The singer on surviving a plane engine fire over the Atlantic, doing a gig in wartime Sarajevo, and a scary pair of lips.
Born in Nottinghamshire, Dickinson, 65, became lead singer of the band Iron Maiden in 1981. In 1982, The Number of the Beast became the first of their five albums to top the UK charts. In 2009, they won the best British live act Brit award and in 2011 they took the Grammy for best metal performance with their song El Dorado. This autumn Iron Maiden continue their 23rd world tour. Dickinson has released his seventh solo album, The Mandrake Project, and is currently touring Europe. He has three children and lives in London and Paris with his third wife. What is your greatest fear? Well, I’m not too happy about snakes. I also hate sand. It’s very inconvenient. What is your earliest memory? A pair of giant gelatinous red lips glistening with lipstick and smelling faintly of gin leaning over my pram. I’ve been told I was so scared by the sight that I peed straight into my auntie’s mouth in sheer terror.
Which quality about yourself do you dislike the most?
Delaying.
What uncomfortable situation have you been in?
I once puked in the shoes of Ian Gillan, the singer of Deep Purple, who is one of my vocal idols. He gave me a towel and sent me home in a taxi.
Apart from real estate, what is the most costly item you have purchased?
An eight-seat Cessna Golden Eagle plane. I completed two tours in the US and two in Europe in it, and I flew it both times across the Atlantic. After selling it, I was able to secure a position as an airline pilot where I was paid to fly, instead of the reverse.
Describe yourself in three words
Hairy quantum hobbit.
What makes you unhappy?
Anyone unable to change their beliefs or opinions in the face of new facts.
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
I am quite resigned to it. I always thought I was a fat, ugly kid, but looking at old photos I realise I was not too bad looking after all.
If you could bring something extinct back to life, what would you choose?
Integrity in public life.
What is your most unappealing habit?
I am untidy, I procrastinate, and I am reliably late.
What scares you about getting older?
I always work five years in advance – that way I am never surprised. Right now, for example, I am 70. Every year for the next five years will therefore be a cause for celebration.
What is the worst thing anyone’s said to you?
“What makes you think you are so special?”
Would you choose fame or anonymity?
Fame is a byproduct of my job, in much the same way that you could argue excrement is a byproduct of a Michelin-starred restaurant.
What was the best kiss of your life?
It happens to me every day.
What is the closest you’ve come to death?
I’ve been asleep at the wheel on the M11, had an engine fire over the Atlantic in a light aircraft, driven unprotected through an enemy firing zone to do a gig in wartime Sarajevo – the list goes on and on. But I did have stage 3 throat cancer and was cured by some fantastic UK medics.
What keeps you awake at night?
Runway 27R at Heathrow.
What happens when we die?
Death. If it’s happened already, I don’t remember it, but I must have been OK in a previous life because I didn’t come back as a prawn or, God forbid, a salmon in Scandinavia.
