Elland Road, Leeds, in the summer of 1992, and Rowetta is singing Step On and the very naughty Bob's Yer Uncle with the Happy Mondays at the height of the Madchester rave scene.

City centre, York, on January 21, 2008, and Rowetta has just been photographed outside the Minster in a nun's habit to publicise a new touring show, The Songs Of Sister Act.

"They said we couldn't go in the Minster, so it was all done outside, which was fine as no one saw us, " says the louder-than-life Manchester singer, still dressed in her habit in the bar at the Grand Opera House, where the musical opens its short tour tonight.

The X-Factor star from the other side of the Pennines feels at home in York.

"My aunty Elaine and uncle Alan live in the city, so I used to spend my summer holidays here. They used to get me walking the walls every week, but I'm scared of heights, so that was a bit of a nightmare, " she says.

"When I was little I used to go to the Minster, too. I remember my mum would have a break and send me over here or she'd come with me as it was like a holiday coming to York, and we'd always be here for Bonfire Night as that was always a great display."

Despite her many visits to York, Rowetta has never performed in the city.

"I've played in Leeds a lot on my own and with the Mondays, but this is the first time I've been able to ask my aunt and uncle and three cousins, Stephen, Tony and David - who are all about the same age as me - to come to a show in York.

"One of their daughters, Sarah, is a massive fan of mine from The X-Factor, so she'll probably want to be involved, which would be lovely."

The X-Factor brought Rowetta renewed attention, having already made her name singing with both Simply Red and Happy Mondays.

"I was known, yes, but not to the millions who watch The X-Factor, " she says.

"But it's ridiculous that someone like Leona, a genuine star, couldn't get a record deal until she did a show like that. I was older and I did the show for my own reasons, because I loved Simon Cowell on American Idol and I wanted him to say I could sing.

"I remember wanting to sing an Oasis song, Stop Crying Your Heart Out, and he said 'No way'. He thought, 'No, you're singing for an older audience, a gay audience, Over The Rainbow and Dusty Springfield songs'. That's fine, because he was my mentor, but I still wanted to do that Oasis song, which I thought would have crossed over and I wouldn't have done it like Oasis."

Rowetta had entered The X-Factor partly because it was the show's first series and she anticipated it would be an open playing field.

"I thought, 'Why not enter? It's a talent show. But it's not, it's an entertainment show, but I didn't mind being a puppet because though you're a puppet I also learnt there's no limit to what I can sing. I would never have touched Over The Rainbow or Dusty or Donna Summer before that."

Rowetta had always written songs and worked with assorted producers, but she put music on the back burner while assisting her mother in looking after her deaf uncle Michael after his wife died, and he too did not have long to live.

Then at 38, she came to a crossroads.

"I didn't know what I wanted to do next, make an album, sing with a band, but I just wanted to be enthusiastic about anything, so I thought, 'What do I want to do?'. My kids were growing up; my daughter is at university, my son works in a shop."

The X-Factor duly gave Rowetta a new spark and she has since released a selftitled album for Gut Records.

"I wrote three songs for it, but it was for the X-Factor market, as they really wanted Jane McDonald Mark Two and that's not me, but when you're 38 you take the deal and bring out a record as it's better to do that than not, " she says.

Rowetta has been working on house tracks with dance producers; writing "proper songs" in Kilkenny, Ireland; and presenting shows on the Gaydio station in Manchester after becoming "a bit of a gay icon" on The X-Factor.

She turned down playing Mama Morton in Chicago, but has done the Best Of Broadway show for one night only at the Palace in Manchester, and Christmas On Broadway at the 02 Arena, with Marti Webb and Boyzone's Stephen Gately.

She also sang for half an hour at Jordan and Peter Andre's wedding party, where the girls from Liberty X and Girls Aloud were the bridesmaids.

"Jordan wanted Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston and Celine Dion songs, but I only did I Will Always Love You. I sang Randy Crawford, Donna Summer, River Deep Mountain High and Soul2Soul's Back To Life instead, " says Rowetta.

Last year, producer Daniel Wood asked Rowetta if she would be interested in doing a show called O Happy Day with plenty of Motown songs. "Then he said, 'How about songs from the Sister Act films, dressed as a nun?', which I love.

Fantastic. I'm Jewish, Whoopi Goldberg is Jewish, so that's cool."

Rowetta was even happier when she found she would be performing the tendate tour alongside Shela Ferguson - "everyone loves The Three Degrees, don't they?" - and the London Community Gospel Choir.

What would the Happy Mondays' Shaun Ryder make of Rowetta in a nun's habit in York tonight?

"It would probably turn him on, but me and Shaun have fallen out, " she says, going on to recall the fateful ferry journey to Ireland in 2000 when, high on crack, Ryder called her a "nigger" and, after she reacted, knocked her out.

"Some people can handle drugs better than others, " she says. "He's never spoken to me since, he's never said sorry.

When I saw him at Tony Wilson's funeral, I couldn't look at him. I still speak to all the others; I'm great mates with Bez and sing in his band Domino Bones, but sometimes you have to move on."

Just as she did when, as a young mother with two children, she sought refuge from a violent marriage in a home for battered wives, a journey that led her to the Hacienda club and her days with the Happy Mondays.

"I'm very proud of what I did with the Mondays, and when Tony chose the music for his funeral, he chose Bob's Yer Uncle as the final song, which was just beautiful. I loved Tony, " she says.

Rowetta's life has been a rollercoaster, and after the Happy Mondays, The XFactor and The Songs Of Sister Act, who knows where it will lead next.

  • The Songs Of Sister Act, Grand Opera House, York, tonight, 7.30pm. Tickets: £18.50 on 0870 606 3595.