I was never banned from singing anything for content, but rather for *style* ! My various teddy bears etc. all had particular characters and voices and I used to act out shows with them. All fine, until I was given a fluffy toy pekinese dog when I was about six. I called him Chow and I had him speaking and singing with a magnificent Chinese accent. He went everywhere with me, tucked under my arm. One of my greatest delights at the time was to annoy my parents by announcing "Chow is now going to sing" - the more his voice got on their nerves, the longer he would sing - until banned. Great fun ! A few years later, Gene Pitney got into the charts, and I remember my dad saying "That's Chow singing." Certainly did sound like him. Cilla Black, on occasion, also showed signs of that special Chow quality, too.

- jeanie