Sam Smith has opened up about his sexuality and his gender identity in a new interview.

Speaking to The Sunday Times, the English singer - who releases his second album 'The Thrill of It All' on November 3rd and plays Dublin's 3Arena next year - said that he "feels just as much woman as I am man."

He revealed that in his younger days, he had worn women's clothing. "I love a heel," he said. "I’ve got loads of heels at home… There was one moment in my life where I didn’t own a piece of male clothing, really. I would wear full make-up every day in school, eyelashes, leggings with Dr. Martens and huge fur coats, for 2.5 years."

He also spoke about the difference between his 2014 debut 'In the Lonely Hour', which he wrote when he was 19, and how his 'growth and confidence' had resulted in a different sound that shows "the gay guy I’ve become."

"Looking back on it, it was the fear of saying the wrong thing and offending," he said. "And I was 19 when I started writing the first album. I’d just moved to London from a village — I was literally the only gay in the village. I didn’t know what I wanted to say.”