GIRLS ALOUD had fans in tears as they duetted with late bandmate Sarah Harding from beyond the grave at their first reunion show in 11 years.
Cheryl Tweedy, Nicola Roberts, Kimberley Walsh and Nadine Coyle kicked off their comeback tour at the 3Arena in Dublin on Friday night.
They made several references to Sarah and showed footage of her on huge screens behind the stage.
It was their first time performing since the singer died from cancer in 2021.
For the encore, they sang their 2008 single The Promise and had Sarah perform her verse.
But it was their cover of The Pretenders’ hit I’ll Stand By You, which gave them a No1 in 2004, that had fans in tears earlier.
Nadine said: “This next one we’re going to do really is a duet.
“We were looking through things to do and this song we’re going to do, it’s Sarah singing the whole song.
“So we’re going to do a duet with Sarah tonight.
“It’ll be Sarah and it’ll be us and it’ll be you. Let’s all do this together.”
One fan tweeted: “So many lovely moments for Sarah tonight. Crying my eyes out still.
“Can’t believe I just got to see Girls Aloud on opening night in Dublin.”
Another wrote: “I’m honestly crying. We miss you, Sarah.”
Nicola introduced Whole Lotta History with a teary speech, while the song ended with black-and-white footage of Sarah walking along the River Thames singing the track.
Nicola said: “When we recorded this next song in 2005 for our Chemistry record, 19 years ago, we all loved the song.
“It was very special to us, but we had no idea that 19 years later it would become so poignant on our journey.”
At the end of that performance, a message appeared on the screens saying: “The darkest nights produce the brightest stars.”
Elsewhere during the show’s 20-song setlist, they performed Wake Me Up while straddling motorbikes that flew over the audience, and wore inflatable dresses for Sexy! No No No . . .
Cheryl said: “I really need to take this opportunity to say thank you from the bottom of our hearts for everything you’ve done for us over the past 20 years and the support for everything we went through with Sarah, your continued love and being here tonight.
“It’s actually hard to believe. It’s such a pleasure to be here sharing the stage with these three gorgeous ladies once again.”
They performed in Dublin again last night before travelling to Belfast and other parts of the UK.
The tour continues until June 30, when it finishes in Liverpool.
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FORMER ONE DIRECTION band member Zayn Malik’s hyped-up return to a stage for the first time in eight years ended in confusion.
It finished on Friday night after only 24 minutes.
Zayn, who was at London’s Shepherd’s Bush Empire in front of 2,000 fans, performed six songs before abruptly leaving without saying goodbye.
Zayn sang tracks from his new album Room Under The Stairs, telling fans one song was about being “a s**t person in life”.
When he left the stage, and a big sign read “thank you and goodnight”, revellers assumed he would perform some of his hits including No1 debut Pillowtalk.
But the lights were turned on and some fans were left disappointed. They stayed, hoping he was teasing them and was going to come back.
Earlier, Zayn said: “This is my first gig back. It feels good to be here.”
Not for that long, though . . .
DAVID BECKHAM dreads his daughter Harper getting interested in boys – but with the help of his sons Brooklyn, Romeo and Cruz, she has a wall of steel around her.
Becks said: “I’m so protective over Harper, and I’m glad I’ve got three sons who feel the same as I do.
“They’re very strict when she even mentions one of my sons’ friends.
“If she says, ‘Ooh, he’s quite handsome’, I’m like, ‘No, no, it’s too early’, and they feel exactly the same.”
And Becks added on Netflix’s Skip Intro podcast: “I still do this thing with Romeo, who is 21 years old and has his own apartment.
“When he was staying with us for a weekend, I go into his room at night and check he’s breathing.”
LAURA HADDOCK has split from her White Lines co-star Tom Rhys Harries.
Four years ago I revealed they were an item, but I can now report the pair have quietly broken up and she is on celebrity dating app Raya.
Laura has posted a series of gorgeous snaps, including glam shoots and one with a puppy.
A source tells me: “Laura and Tom fell in love on the White Lines set in Ibiza and enjoyed a glorious lockdown together.
“But once they started working on location again, they realised it was harder to maintain.
“She is seven years older than him and in a different stage of her life.”
