Darius Campbell Danesh initially gained notoriety when he made an appearance on Popstars in 2001.
Since then, he has defied detractors and had a great career in both music and theatre.
Darius gained fame for his interpretation of Britney Spears’ Hit Me Baby One More Time on the ITV talent programme while wearing his iconic ponytail and goatee.
At the time, most people thought the performance was cringe-worthy.
While the ultimate winners of the competition went on to start Hear’Say and Liberty X, Darius didn’t give up on his dream of being a famous musician.
A year later, the Scottish singer made his Pop Idol debut with a fresh new appearance, and he sang his way to third place, behind winner Will Young and runner-up Gareth Gates.
After winning Pop Idol, Campbell Danesh declined Simon Cowell’s offer of a record contract and instead signed with the Rolling Stones and U2 producer Steve Lillywhite.
When his first song, Colorblind, was released in 2002, it immediately soared to the top of the charts and held that position for two weeks.
The singer eventually had five top 10 UK songs, and Dive In, his first album, was certified platinum.
He entered the inaugural season of ITV’s Popstar To Operastar competition after placing third on Pop Idol, and in a tight final, he defeated Bernie Nolan of the Nolan Sisters.
A few months after winning the ITV competition, in which Mexican-born tenor Rolando Villazon and Welsh vocalist Katherine Jenkins served as judges, he was given his first significant opera part when he was chosen to perform in a brand-new production of Carmen at London’s O2 Arena.
For a one-time performance that was the first opera ever at the location, Darius assumed the lead part of toreador Escamillo in the production.
He went on to have a prosperous theatre career, playing in shows like Guys and Dolls, Gone With the Wind, and more on the West End, as well as in Chicago for two runs as Billy Flynn.
When discussing his return to the role of Chicago’s cunning attorney Flynn in 2011, he said that he had modelled the character after his former mentor and Pop Idol judge Simon Cowell.
In the show, which is set in Chicago during the Prohibition, Campbell co-starred with America Ferrera from Ugly Betty. She said of Billy Flynn: “He’s the consummate businessman and a wonderful guy.
There’s a lot of Simon Cowell in Billy Flynn in terms of the way he approaches things, and I recognise that in terms of the character.”
He said that it was Cowell who first convinced him to accept the part in Chicago.
“I’m really appreciative for the experiences I’ve had and all the chances that it brought up,” he added, adding that he was honoured to call Simon Cowell a friend and have a meal with him.
He was a US resident who fell in love young with Canadian actress Natasha Henstridge, who starred in the sci-fi blockbuster Species.
The pair, who started dating in 2006, was hitched at the San Ysidro Ranch in Santa Barbara, California, in 2011, but they subsequently got divorced.
He earlier admitted to the Scottish Herald that their relationship “had its ups and downs.” We split up several times throughout the course of our 12-year relationship and sometimes spent six months apart.
For half of it, it was often a distance relationship. That was a wonderful yet difficult event in and of itself. Love makes you desire to be with the other person.
In his latter years, Darius entered the Hollywood industry as a co-executive producer of the 2016 horror movie Imperium with Daniel Radcliffe.
The musician made pals along the road and was photographed in June of this year with stars such as fellow Scot Gerard Butler.
He was seen taking a leisurely walk in Portofino, Italy, in 2019 with Rebel Wilson, an unexpected friend.
In his brief life, Darius experienced two near-death encounters, and he openly discussed how they affected him.
The musician spoke out about a vehicle collision in which he injured his neck in an interview with Hello! magazine in 2010.
The Scot was a passenger in a Porsche when it collided with a wall at 70 mph while on a sun vacation in Spain after slipping on oil.
Darius then had another health crisis in 2017 when, while making an advertisement for a charity water filter, he unintentionally drank some contaminated water from the Thames and fell into a dangerously close to death coma.
The Pop Idol celebrity visited Glasgow to celebrate his mother’s birthday. The filter he used in the advertisement turned revealed to be a fake.
He revealed to the Daily Record that he had cerebral oedema, a condition in which the brain grows larger than the skull. My father rescued me. He helped me find a hospital. They found the problem promptly.
After he fell into a coma, his mother Avril, who was receiving treatment at the time, stood watch at his bedside.
Born in Glasgow to an Iranian father and a Scottish mother, Campbell Danesh.
He was the oldest of three boys and went to Bearsden Primary School before attending the University of Edinburgh to study English literature and philosophy.
Darius Danesh achieved recognition under that name, but he subsequently decided to adopt his mother Avril Campbell’s maiden name after an emotional visit to his grandpa at a Paisley nursing home caused him to consider his Scottish ancestry.
After both of his parents were diagnosed with cancer and beat it, he started supporting cancer organisations like Cancer Research UK.