I’M convinced I should have been born in 1918 – but I do love technology so I suppose I get the best of both worlds,” laughs singer and burlesque dancer Lili La Scala.

Lili sits at our cafe table, pretty and petite in vintage attire, sipping a fruit smoothie in the bright sunshine.

In her full Forties get-up: Red lips, pale skin, red hair and beauty spot in place, it’s hard not to be a little in awe of her.

And it’s not just me. During our chat, I notice a woman at the table opposite, looking over at Lili. It’s only when we get up to leave we discover she had been sketching a cute cartoon version of Lili on her iPad (see below).

As Lili speaks, her easy manner and sense of humour gives me a glimpse of the fun-loving girl behind the make up.

Lili has been receiving increasing recognition for her wartime-themed shows. Having started out in 2004, she has performed all over the world and taken three shows to the Edinburgh Festival.

I met Lili at the Barlow and Fields cafe, in Leigh , to find out why the trained opera singer decided to veer into burlesque.

The former Southend High School for Girls pupil tells me she was a ‘precocious teen who was desperate to fit in” and found being a teenager hard. “I wasn’t like everyone else,” she says.

“I only listened to opera music, and didn’t know any pop stars so I instantly stood out.

“When you’re a kid, being different is awful and you only realise later that being different is pretty cool.”

Lili, now 30, later went to the Deanes School in Thundersley before studying A Levels at a boarding school in Leicestershire.

She had an obsession with old Hollywood glamour and would pore over old films.

“My great aunt, Freda Webster, and I would sit in and watch the King and I over and over again until the VHS tape ran out. “She was very glamorous, and a big influence on me.

“I was never a tom boy, I was always really girly and loved dressing up and being a princess. I always treasured old things, and my great aunt left me her wedding hat from 1939 in her will when she passed away in 2009 and I have my great grandmother Hilda Keddie’s fur coat.

Lili was born Felicity Redman to a middle-class family in Westcliff . Her great grandfather, Frederick Keddie, was one of three brothers who set up the Keddies department store, in Southend.

“I was always fascinated by the family photos of relatives on foreign holidays and receipts of all the presents my grandfather used to by my grandmother – she was utterly spoilt.”

Having got into opera singing early in life, Lili was inspired by composers Irving Berlin and Cole Porter, as well as legends like Gracie Fields, Vera Lynn and even George Formby.

But, from the outset, Lili was very determined she would become an opera singer. She says: “I had singing lessons from seven and it was clear I was going to go into classical music. “My voice was not necessarily the loudest or most powerful, but it was very clear.

“I was desperate at that point to succeed and it was my ambition to be an opera singer.”

Lili went to the Junior Guidhall at 14 and then the Guildhall School of Music and Drama at 19.

“I didn’t fit into the very defined idea of what an opera singer should be,” she admits. “No one told me to maybe pursue other options – like musical theatre or cabaret – I was just sort of ignored.

“I was even told at one point I could not sing in tune – which is rubbish, because I can.

“It made me lose my confidence and I began to develop stage fright.”

Aged 22 Lili, who still lives in Westcliff, started busking in Trafalgar Square as the character Lili La Scala.

“I created the character. The name came from Lilli from Kiss me Kate and La Scala the famous opera house in Milan.

“Being Lili on stage allowed me to leave all my baggage behind and the stage fright stopped. I also found solace with all the other street performer misfits and finally found that I fitted in for the first time.”

The burlesque part of her show emerged in 2007. when a friend ask her to incorporate it into her act for a cabaret night.

“I didn’t know what I was doing, but cobbled a routine together along with the opera singing and it went down a storm,” says Lili. “I decided that I liked that side of it, so it became part of my act.”

So how did her family feel about her burlesque dancing?

“Whichever way you look at it is stripping,” laughs Lili. “And I am OK with that. I don’t necessarily talk about it in detail with my parents, but they are understanding. “Burlesque is an art form, and there is an element of tease to it. In recent years, the burlesque has taken a back seat to the singing.”

Lili certainly looks like a pin up girl with her perfect features and tiny figure – according to Lili her waist is 25 inches and an astounding 18 inches in a corset.

She say: “People often ask if I feel different when I get ready for a show and dress up, but actually all of my clothes are vintage, so it isn’t ‘dressing up’ for me.

“I would say my favourite are clothes from the Forties and Fifties. They are cut for women and make you feel great and very feminine. “I also love Thirties evening gowns, but they aren’t that wearable during the day!”

Continuing the Forties theme, in 2010 she created the show War Notes which featured a repertoire of lesser known Second World War songs, interspersed with actors reading out last letters home from deceased war veterans in Afghanistan.

Talking about the show, Lili’s big blue eyes began to well up with tears. “One woman who came to see me after a show, her husband had been a Spitfire pilot who had survived 206 missions,” says Lili. “She burst into tears talking about it and it seemed as though she hadn’t spoken about it for a long time.

“The letters sent home from Afghanistan had just the same sentiment as in the old wartime songs.”

Lili followed up War Notes with the light-hearted Songs to Make You Smile, and this year she is preparing for the cheekily-titled Another F***ing Variety Show.

It will feature Lili and a variety of acts, including her husband the comic Sam Wills, otherwise known as the Boy With Tape on His Face.

She says: “I sent out an e-mail to all the performers I know and love, and they all said they wanted to be part of it. “There will be a hula hoop performer, a sword swallower and fantastic comedy acts.

“I usually do the shows on my own, but to is nice to organise a show and be surrounded by all of my good friends. It’s going to be so much fun.”

Visit lililascala.com for details.