Pop fans are celebrating the news that Girls Aloud will reunite for a huge UK and Ireland tour in 2024... even as the group confirm they will not be releasing new music.
Tabloid media reports ahead of the official reunion news had claimed that surviving members Nadine Coyle, Cheryl, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh were back in the studio and had filmed a music video that would pay tribute to their late bandmate, Sarah Harding, who died of breast cancer in 2021.
However, following their announcement of a string of shows taking place next year, the group have debunked those rumours while promising “wild things” for their first tour in over a decade.
“We've been known for that, like the many tours that we've done, where we've flown over, landed on another stage and then flown back,” Coyle told BBC Radio 2’s The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show.
“Or on one of the tours, we got under the B stage and then ran through the arena backwards to get to the dresser. I mean, we really are gluttons for punishment, but we're all about the entertainment.”
When the bandmates were asked about the tour bringing new music, they all replied: “No.”
The group’s publicist, Simon Jones, also debunked the reports, sharing a statement on Instagram that said: “Girls Aloud will not be releasing any new music around the tour. The band haven’t recorded any new songs or filmed any music videos.
“The tour will be a celebration of Girls Aloud’s rich back catalogue and all the ground-breaking success they have achieved as a band.”
However, they didn’t rule out a performance at Glastonbury Festival, which has yet to unveil its lineup for the 2024 edition.
Girls Aloud’s first single, “Sound of the Underground”, spent four consecutive weeks at No 1 upon its release and was followed by a further 19 top 10 singles. They won the Brit Award for Best Single in 2009, for their No 1 hit “The Promise”.
The pop girl group first formed after its members appeared as individual contestants on the ITV talent show Popstars: The Rivals in 2002, splitting in 2013 following a greatest hits tour.
Cheryl said that their original crew has returned to help them with the tour, which will kick off on 18 May in Dublin.
“You have that huge massive element of her not being here,” Coyle said of Harding, while Cheryl acknowledged the tour was “never going to be the same” without her.
“We're (going to) do our very best to keep it magical and keep her magic alive,” she said. “(She is) very much a part of the show... she was part of our make-up for 20 years and that's not going anywhere. She'll be there in spirit on the stage. We're going to celebrate her.”
Cheryl also said being able to raise money for breast cancer charities was also a “very proud” moment for the band.
Last year, Girls Aloud hosted a charity gala to raise funds for the Christie NHS Foundation Trust and Cancer Research UK as part of the Sarah Harding Breast Cancer Appeal, and a 5k charity run, titled Race For Life For Sarah.
A pre-sale will begin on 29 November at 9am, while the general sale will begin at 9am on 1 December.
The full tour dates are as follows:
- Sat 18 May - 3Arena Dublin
- Mon 20 May - SSE Arena Belfast
- Thurs 23 and Fri 24 May - Manchester AO Arena
- Mon 27 May - Cardiff Utilita Arena
- Fri 31 May & Sat 1 June - Newcastle Utilita Arena
- Tues 4 June - Aberdeen P&J Live
- Sat 8 June - Glasgow OVO Hydro
- Weds 12 June - Nottingham Motorpoint Arena
- Sat 15 June - Leeds First Direct Arena
- Tues 18 June - Birmingham Resorts World Arena
- Sat 22 and Sun 23 June - London The O2
- Sat 29 June - Liverpool M&S Bank Arena
