing, Ian Bloomfield, has co-written and written several successful theatre shows including, The Perfect Picnic, Men Behaving Classically and A Comedy of Arias. The latter won the Best of the Fringe at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2004. In 2024 Ian wrote a show based on the book Sing for your Supper! which was a sell-out at The Tabard Theatre in Chiswick, London.

Sing for your Supper! takes a look behind the scenes at the parties and events where the rich and the famous hedonistically celebrate their wealth and good fortune but it also takes a peep at the poor, the sick and the dying as they cope with the struggle of their lives and honour those lives, with a song.

Ian explains: “It never occurred to me that my professional life as a singing waiter was unusual until everything was brought to a halt during lockdown. In the unnerving silence that followed I started to reflect on my extraordinary career that had paid the rent for the last forty years. I had sung for the famous, the wealthy and one or two princesses who all liked to throw a party and not necessarily in view of the public, leading shareholders of petroleum companies, prize winning laureates, chartered accountants, politicians and ageing film stars all of whom flaunted and flirted, laughed and languished as I wandered around the tables cleverly disguised as ‘Bodget’ the singing waiter. But it wasn’t just the wealthy and the privileged that liked a serenade. Hen parties, stag nights, wakes, funerals and retirement homes all wanted this unique entertainment. I performed all over the UK and throughout Europe, in palaces and in hospitals, for the rich and for the poor, for the sick and the dying, singing great songs, pouring the best wine and making people laugh.”

RELEASE DATE: 28/02/2025 ISBN: 9781836281443 Price: £10.99