When England beat Ukraine 4-0 in their Euro 2020 quarter-final, it wasn’t just the goals, the images of manager Gareth Southgate and the praise for the players that were sweeping the internet.
Footage of Atomic Kitten’s Natasha Hamilton and Liz McClarnon performing the fan-made reworking of their 2001 hit Whole Again – now a declaration of love for the England boss/new national treasure – at Croydon’s Boxpark was also going viral, too.
While football fans refashioning pop songs into terrace chants is nothing new, this one has taken on a life of its own. In July 2021, you are probably never more than eight minutes away from hearing that football’s coming home, again.
Following the Croydon gig, phone calls were quickly made and bandmate Jenny Frost was brought back to re-record the song, which at the time of writing is currently sitting at number five in the Apple Music chart (Three Lions is number four, Vindaloo six and World In Motion just outside the top 10 at number 11).
They’ve done the obligatory England flag photo-shoot and belted out the “football’s coming home again” line to seemingly every news outlet in the country (including this one, because it’s impossible to interview Atomic Kitten now without asking them to go a cappella).
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Image: The band – (L-R) Natasha Hamilton, Liz McClarnon and Jenny Frost – have re-recorded Whole Again, now an unnoffical England anthem. Pic: Brett Cove/SOPA Images/Shutterstock
The adoption of Whole Again, the platinum-selling chart-topper that propelled the girl band to fame, actually first did the rounds during the World Cup in 2018, to a lesser extent; in 2021 it is now the unofficial soundtrack to England’s first final in an international men’s football tournament since they won it that time in 1966. Atomic Kitten are now a part of English football history. There are even rumours they will be performing at Wembley on the day itself. Keep your Nessun Dorma, Italy; we’re gonna sing about Gareth Southgate turning us on!
So, Atomic Kitten are coming home again. But is football? “Hell, yes!” says Hamilton, speaking to Sky News on Zoom. She’s joined by McClarnon, who affirms for the record that football is “definitely coming home on Sunday”. McClarnon is also on Zoom, but from a different location. Both are in car passenger seats; they’re even working during their travel time. Have they had much chance to sleep?
“It’s been absolutely chaotic,” says Hamilton. “It’s been brilliant, though. I think we did a 20-hour day the other day, so that was quite intense. We’ve been getting sleep but our working schedule has taken us right back, like, 20 years. [It’s] really intense but this is a special moment in time and this time next week it won’t be here. So we’re just making the most of it now.”
“We’re amazed by it,” says McClarnon. “Honestly… we wanted to be a part of it and we had loads of messages to say, ‘please release it, please release it’, after the Box Park video went viral, and we were just like, oh, okay… we’re all a bit shocked. We just thought we’d release it and a couple of people would buy it and it would be nice to do. It’s just a bit mad.”
Clearly, the fans have taken the song to their hearts, but Hamilton and McClarnon aren’t sure what the reaction is from the England camp. “I mean, they’ve probably heard it but I think they’re focusing on other things,” says McClarnon. “They might have something more important on their minds. I don’t know what that would be.”
Whole Again is a ballad, a song about pining for someone after a break-up. But now it has become Football’s Coming Home again, and an ode to the man in charge. “Looking back on when we first met, I cannot escape and I cannot forget,” fans now sing. “Southgate you’re the one, you still turn me on, football’s coming home again.”
This is the man who took England to the semi-finals of the World Cup in 2018, for the first time since Italia ’90, and inspired a soar in sales of waistcoats. Now he has gone one step further and is, according to a viral Twitter thread, the “ultimate middle-aged crush”.
Image: ‘One, two, three, four: looking back on when we first met…’ Whole Again has become a declaration of love for the England manager
Has Atomic Kitten’s love song struck an unlikely chord with football fans because we’re all longing for Gareth? “I don’t think there was much thought into the origins of the song,” says Hamilton. “I think it was more the fact that it was a really catchy song and it was such a successful song 20 years ago. It was number one for four weeks. It increased its sales every week over the four weeks, it was number one in 19 countries worldwide. You know, it’s a huge song. So it’s kind of in people’s minds. You only…”
“I didn’t think it would be in football fans’ minds, though,” McClarnon chimes in.
“No, but you only have to hear it once to know the melody,” says Hamilton. “It’s got that very catchy, simple melody. And it just kind of makes it the perfect song to chant along to… it just so happens that everyone’s saying that Southgate turns them on now.”
“We’re just pretending not to hear that bit every time we sing it,” laughs McClarnon.
