Some would say it’s the luck of the Irish. He may have not even walked through the door yet, but rumour has it that Louis Walsh is tipped to win Celebrity Big Brother 2024. As excitement builds for the live launch of the show which starts on ITV on Monday March 4, betting experts Ladbrokes claim the Westlife and Girls Aloud manager is just 7/1 to go all the way and win the upcoming series before he’s even stepped onto the iconic entrance. But is he likely to keep tight-lipped about the bitter Girls Aloud feud or will he reveal all?
They may have since reformed for their 15-date reunion tour later this year but 10 years ago Girls Aloud band members Cheryl Tweedy, Nadine Coyle, Nicola Roberts, Kimberley Walsh and Sarah Harding were embroiled in a better feud. They made their name on ITV’s Popstars: The Rivals in 2002 when judge Louis Walsh put them together and enjoyed a decade of success with catchy tunes like Sound Of The Underground, Something Kind of Ooh and Love Machine. But it all went downhill with the members blaming each other for their very public fall out.
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In an emotional message on Twitter, the band said: “Dear Alouders, we just want to say from the bottom of our hearts Thank you!! This tour has been an amazing experience and the perfect chance to say thank you for being on this journey with us through a decade.
“It has far exceeded any of our dreams and we hope we are forever your inspiration and reminder that dreams really do glitter!! Your love and support will stay with us forever but we have now come to the end of our incredible time together. Love you lots.”
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When the band split up in 2013 it came as a shock to the nation as well as Northern Irish band member Nadine who told the Mirror she only found out minutes before going on stage for the final performance of the Ten: The Hits Tour. “I didn’t want the band to end, it was as simple as that,” she told The Mirror in 2014.
The following morning, Nadine took to Twitter to say: “You should know by now I had no part in any of this split business. I couldn’t stop them. I had the best time and want to keep going.” Not long after, Cheryl hit back, telling Attitude magazine that Nadine was “full of s***” and accused her of holding the band to ransom. “She wasn’t going to make another Girls Aloud record until she got a solo deal,” Cherly claimed. “I feel she held us to ransom and then made her solo record deal. It’s the truth. She’s saying that we broke the band up. So there you go.”
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When band member Sarah was diagnosed with breast cancer in early 2020, the girls put the feud behind them to support their friend. The Irish singer told OK! Magazine that the band has “a nice harmony going on now” after putting to bed their rift, saying: “When we see each other, it’s like we’ve stepped back in time. As if we’ve only seen each other yesterday. It’s such a tough time, but all of us have pulled together.”
On September 5, 2021, Sarah sadly passed away and the group vowed to keep her memory alive and held a gala evening. The Primrose Ball, in honour of Sarah, saw them raise over £1 million for The Sarah Harding Breast Cancer Appeal, a branch of The Christie Charitable Fund and the Girls Aloud reunion tour kicks off in Dublin in May 2024.
Their former manager, Louis Walsh hasn’t said too much about the feud but he has admitted he was “too busy” with Westlife to give them his attention. Speaking to Ladbrokes LIVE, the music manager went on to add: “But they did fantastic; they should have been a worldwide success really because their songs just worked anywhere, but they were only really successful in the UK.”
Celebrity Big Brother is on ITV tonight at 9pm.
