The Big Reunion - 26th February 2013

So Take That did this little documentary about their time together, which ended leading to a stadium tour, which led to them officially reforming and becoming even bigger than the first time around!

Steps then did a mini series, aired all their dirty laundry and patched up their differences and had a hugely successful arena tour and released a new album!

The Big Reunion took it one step further......

They brought back not one, not two but SIX massive pop acts from the late 90's and early 00's!

The bands were:

• 5ive
• Liberty X
• 911
• Atomic Kitten
• B*Witched
• The Honeyz

The series followed each band through reminiscing about the old days, meeting up and patching up their differences and rehearsing for a one off show at the Hammersmith Apollo. The series has been more successful than I think anyone anticipated and it has led to a full arena tour in May and an additional appearance by Blue at the first show.

I originally missed out on a ticket but was lucky to be able to buy one on Ebay. My friend, Octavia, also managed to buy a ticket as well and amazingly the seats were next to each other despite being sold by two different people! 

View from Block 5, Row X

Arriving at the Hammersmith Apollo about 45 minutes, I was amazed by just how relaxed everything was but yet not surprised that there were no screaming teenagers! Our seats were up in the circle, in row X with bright blue lights shining down to the stage directly behind us! Will not complain about it though as it meant I did not need the flash on my camera! I have to admit I was worried that the view would not be too good but it felt like sitting at the back of Block 112 at the O2 Arena. Though once the show began and everyone stood, I did spend a good part of the show up on my tippy toes, for my feet are suffering for today!

The show was introduced by Andi Peters (who has been doing the voiceovers for the programme) and with that it began! I had expected it for the bands to get 15-20 minute slots in which to do their stuff but instead the bands each came on and performed three mini sets and I have to say it worked better. It did feel slow during the changeovers but I think this will work for the TV due to the little video clips used.

5ive

Opening the show was 5ive or as Abz wants to call them, 4our! Exploding out onto the stage with We Will Rock You, which got the crowd going wild and joining in with the hand movements! It was then straight into Everybody Get Up, with the crowd joining in with the dance moves! On their return to the stage, they performed Keep On Moving, which admittedly I hate due to how much it was played when it originally came out, but the crowd loved it! The vocals were rearranged for this track due to J refusing to partake in the reunion. Their final time on stage saw them performing If Ya Getting Down and still the crowds loved it going crazy! The boys were fantastic onstage together and without J. They were all finally given the chance to show their strong vocals as individuals and as a group! And quite honestly, I completely forgot about J not being there until Octavia mentioned it to me at the end of the show! So if 5ive choose to carry on, there is need for a 5th member, cos they are strong enough as 4!

B*Witched

Raining glitter!

Second on stage were B*Witched. Looking absolutely in stunning, still wearing the denim, but not the double denim and throwing out the trainers for stilletos. Their first performance was C'est Le Vie which included their famous Irish Dancing. Yes, they did it in heels!!! Their second performance was of their follow song Rollercoaster. Energetic as always! Their final performance was with their last number 1 hit, Blame it on the Weatherman, my favourite of their hits! Gracing the stage with umbrellas, the stage rained with beautiful glitter towards the end of the performance! One of the best part of their performance was the breaking up of the lead vocals. This was something that has been noted in the programme as something the girls have had to suffer to being reduced to backing singers, so I am glad to see it rectify and hopefully to continue if the girls decide to give the band another go after the tour.

911 were up next and it was like they never went away! They started with Bodyshakin' still doing all the flips and energetic dance moves! The next performance was A Little Bit More where the lead vocals were shared giving Jimmy the chance to shine like he had always wanted. It was great to be able to hear him sing and prove he was not just a back up dancer! Their final performance was More than a Woman. The fact that these guys are in their mid thirties to early forties and they are still doing these energetic dance routines astounds me. But it would not have been the same, had they not done them!

Liberty X

Next up were Liberty X with Just a Little, with the skintight catsuits on and the original canes from the video. During this song, I could barely here the vocals as the crowd was singing along loudly! On their return to the stage, they performed Thinkin' it Over and Gotta have your Love and their final song of the night was Being Nobody (though I had hoped for Jumpin' instead). They were spot on with the vocals as always (but we already knew how good vocally they were) and fantastic to watch and it was great way to start their goodbye as a band. Kudos to Michelle, who after everything she has gone through these past few months, for getting up on stage and looking absolutely stunning!

Blue

Next up was the last minute addition to the line up: Blue! I had seen them perform live before (it was the first concert Jon and I went to as a couple!) so I knew they would be great! They started with All Rise, a crowd favourite. Simon changed up the vocals to give it a fresh sound! On their return to the stage, they sung their fantastic cover of Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word and they ended with One Love, another crowd favourite that had everyone joining in! These guys are always spot with their vocals but last night they were better than ever. Anthony had improved vocally and Lee was spot on with the amazing vocal runs he is reknown for. They have currently only joined for this one off performance, but I do hope, for those who were unable to come to the show, they do join the tour!

The Honeyz

The Honeyz were up next performing in their third line up, but in my opinion the right line up. The response to them was not as crazy but I think once people realised just how fantastic they were, they began to warm up to them. They began with Finally Found, return to the stage for Love of a Lifetime and End of the Line and finished up with my fave, Won't Take it Lying Down. As the girls had finally got the line up right, vocals were split between the three, giving them all a chance to shine and it worked so well!  I also felt that as the line up was the right one, that they all felt make more comfortable as group and performing together.

Atomic Kitten

The final act was Atomic Kitten, back to their original line up. I know most people and the band themselves were anxious about performing in this line up again. But there was no need to be because for me it was like Kerry never left. They begun with the song that had begun their career with, Right Now. On their return to the stage for the second time, the girls performed The Tide is High, a song Kerry had not been a part of but I felt like that song should have been done with as I felt her vocal worked better than Jenny's had. The girls also closed the show with their crowd favourite, Whole Again. This was also the only song of the night where the crowd were given the chance to sing by themselves. To hear the song sung so loudly by the crowd was amazing! Towards the end of the song, you see the emotions of the night starting to show and the song ended with the girls near to tears and a group hug!

With that, the bands were all introduced back on stage as the crowd applauded loudly as ticker tape continued to rain down!  Andi Peters reintroduce them and reminded us that the show can be seen again on TV on March 28th! The show was fantastic and I hope this will again silence the critics on just how good these bands were and still are!