Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?
They were the questions Freddie Mercury impersonator Steve Larkins was pondering in the moments after he learnt he was a finalist in the prestigious Princess Cruises Entertainer of the Year Award.
The 59-year-old grew up in Dunedin, and during the 1970s he worked as a travel agent for the Government Tourist Bureau.
In 1977, he went on the road as a professional musician, eventually playing keyboard and being a back-up singer for bands including When the Cat's Away, Dave Dobbyn, Midge Marsden and Ardijah.
It was not until 2000, when he was performing at a concert in Darwin, that he discovered his ability to pull off a Freddie Mercury impersonation.
''I sang We Will Rock You - it was totally impromptu. I had these Billy Bob teeth that were a prop, and I just pranced around and sang: Buddy you're a boy make a big noise ...
''And everyone that was there, like Ray Columbus, [comedian] Mike King and Jordan Luck, from the Exponents, were all on their knees wetting themselves and saying 'You've got to do something with that'.
He started doing shows as Freddie Mercury in Auckland.
''I bought a leather jacket and some leather pants.
''Third or fourth song in, the pub was going wild and I inwardly thought: It cannot be this easy.''
Suddenly, with the costume and Freddie Mercury's moves, he became the great pretender, and the crowds loved it.
Mr Larkins said he had been doing his Mercury Rising show for 16 years now, the past eight on P&O, Celebrity, Caribbean and Princess cruise ships around the globe.
He recalled the feeling of surprise when he recently received a call from his boss in Los Angeles.
''I was thinking, 'Oh no, what's gone wrong? ... Am I going to be laid off?''
But the call was to say he was one of four finalists, from about 500 candidates, in the Princess Cruises Entertainer of the Year Award.
Mr Larkins left on Dawn Princess yesterday, headed for Los Angeles, where he and the other three finalists will board Ruby Princess and perform during a cruise to Mexico, before the winner is named.
Until then, he has his fingers crossed he will become champion of the world. If not, the show must go on, he said.
