James Arthur Parents: Meet Shirley Ashworth, Neil Arthur

James Arthur is an English singer and songwriter. He rose to fame after winning the ninth series of The X Factor in 2012.

His debut single, a cover of Shontelle’s “Impossible”, was released by Syco Music after the final, and debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart.

Since then, it has gone on to sell over 2.5 million copies worldwide, making it the most successful winner’s single in the show’s history.

James Arthur Parents: Meet Shirley Ashworth, Neil Arthur

Shirley Ashworth and Neil Arthur are the parents of James Arthur.

James’ father Neil was a delivery driver but also used to be a DJ and drummer for many years, while his mother Shirley was a fashion model and later a sales and marketing professional.

James’ dad and mother split up when he was two years old, and they each settled with new partners: when Arthur was three, Shirley got together with Ronnie Rafferty, a computer engineer, and Neil later married another woman; together they had James’ half-sister.