Whole Again is undeniably a brilliant ear-worm of a pop song. According to the Official Charts, it ranks among the UK’s bestselling singles of all time with 1.03 million pure sales (CD and downloads) – making it the UK’s fourth best-selling girl band single ever behind Spice Girls’ Wannabe, 2 Become 1 and All Saints’ Never Ever.
“You know what?” says Hamilton. “I feel really proud that there is a girl band song that has crossed over to the football crowds. It’s usually really bloke-ish, most songs are male sang. So, yeah, I feel like we’re making history.”
Image: Meeting then England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson in 2002 wasn’t so memorable for all the band
They may be making history, but this isn’t Atomic Kitten’s first foray into the world of football. Searches on photo agency archives throw up pictures of the girls singing on the pitch at the Division 1 play-off final between Birmingham City and Norwich City in 2002, and meeting then England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson earlier that year. Coincidentally, they also performed the official England song in the 2001 Ricky Tomlinson film Mike Bassett: England manager.
“We were talking about this the other day,” says McClarnon. “I found a picture online of us and I was like, ‘that’s when we met Sven’. And you know what, we all have different memories of different things and some of us have blanked things out – not on purpose, just because there’s not much space to remember half the things that happened. And I think…”
“Why did we meet Sven?” asks Hamilton, quizzically. By the looks of things, he didn’t make much of an impact. (Sorry, Sven).
McClarnon tells her it was an “advertising thing” for a mobile phone provider. “Oh. I vaguely remember it, but…”
Maybe Southgate would be more memorable? “Yeah, he would now,” says McClarnon. “He’s the nation’s hero.”
Image: Whole Again topped the charts for four weeks in 2001
Perhaps they can serenade him at Wembley on Sunday?
“We don’t know what we’re doing on Sunday yet, there’s a lot of conversations,” is all Hamilton will say. “Lots of offers to sing in lots of different places.”
Before they go, I ask for the obligatory sing-along, although Zoom doesn’t work too well for harmonising. “We attempted it on Zoom a while ago and it was completely out of time so I will let Tash sing the top line,” says McClarnon, before Hamilton gives the camera the famous line, followed by a cheer.
They may have sung it before, but this is the first time from a car, so an exclusive, of sorts.
Finally, before they go, their message to Southgate and the England team.
“Our message so far is that you’ve done us proud already,” says McClarnon. “Just want one little step more. But we are so grateful and proud already.”
“Super grateful, super proud,” says Hamilton. “And we’re behind you all the way.”
Football’s Coming Home Again, by Atomic Kitten, is out now
Tom Cruise has paid tribute to Val Kilmer, wishing his Top Gun co-star “well on the next journey”.
Cruise, speaking at the CinemaCon film event in Las Vegas on Thursday, asked for a moment’s silence to reflect on the “wonderful” times shared with the star, whom he called a “dear friend”.
Kilmer, who died of pneumonia on Tuesday aged 65, rocketed to fame starring alongside Cruise in the 1986 blockbuster Top Gun, playing Tom ‘Iceman’ Kazansky, a rival fighter pilot to Cruise’s character Maverick.
Image: Tom Cruise said ‘I wish you well on the next journey’. Pic: AP
Image: Val Kilmer in 2017. Pic: AP
His last part was a cameo role in the 2022 blockbuster sequel Top Gun: Maverick.
Cruise, on stage at Caesars Palace on Thursday, said: “I’d like to honour a dear friend of mine, Val Kilmer. I can’t tell you how much I admire his work, how grateful and honoured I was when he joined Top Gun and came back later for Top Gun: Maverick.
“I think it would be really nice if we could have a moment together because he loved movies and he gave a lot to all of us. Just kind of think about all the wonderful times that we had with him.
“I wish you well on the next journey.”
The moment of silence followed a string of tributes from Hollywood figures including Cher, Francis Ford Coppola, Antonio Banderas and Michelle Monaghan.
Kilmer’s daughter Mercedes told the New York Times on Wednesday that the actor had died from pneumonia.
Image: Tom Cruise at Caesars Palace on Thursday. Pic: AP
Diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, Kilmer discussed his illness and recovery in his 2020 memoir Your Huckleberry and Amazon Prime documentary Val.
He underwent radiation and chemotherapy treatments for the disease and also had a tracheostomy which damaged his vocal cords and permanently gave him a raspy speaking voice.
Kilmer played Batman in the 1995 film Batman Forever and received critical acclaim for his portrayal of rock singer Jim Morrison in the 1991 movie The Doors.
