OUTRAGEOUS popster Mika has revealed how the near-death of his sister helped inspire his new album.

The flamboyant singer, whose hits include Grace Kelly and Love Today, saw his older sibling Paloma fall 50ft from the fourth-floor balcony of her flat, impaling herself on railings, in October 2010.

Incredibly, Paloma, 30, has started to walk again after surgeons saved her leg from being amputated.

A tearful Mika, 29, told me: “My sister should have died but she’s a miracle of the NHS. I really believe in fate now. I think you have to fight, but also to surrender your fears into the hands of fate.

“You can lose everything in five seconds. It was a massive jolt and made me realise: ‘You’d f***ing better make the most of what’s in front of you.’ As soon as Paloma was stable, I ran away to make my record.”

Paloma’s accident happened at her housewarming party in Kensington, west London, on the night before their dad Michael’s 60th birthday.

Mika, who releases new single Celebrate on Sunday, said: “Paloma was having a cheeky cigarette, lost her balance and wasn’t strong enough to save herself.

Her neighbour held on to the railings for an hour, to ensure they didn’t fall into the basement. It was a total disaster, yet a weirdly positive event too.”

At the time Mika was suffering from writer’s block after splitting up with his boyfriend.

But Paloma’s recovery and falling in love again boosted him to make The Origin Of Love in Canada with producer Nick Littlemore, 34, of Pnau. It is out on October 8, Mika, real name Michael Penniman, enthused: “It’s an incredibly joyful record.

“It’s going to take time to catch on as it’s not apeing anything on the radio, but it smashes the current model of what pop songs should be.”

It’s a stunning album that Paloma should be really proud of.

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