Girls Aloud, the iconic girl group behind hits like The Promise, Sound Of The Underground and Love Machine, are returning after an 11-year break for a UK arena tour in 2024.

The group – Cheryl Tweedy, Nadine Coyle, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh – will honour their former bandmate Sarah Harding, who passed away in 2021 aged 39.

“We’re so excited to announce that we will be touring the UK and Ireland in May and June 2024,” the band wrote in an Instagram post. “A celebration of Sarah, our music and our incredible fans. We can’t wait to sing and dance with you all once again.”

The band first formed after its members appeared as individual contestants on the ITV talent show Popstars: The Rivals in 2002, splitting in 2013 following a greatest hits tour. Girls Aloud went on to sell over 4.3 million singles and 4 million albums in the UK alone, making them Britain’s biggest-selling girl group of the 21st century.

“We all started talking about the possibility of doing something to celebrate Girls Aloud’s 20-year anniversary a few years ago. The anniversary seemed like an obvious thing that we would celebrate. But when Sarah fell ill, all priorities changed,” Cheryl explained in a statement.

“She passed away a year before the anniversary and it just didn’t feel right; it felt too soon. But now, I think there is an energy that does make it feel right. It’s the right time to celebrate Sarah, it’s the right time to celebrate the band and the right time to celebrate the fact we can still do this 21 years later. That’s a big honour in lots of ways.”

Following news of the tour, they confirmed that they wouldn’t be releasing new music, but that the shows would be a “celebration of Girls Aloud’s rich back catalogue”. 

For fans looking to secure tickets, pre-sale will begin on Wednesday 29 November at 9am, with the general on sale Friday 1 December at the same time, all via girlsaloud.com.

Images: Getty