Girls Aloud will release a new edition of their hit charity single I’ll Stand By You in honour of their late bandmate Sarah Harding for BBC Children In Need.
The new “Sarah’s Version” will feature the late singer on lead vocals throughout using clips from the original recording sessions discovered when the group pulled archive material together for their reunion tour earlier this year.
The tour was dedicated to Harding, who was diagnosed with cancer and died in September 2021 aged 39.
A version of the new song was on the tour track list and hailed as “emotional moment” for all by the girl group – which consists of Nadine Coyle, Cheryl, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh.
A newly produced studio version will be released on November 15 as a new charity single in support of BBC Children In Need, 20 years after they first covered the song for the charity.
The track was first played on Zoe Ball’s breakfast show on BBC Radio 2 on Wednesday with Coyle introducing it in a pre-recorded message.
The Derry-born singer said: “It really is a special celebration of Sarah and also Girls Aloud involvement with Children In Need over the years.”
A new edit of the original video featuring unseen archive footage will also be released during the BBC Children in Need Appeal Show on November 15.
The girl group first released their cover of I’ll Stand By You in 2004 as the charity single for BBC Children in Need, reaching number one in the UK singles chart.
The song was originally a single for The Pretenders, written by Chrissie Hynde, Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly.
Discussing the new version, Hynde said: “How wonderful to hear I’ll Stand By You with the lovely vocals of Sarah Harding leading the way for BBC Children in Need. Happy Christmas all!”
Proceeds from the single will go towards Children In Need projects which funds family centres, community spaces, youth clubs and refuges, homeless shelters, hospices and helplines across the UK.
The singers won Popstars: The Rivals in 2002 and formed Girls Aloud, going on to achieve four UK number one singles and a Brit award for track The Promise.
They reunited with new music for their 10th anniversary in 2012, while a second reunion was planned for their 20th anniversary when Harding was diagnosed with cancer.
Following Harding’s death, Girls Aloud have raised more than £1 million for breast cancer charities through various initiatives.
Earlier this year, the girl group reunited to tour across the UK and Ireland, performing hit tracks from their back catalogue including Love Machine, Sound Of The Underground and The Promise.
A one-hour special, titled The Girls Aloud Show: Live At The O2, will air later this autumn on ITV1 and the full extended arena show will be available to stream on ITVX.
I’ll Stand By You (Sarah’s Version) will be available to download from November 15 in support of Children in Need.
