Dorset-based writer, Stuart Fretwell is keeping his fingers crossed for 'T.V. hopeful' Ed Hintze who is appearing as 'Elton John' in BBC. 1's Staurday-night talent show, "The One And Only", which reaches its fourth round on February 2, 2008.

The show features a selection of musical tribute acts, each hoping to win-through to the final and scoop the first prize of performing at Las Vegas's prestigious "Legends" venue, famous for its stable of top-notch tribute acts. It's a 'vote-'em-out' type of show where viewers vote for their favourite performance each week and the artist or artists with the lowest vote have to leave. This week two hopefuls will have their Vegas dreams shattered!

A few weeks prior to his friend, Ed Hintze, joining the show Stuart handed-over a number of his own 'Elton John/Bernie Taupin' style lyrics for the Elton John 'soundalike' to work on. "Ed freely admits that lyrics are not his strong point," says Stuart, "and I can't play the piano. So it was a marriage made in heaven for the both of us. In fact I may even have had a hand in him deciding to apply for the show in the first place."

As well as teaching music part-time at Stuart's daughter, Sophie's, school, Ed also helps run a music shop three-days a week, as well as playing gigs at the weekend.

"He was delivering an electric piano we'd bought for our daughter, Sophie," continues Stuart, "when we got talking about our favourite artistes. It turned-out that we were both big fans of the Elton John/Bernie Taupin songwriting partnership. I mentioned that in 2004 I'd sent a song lyric to Sir Elton, at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, but that all I'd got for my trouble was a bad-tempered letter from his U.K. management's Chief Executive, Frank Presland, who wrote:

"Sir Elton has told us that he merely glanced at the sheet and saw that it contained lyrics and made no effort to read them. We now have to keep this correspondence on file against the day when you will no doubt claim that there is some similarity between your work and an Elton song."

"I was pretty taken-aback by the sheer rudeness of the letter," says Stuart, "but I do still keep a framed copy in the 'loo' where it always makes me smile. After all ... if they hadn't told me that Sir Elton had had my lyrics in his oh-so-talented hands in the first-place, I would never have believed that they had actually got through to him!"

"Anyway," continues Stuart, "Ed took our chance-meeting as a good omen and went ahead with his audition for the show. The rest is History!" Prior to his departure for London we had the chance to work together on my 2004 "Elton" song and I have to admit that it sounded pretty good. I really hoping that Ed continues to have success on the show and, who knows, I might one-day get to hear my song on CD , recorded by one-or-other of the talented 'Eltons'!"

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