Rufus Wainwright interview: Opening Night (The Times)

The Grammy-nominated musician on family politics, Taylor Swift and how grief inspired his new musical Opening Night starring Sheridan Smith

When Rufus Wainwright turned 50 last July he panicked. “It was harrowing,” he says. “Overnight, I felt more conscious about the possibility of death taking over. I thought, ‘Oh my God, that pain in my leg is probably going to kill me.’” He prods it now, through navy skinny jeans, to check. “But I’m excited for once I’m through my fifties and I’m in my ‘f*** it’ era.”