THE REUNITED Take That are back, if not for good, then at least for a hugely anticipated new album and tour.
The reunion of Take That with Robbie Williams, a bona-fide stadium filler in his own right, was first confirmed last July, but it has taken until yesterday for the five members to be assembled in front of the international media.
Band member Mark Owen admitted rumours of a stadium tour were so prevalent that even the staff in the Savoy Hotel were asking them about it yesterday morning, but the dates were a closely guarded secret.
"There are no rumours this morning just the facts," said chief songwriter Gary Barlow. "Take That are going back on tour". They are also releasing a new album, Progress, next month.
The band will play Croke Park on Saturday, June 18th, with the possibility of a second date if the demand is there.
Williams on his own holds the record for an attendance at an Irish concert (135,000 at the Phoenix Park in 2003).
The original incarnation of Take That split up in 1995 in an atmosphere of recrimination. Williams quit the band and went on to be a superstar in his own right. The other members of the band struggled with their solo careers but reformed the group in 2005. They have since surpassed the success of their previous incarnation with two smash-hit albums, Beautiful Worldand The Circus, which were followed by equally successful tours.
Take That will do well to surpass the spectacular that was The Circustour which included jugglers, acrobats, marching bands, tightrope walkers and clowns on unicycles. It also included a date in Croke Park last year.
“Basically, coming from us this time is going to be a big production show, it is not going to be a stripped-back acoustic set. We’re coming up with big ideas. It is going to be a spectacular event,” said Barlow, the man whom the other band members call “the captain of the ship”.
Williams confirmed he will be performing some of his solo material with the band. He gave short shrift to those who believe that he has joined Take That because his solo career is on the wane. "The last album [ In And Out of Consciousness – the Greatest Hits] hit No 1 in 14 countries. It sold more than The Circus, and at the risk of sounding like a sourpuss, f*** off," he replied, not altogether seriously.
He said Irish audiences were “definitely in the top three best audiences in the world” and described his concert in the Phoenix Park in 2003 as “absolutely mental”.
He also revealed that his concert in Croke Park in 2006, which he felt was under par, contributed to the stage fright which stopped him playing live. He offered to play a free concert for the 78,000 fans who turned up that night, but has yet to make good on that promise.
“There was something wrong with me. I could remember walking up to the stage and saying to my mate Johnny that I never felt like that before. It was really f***ing scary. Croke Park was waiting for me. I couldn’t understand what was happening to me or my body,” he recalled.
“I was on stage and I felt absolutely shocking . . . The fact is I haven’t done any concerts since then . . . it was terrifying.”
Tickets for the Croke Park concert go on sale on Friday