Will Young has felt "ashamed" of being single.
The 44-year-old pop singer stars in a new production of 'Song from Far Away', a one-man play by Simon Stephens, and Will admits that he can relate to his character, who develops a crush on a waiter who showed him kindness once.
Will - who came out as gay in 2002 - explained to the Guardian newspaper: "I can relate to a lot of that.
"I’ve been mostly single throughout my life. I don’t feel it now, but there was a time when I was quite ashamed of it. Relatives pityingly asking … ‘Anyone?’ Because of past experiences - abuse at boarding school - I find relationships triggering.
"I don’t feel damaged, but it was damaging. I don’t know if I can trust someone to do that with."
Will plans to take a prolonged break from the music business this year, and the 'Anything Is Possible' hitmaker is happy to distance himself from the industry.
He said: "To be honest, I don’t love the industry. After all this time I still don’t know if it works for me."
Will actually finds acting to be less stressful than making music.
The chart-topping star thinks musicians are under more pressure to create a "brand" for themselves.
Will - who shot to fame on the TV show 'Pop Idol' in 2002 - explained: "What the audience thinks of me doesn’t matter. I’m not selling myself but someone else.
"Music is different. There’s pressure to be a brand. I’m even locked out of my social media because I just get drunk and slag people off. As an actor, I don’t need that presence."
