A Blackburn singer who appeared on ITV’s Starstruck says it is never too late to accomplish your dreams. 

Jackie Ansbro, 57, transformed into Kate Bush to perform a rendition of Running Up That Hill as part of a group performance.

The trio received a standing ovation from the judges and the audience, on the episode that was screened last month.

Each Saturday, superfans transform into their idol for a head-to-head performance, hosted by Olly Murs.

Four teams battle for a place in the final and the chance to win £50,000.

Although it was Frank Sinatra tribute singer Andrew that moved into the next round, Jackie said this is not the end for her.

She is now hoping to progress her music career.

Jackie, from Cherry Tree, graced the Italian charts in 1998 at number 11 - with her cover of Blondie’s 1980 hit single Rapture.

She said went on ITV’s Starstruck to inspire others.

She said: “The message that I'm trying to send out is to say that, no matter what age you are, just follow your dreams.

“I know Madonna has recently been saying that you get past a certain age, and you’re not always received as well, and that may be true to some extent.

“But I still think you should go out there, follow your dreams, and be the best that you can be.”

Jackie said she follows her mother Murial’s motto - 'work hard, say your prayers and do your best'.

Lancashire Telegraph:

Jackie has been singing since the age of 14.

She said it all started when she won the Pontins Junior Talent show award in 1979.

For the past 40 years, she’s performed all over the world.

In 1980 she performed on the ‘free and easy nights’ in a now non-existent Blackburn pub called The Three Pigeons, she later joined a band called Taxi which took her to Africa, and in 1990 she was in a pop rock band called Jupiter.

When Jackie’s parents’ health deteriorated later in life, she put everything on hold to care for them.

In her spare time, after her parents sadly died, Jackie began work on her Kate Bush tribute act.

She said: “It's very demanding being a full-time carer. So now that mum and dad have gone, I just thought, my family have grown up now, I’d pull back the Kate Bush tribute thing.”

Jackie’s sister told her to apply to Starstruck and with the help of Jackie’s daughter, she did.

Jackie said: “They don't really tell you that you're on the show, they just say you've got success at this stage, we'd like you to come back and sing again. And you've passed the next stage, passed the next stage.

“So, all the while you don't really know until the last six weeks as to whether you've actually achieved your end goal.

“Fortunately, I did pass, and I had a lot of pleasure working with the other two girls, Jane and Charlotte. They were lovely. They were a delight to work with.

“I really enjoyed Starstruck, I love the experience of being on stage. It was amazing.”

Jackie said originally the trio wanted to sing Wuthering Heights as they felt it could ‘show off their talents better’ but because of the chart success of Running Up That Hill from Netflix show Stranger Things, they performed that.

She said: “I ended up doing the lower notes and the middle part of the song and the other two girls, they did the high notes, but I would have really liked the opportunity to have gone wild, you know, and really done the high notes and the dance moves for Wuthering Heights.”

On last night's grand final of Starstruck, school teacher Abbie Edwards was been crowned the winner after performing as Adele.