Aussie Fan Saves André Rieu

CLASSICAL Music Superstar André Rieu Credits an Australian Fan For Helping To Save His Career.

Adelaide Now: In September, André was struck down with a debilitating infection of the vestibular nerve, which affected his balance. Unable even to stand unassisted, he was forced to postpone his Australian tour. While he followed doctors' orders and rested for three months, he also started doing exercises that were suggested to him in a letter from Perth man Bill Henshall.

"The doctor came to me and said 'This virus, there's no pill, no medication. There's only one thing. You have to rest and wait 'til it's gone'. And I did that," André says. Amid the influx of letters, emails, cakes, bottles of wine, pictures, stones and sculptures sent in by fans, the musician found a letter from Australia.

"There was a very kind letter from Perth," André says. "They wrote me 'André, I had the same thing and the doctor didn't give me pills, but he gave me exercises to come back and balance'."My recovery was due to the rest, of course, but also the exercises from Perth."Mr Henshall, 68, suffered from vertigo a few years ago and found the exercises worked wonders. So he sat down at his computer and wrote Andre a letter. "The motivation was purely and simply, if it was going to work for him, everyone was going to be the beneficiary of it." Bill says, "He gives so much joy, so much enjoyment to so many people. "He addressed the letter to "Andre Rieu, Maastricht, the Netherlands". "That's it. That's all that was on the letterhead. I'm tickled pink that he got it . . . I'm so pleased it helped him," he said.

André has now rescheduled his Australian tour, starting in Adelaide at the Entertainment Centre on May 3. And he hints he will invite Bill and his wife, Anna, to one of his concerts. "I'm really, really very grateful to these people in Perth," he says.

Photo by Al Girard taken in Vancouver