‘I do believe in life after love, I really do’: Cher on men, Madonna and Mamma Mia! – in 12 Attitude quotes

Oh, how we love Cherilyn Sarkisian La Pierre – or as she’s mononymously known, Cher. And how she loves us, the gays, right back!

To celebrate 30 years of Attitude, we’re revisiting our archive, and looking at our exclusive interviews with the ‘Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves singer, one thing is clear: she’s one of our biggest allies.

“Since the beginning, there’s been an agreement – nobody actually gave a ring, but there’s always been an agreement,” the 77-year-old told us of her queer fans in 2018. “We’ve just always known about each other. We’ve always had this pact, this secret pact. No one’s ever said, ‘There’s going to be a pact’. There just always was. I don’t know it started. Maybe with the dresses.”

Here are 11 more quotes from the two-time Attitude cover star and showbiz survivor (she’s one award shy of EGOT status!) on everything from her son Chaz’s transition to her iconic 80s Oscars outfit to the time she lived, quite improbably, in London’s Wapping.

Cher on the video for ‘If I Could Turn Back Time’

“We shot it for like three days and at the last minute decided to do that part with the sailors. There was a whole storyline – I was in a carriage with a horse with a big cape and I was in a speedboat – and when we shot the actual performance piece they threw the rest of the stuff and kept that.” (January 2002)

Cher on romance

“I haven’t had many loves but they have all been intense and I wouldn’t have missed any of them for the world. If you stay with one person then you can’t have other experiences. I’ve had the luxury of having great men in my life. All completely different. Some known about, some not known about, but all great.” (November 2013)

Cher on Madonna

“The truth is when I first met Madonna I liked her but I thought she was really rude. Then someone said to me once on TV: ‘What do you think of Madonna?’ and I was trying to think of what to say that would be polite or whatever and I said: ‘I think she’s kind of a c**t.’ And it was all over everywhere. I remember my manager was hitting his head against the wall. But we’ve hung out together since then and I think that Madonna is not under the impression at all that she can’t be a bitch, that’s the truth and she can be … I don’t know why I said it though. It’s something you’d never say even if it was true.” (January 2002)

Cher on her look in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again

“Make-up. Five pounds of make-up. Also, the director really liked me, and I think he took extra special care to light me. That has a lot to do with it. He was wonderful. I didn’t really see the whole movie because I’m not quite ready. And I will see it at some point.” (October 2018)

Cher on whether she believes in life after love

“People have asked me that a lot and yes, it seems silly, but I really do.” (January 2002)

Cher on her son’s Chaz’s transition

“The day we really talked about it seriously, I said – if you have to do this then you really have to do it. The way I always explain it, if I woke up in a man’s body, I’d think – ‘Oh my god, I have to get out’ and that is how Chaz felt.” (November 2013)

Cher on fame

“I used to be able to do what I wanted, but now everybody has got a fucking iPhone, and everything goes all over the Internet. I used to be able to ride my motorcycle with my friends all the time and now I can’t. And I can’t go to Disneyland, I can’t go dancing – I miss being able to go to clubs, so much.” (November 2013)

Cher on her ‘fuck you’ outfit at the 1986 Oscars

“It was the year I didn’t get nominated for Mask, that’s when I wore the crazy outfit. And that was a fuck you. They said I wasn’t nominated because I wasn’t serious. I didn’t dress properly, my boyfriends were too young… this whole list of things and I just thought, this is ridiculous. You’re not being judged on lifestyle, you’re being judged on performance. … It was made really well. All cashmere and hand beaded, that feather head dress – Bob [Mackie] did an incredible job.” (January 2002)

Cher on Wapping

“It’s grrrreat! I lived in a rum factory. A rum warehouse. When you walked in there was this gigantic barrel of rum. I was happy there. This disco boat used to come and play under my window. It went up and down the Thames and people were dancing and they played music, and they knew where I lived so they would come down and circle around and let me hear the music. And I would dance.” (November 2013)

Cher on her talent

“I still think I’m not a great singer. I’m a better performer. It’s better to watch me sing, than hear me sing. I have a distinctive voice, but it’s not a great voice.” (January 2002)

Cher on her passport having only one name

“I went to court and petitioned to have one name. They get a lot of people come in – kinda like a jury – and they ask them, ‘would you know who this person was if you just heard the word Cher?’ So, they all said yes, of course.” (January 2002)

Cher on when she was happiest

“I think between 1986 and 1988. That was my happiest time – my children were both little and still at home … and I did one movie after another and then I did an album and then I won the Academy Award and it was like just a really great time. I had a really nice boyfriend that I liked and I loved New York. Everything was perfect. Everything doesn’t always line up to be perfect. It was really busy and really fulfilling.” (January 2002)