Bickley man SEBASTIAN BATES turned his back on a promising career in music to take to the stage. His gamble seems to have paid off. He is currently appearing in Chekhov's Three Sisters alongside some of the best names in the business and he's loving it!

You are appearing in Chekhov's Three Sisters. How did you land that part?

My agent from drama school put me up for it. I had two rounds of auditions. The second one was with the director, Michael Blakemore. I think having music on my CV helped because my character has to play the guitar, piano and sing a bit. I lied a bit saying I could play guitar I can string a few cords together but not very well. I had to learn in just two weeks, which was a bit scary.

It must be daunting for a Bickley boy to be appearing with heavyweights of the screen and stage such as Kristin Scott Thomas, Douglas Hodge, Eric Sykes, James Fleet, Kate Burton and Robert Bathurst?

It was quite scary at first but they made me feel welcome and it is really nice backstage.

Do you get on with all the actors?

I'm not adverse to slagging people off but I have to say there is no one who is a pain. Everyone is lovely and I'm not just saying that.

What is Eric Sykes like?

He is such a sweet old man. He knows exactly what he is doing all the time and is aware of everything even though his sight isn't the best and he's pretty much deaf.

Who are your favourite actors?

It would have to be James Fleet and Kristin Scott Thomas.

You would say that.

I know I'm working with them but it is great to watch them rehearsing off the page and then taking it onto the stage.

Which character do you play?

Fedotik he is a second lieutenant in the army.

You were a musician before you became an actor, with an impressive track record: you studied at the Royal Academy of Music, were principal oboist with National Youth Orchestra, performed in front of royalty, appeared at Wigmore Hall, won the 1994 Royal Overseas League music competition, landed the Champagne Pommery Award as an 18-year-old (like Jacquelin du Pr) and won Listener's Choice in a Classic FM readers' poll. Why did you give it up?

By the time I was 18 I had won all those music awards and was on my way, in a sense, but when I got to university there were all these other options open to me and I got in to theatre.

Did you become disenchanted with music?

I still play quite a lot: it's just the hunger for it isn't there anymore. I don't want to rule it out completely but it is not where my main interest lies at this moment.

Were your parents disappointed when you gave up being a musician?

I don't think they were. My mum and dad were into theatre anyway and the drama took over gradually rather than a sudden shutting off. But if I can use the music skills I have in this slightly weird career then I'm not shutting the door completely on it.

So you were bitten by the acting bug at university.

Yes. We did the weekly rep thing. A play a week was pretty intense. We were rehearsing all day and playing all night, which was pretty hardcore but a good learning curve. We did eight plays in eight weeks. What I like about theatre is that it's more of a team effort, especially in an ensemble piece like Three Sisters because there aren't any parts bigger than the others. When you are together for five and six weeks you tend to bond more than being with an orchestra.

You didn't take one character's words into a different play by any chance?

No I didn't, but I once came onto the stage wearing socks when I was supposed to have bare feet in Neil Simon's play, Barefoot in the Park. I'm not sure if anyone noticed but I nearly died when I put my feet on the seat.

You did a BA in the History of Art at Cambridge the same course as Prince William.

Yes but he is doing his at St Andrews.

You had lunch with his mother, Princess Diana, too.

I did when I was about 13 or 14. Actually, being in the same room as Annabel Croft was more exciting because I was very much in love with her at the time, but Diana was lovely. She signed an autograph for my grandparents and offered me her chop because she couldn't eat hers.

You played Oscar Wilde's Dorian Grey in Vienna. How did that go?

It was great but hard work. It was a two-hour show and I was on stage most of the time. Being in Vienna was excellent. It's such a great city with so much going on.

You did a comedy series for Channel 5 called Ania Fran and Kettle of Fish. What was that about?

It was great fun to make but a load of rubbish really and terribly unfunny. It was even rubbish by Channel 5 standards.

You have done a lot considering you are so young.

I have been lucky but Three Sisters is by far the best thing I have done. Acting is a struggle and there are long periods of temping and taking on jobs you'd rather shoot yourself than have to do. But as long as jobs like this come along every now and again it keeps you happy I suppose.

You prefer the company of thespians to musicians?

I think musicians tend to be more cynical in some ways because you know you can play your instrument and you're going into play Mozart for the millionth time and be quite bored by it. They are very inward-looking as well and spend about five hours a day playing by themselves. Actors can't act by themselves, they have to be with someone else. But saying that, actors are sometimes a bit insecure, outward and annoying but generally there is a more interesting mix.

Now you're a big West End star living in the centre of town do you still read the News Shopper?

Of course I do when I'm at home. I have to keep in touch with my roots you know.

What are you doing after Three Sisters?

I don't know. There's the possibility I won't work again.

What do you want to do next?

I wouldn't mind having a go at film but I'll just have to wait and see what turns up.

You can see Sebastian Bates in Three Sisters at the Playhouse Theatre, Northumberland Avenue, London, WC2, for a limited run. £8-£40, 020 7369 1785