He also starred in True Romance and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, as well as playing criminal Chris Shiherlis in Michael Mann’s 1995 movie Heat and Doc Holliday in the 1993 film Tombstone.
In 1988 he married British actress Joanne Whalley, whom he met while working on fantasy adventure Willow.
The couple had two children before divorcing in 1996.
Bruce Springsteen is to release seven albums of mostly unheard material this summer.
The US singer said the songs, written and re-recorded between 1983 and 2018, were being made public after he began completing “everything I had in my vault” during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a short video posted on Instagram, Springsteen said the albums were “records that were full records, some of them even to the point of being mixed and not released”.
The 83-song collection is being released in a box set called Tracks II: The Lost Albums and goes on sale on 27 June.
Some 74 of the tracks have never been heard before.
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Springsteen first teased the release on Wednesday morning with a short social media video accompanied by text which said: “What was lost has been found”.
Tracks II is the follow-up to the star’s first Tracks volume, a four-CD collection of 66 unreleased songs, released in 1998.
Image: Bruce Springsteen at New York’s Carnegie Hall at a tribute to Patti Smith last month. Pic: PA
The New Jersey-born rocker, nicknamed The Boss, last released a studio album in 2022.
Only the Strong Survive was a collection of covers, including songs by Motown and soul artists, such as the Four Tops, The Temptations, The Supremes, Frankie Wilson and Jimmy Ruffin.
The late soul legend Sam Moore, who died in January and was a frequent Springsteen collaborator, sang on two of the tracks.
A man who stalked Strictly Come Dancing judge Shirley Ballas for six years has avoided jail.
Kyle Shaw, 37, got a 20-month suspended sentence and a lifetime restraining order on contacting Ballas, her mother, niece, and former partner.
Liverpool Crown Court heard that he thought Ballas was his aunt and “began a persistent campaign of contact”.
“He believed, and it’s evident from what he was told by his mother, that her late brother was his father,” said prosecutor Nicola Daley.
The court heard there was no evidence he was wrong, and “limited evidence” he was correct.
Ms Daley said Shaw’s messages had accused Ballas of being to blame for the death of her brother, who took his own life in 2003 aged 44.
He also set up social media accounts in his name.
Shaw had pleaded guilty to stalking the former dancer between August 2017 and November 2023 at a hearing in February.
Incidents included following Ballas’s 86-year-old mother, Audrey Rich, while she was shopping and telling her she was his grandmother.
The court heard in messages to Mrs Rich, Shaw had asked: “Where’s my dad?”
Ballas was so worried for her mother’s safety that she moved her from Merseyside to London.
Image: Kyle Shaw outside court on the day of his sentencing. Pic: PA
In October 2020, Ballas called police after Shaw messaged her and said: “Do you want me to kill myself, Shirley?”
Posts on X included one alongside an image of her home address that warned: “You ruined my life, I’ll ruin yours and everyone’s around you.”
Another referenced a book signing and said: “I can’t wait to meet you for the first time Aunty Shirley. Hopefully I can get an autograph.”
The court was told Ballas’s niece Mary Assall, former partner Daniel Taylor and colleagues from Strictly Come Dancing and ITV’s Loose Women were also sent messages.
‘I know where you live’
On one occasion in late 2023, Shaw called Mr Taylor and told him he knew where the couple lived and described Ballas’s movements.
The court heard the 64-year-old TV star become wary of socialising and stopped using public transport.
Prosecutor Ms Daley said: “She described having sleepless nights worrying about herself and her family’s safety and being particularly distressed when suggestions were made to her that she and her mother were responsible for her brother taking his own life.”
Image: Ballas has been head judge on Strictly Come Dancing since 2017. Pic: PA
Shaw cried and wiped away tears as he was sentenced on Tuesday.
The judge said the stalking stemmed from his mother telling him Ballas’s brother, David Rich, was his biological father.
“I’m satisfied that your motive for this offending was a desire to seek contact with people you genuinely believed were your family,” he said.
“Whether in fact there’s any truth in that belief is difficult, if not impossible, to determine.”
Image: Shaw pictured at court in February. Pic: PA
Defence lawyer John Weate said Shaw had been told the story by his mother “in his mid to late teens” and had suffered “complex mental health issues” since he was a child.
He added: “He now accepts that Miss Ballas and her family don’t wish to have any contact with him and, importantly, he volunteered the information that he has no intention of contacting them again.”
Shaw, of Whetstone Lane in Birkenhead, also admitted possessing cannabis and was ordered to undertake a rehab programme.