MARC ALMOND - ALMOND CREDITS BROKEN MICROPHONE WITH CAREER COMEBACK

British musician MARC ALMOND was frightened to get back on stage after his near-fatal motorcycle accident in 2004 - but has thanked a microphone malfunction for his successful comeback. The former SOFT CELL star insists his first gig since the incident - in London in May 2007 - was nerve-wracking, but faulty equipment made sure things could only get better. He tells London's Time Out, "Since the accident I've found I have very bad stage fright. It's not just nerves. I've always had nerves. I've always been a very erratic performer. I know I'm capable of being really terrible - some nights I can be great and terrible at the same time. "But nowadays just the thought of going on stage fills me with dread. I can't memorise songs... On the opening night at Wilton's I stepped on to the stage, opened my mouth and the microphone wasn't working. In a way, it was the best thing that could have happened. I thought, 'Nothing could get worse than this.'"