S Club 7 announce comeback tour to mark 25 years

S Club 7 have announced they will reunite for a UK and Ireland tour this year, to mark their 25th anniversary.

The group had bubblegum pop hits like 1999 debut single Bring It All Back, as well as Reach and Don’t Stop Movin’.

All seven original members, including later solo star Rachel Stevens, will hit the road again together for the first time since 2015.

“After eight years it feels amazing to announce that we’re reuniting and performing together again,” they said.

“We’re so excited to bring the S Club party back to our fans across the country to celebrate 25 years of S Club 7,” their statement added.

“We can’t even believe it’s been so long. Music and friendship have always been at the core of everything that we’ve ever done.

“We hope everyone can join us for one big party.”

Originally created by former Spice Girls manager Simon Fuller in 1998, S Club 7 rose to fame by starring in their own BBC TV series, Miami 7 – a children’s sitcom based on the lives of the group who had moved to Miami in search of fame. The second series was titled LA 7 after they moved to – you guessed it – Los Angeles.

The Brit Award-winning group went on to have four UK number one singles, including the show’s theme Bring It All Back, and a chart-topping debut album.

They disbanded in 2003, but came back together in 2014 for the BBC’s Children In Need charity appeal, performing a medley of their best-loved tunes. They went on to release new music and tour the following year.

The group will open their 11-date 2023 tour at Liverpool’s M&S Bank Arena on 13 October, going on to perform in cities including Dublin, Glasgow and Newcastle, before ending their run at London’s O2 Arena on 28 October.

Tickets for the tour go on sale on Friday 17 February at 10:00 GMT.

Speaking after the announcement on The One Show, singer and dancer Bradley McIntosh said the tour would see them “bringing the late 90s/early noughties” fun nostalgic vibes.

“Our music is very positive and I think in today’s times you need a bit of positive, you need to be picking up so that’s what we’re here to do,” he said.

Stevens, who all but confirmed rumours of their re-emergence by attending Saturday’s Brit Awards with her old bandmates Tina Barrett and Jo O’Meara, added that it was “crazy” that a quarter of a century had passed since the group’s inception, promising they would all “sing our hearts out”.

The group agreed that it “felt like the right time” for them to reunite.

Rachel Stevens launched a solo music career soon after they first disbanded and had a hit with the song Sweet Dreams My LA Ex. She also competed on the TV shows Strictly Come Dancing – finishing runner-up in 2008 – and Dancing On Ice.

Hannah Spearritt became an actress, appearing in ITV’s Primeval, as well as having recurring roles in Casualty and EastEnders. She has also performed in stage shows such as One Man, Two Guvnors and The Armour. She recently told The Sun that she was hoping to open an holistic cafe in south London with her partner after struggling with accommodation issues and ill-health.

Jon Lee performed in West End shows such as Les Miserables and Jersey Boys. He released his debut album called Fallen Angel in 2012, and six years later featured on ITVBe’s Celebrity Dinner Date.

In 2008, Paul Cattermole, Bradley McIntosh and Jo O’Meara formed a spin-off group called S Club 3, later renamed S Club Allstars. Tina Barrett later joined the new band line-up in 2014, after she took a lengthy hiatus from her music career.

Elsewhere, Cattermole, who used to be in a relationship with bandmate Spearritt, appeared on a 2019 episode of First Dates Hotel in search of new love. He had originally left S Club 7 in 2002 to start a nu-metal band called Skua but they were never signed to a record label.

McIntosh joined MTV’s reality show Totally Boyband in 2006. He also has a link from his Instagram page to an online shopping website, selling bath and beauty products.

O’Meara, meanwhile, also went solo, releasing her debut album, Relentless in 2005. She appeared on the 2007 edition of Celebrity Big Brother, where, alongside Jade Goody and Danielle Lloyd she found herself embroiled in a racism row involving fellow competitor Shilpa Shetty.

She told the One Show she now felt “ready” to get back on stage after having undergone a series of back operations.