‘A wonderfully full and colourful life’: Sarah Harding was proud of her achievements
Before she died, Sarah Harding wanted to tell her story. Hers was a “wonderfully full and colourful life”, she said, and she was grateful to have achieved “above and beyond anything I dreamed of when I was a little girl”.
So at the same time as going through treatment for breast cancer, which had quickly spread to her lung and other parts of her body, she wrote her memoir – the story of the “other” Sarah Harding she felt had somehow become lost in celebrity.
After publicly revealing her diagnosis in August 2020, and later bravely opening up about her prognosis and mastectomy, the star’s family, friends and fans knew this day would come, but her death still comes as a huge shock. She was just 39.
Sarah Harding reacts to winning during the live final of Celebrity Big Brother, at Elstree Studios in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire.
As a member of Girls Aloud, one of the most successful pop bands in British music history, Harding certainly did have a full life: chart-topping singles, platinum sales, arena tours, and a Brit Award – something she described as one of the biggest moments of her life in her memoir, Hear Me Out, published in March.
“As usual, I was the first to grab the award,” she wrote. “Holding it aloft and screaming: ‘It’s about time!'”
In 2009, after years of success but not so much critical acclaim, in an industry that wasn’t always as appreciative of pop – female acts especially – as it is today, winning the best single Brit for The Promise was a huge deal. And Harding collected with the confidence of Liam Gallagher. Girls Aloud had earned their place at the table.
During her time in the band, she had become known as the group’s party girl, dubbed “Hardcore Harding” by the tabloids and once famously pictured swigging from a bottle of whisky at the NME Awards in 2007.
But behind the pop hellraiser image, there was always much more to the star.
Born in Ascot in Berkshire, Harding rose to fame in 2002 as a contestant on ITV’s Popstars: The Rivals, the programme that would see her joining Girls Aloud alongside Cheryl, Nadine Coyle, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. Pitted against boy band, One True Voice, Girls Aloud’s debut single – the drum-and-bass inspired curveball Sound Of The Underground – roundly trounced the boys’ forgettable ballad to make Christmas number one that year.
It was the beginning of the group that would go on to be one of the most influential pop acts of the era, paving the way for the likes of The Saturdays and Little Mix. Their innovative approach to mainstream pop meant they became one of the few UK reality television acts to achieve continued success.
Nicola Roberts, Nadine Coyle, Kimberley Walsh, Cheryl Cole and Sarah Harding of girlband Girls Aloud
Girls Aloud released five studio albums, all of which reached platinum sales. They also achieved 20 consecutive top 10 hits, including four number ones – I’ll Stand By You, Walk This Way (with Sugababes) and The Promise, as well as Sound Of The Underground. In 2009, they were picked – alongside Jay-Z – to support Coldplay at Wembley.
In Hear Me Out, Harding said her time in the band had been “amazing” but also opened up about how hard it could sometimes be, saying it “wasn’t always quite as fabulous” as it appeared.
“It’s not like we were hard done by or being mistreated, far from it; it’s just the way things were when there was something big to promote,” she wrote. “We all knew we were leading a charmed life compared with most, and I always tried to appreciate that, but I didn’t feel glamorous a lot of the time, I can tell you.
“Yes, there were moments of glamour, but day to day it was often hard to keep up. Once you had your hair and make-up on, you’d step out on stage looking a million dollars, but sometimes underneath you’d be thinking, ‘Jesus, I’m knackered! How am I going to get through this?’ It was usually the rush of adrenaline that got me through, especially during a live show.”
In 2013, the group embarked on Ten: The Hits Tour, performing their final show in March of that year. A few hours later, they announced their split on Twitter; Harding said they had all agreed it was “time to say goodbye”.
In addition to her pop success, Harding had a varied career in acting and television, with early credits including roles in the St Trinian’s films and BBC drama Freefall, opposite Dominic Cooper. Later on, a guest appearance as Joni in Coronation Street in 2015 led to the star being invited back for further scenes on the famous cobbles.
In 2016, the star made her stage debut in Ghost – The Musical at the New Wimbledon Theatre in southwest London. The following year, she appeared in Celebrity Big Brother – and was later crowned the winner, beating X Factor singer Amelia Lily and Made In Chelsea’s Sam Thompson in the final.
In her personal life, Harding was previously engaged to DJ Tom Crane, but they announced the end of their four-year relationship in 2011. The star entered rehab shortly after their split and candidly detailed her struggles in her book.
Girls Aloud singer Sarah Harding leaves the New Wimbledon Theatre in London after making her stage debut in a production of Ghost – The Musical.
But before she died, she wanted people to know that the party-girl image and problems with drinking did not define her.
“When I look back at my time in Girls Aloud, I feel like I became a caricature,” she wrote. “Okay, so maybe I put out a particular image, which the press and media latched on to. It was an easy one to work with: rock chick, blonde bombshell, party girl, the caner of the band…
“Somewhere among the nightclubs, the frocks and the hairdos, the big chart hits and the glamour of being a pop star, the other Sarah Harding got utterly lost.”
Now, as well as her huge success in the limelight, Harding will also be remembered for bravely sharing the story of her cancer. As a celebrity who had remained relatively private (if social media is a measure, her last Instagram post before revealing her diagnosis in had been more than two years earlier, in May 2018), it must have been a huge decision to speak out.
Singer Sarah Harding supporting a charity day at the London offices of Bloomberg Tradebook,
Noticing her lump during the COVID-19 pandemic, Harding put off getting it checked. When she was eventually diagnosed, while reluctant to make the news public she also knew that as a star with a huge following, her story might help others.
“Please girls – please everyone – don’t let anything get in your way – get checked out if you’re worried about something,” she wrote in Hear Me Out. “Of course, I can’t know for sure, but I believe that if I’d got things moving with appointments and check-ups faster than I did, I’d probably be in a better place than I am now.
“I think I would have had more options for treatment, and certainly less spread of disease. It’s a bloody hard pill to swallow, but the best I can hope for is that my experience might encourage other people to get themselves sorted as soon as possible.”
Sarah Harding arrives at a premiere
Harding also said that doctors had told her that Christmas 2020 would probably be her last.
“I don’t want an exact prognosis,” she wrote. “I don’t know why anyone would want that. Comfort and being as pain-free as possible is what’s important to me now…
“I’m trying to live and enjoy every second of my life, however long it might be. I am having a glass of wine or two during all this, because it helps me relax. I’m sure some people might think that’s not a great idea, but I want to try to enjoy myself. I’m at a stage now where I don’t know how many months I have left. Who knows, maybe I’ll surprise everyone, but that’s how I’m looking at things.
“Right now, I’m trying to find joy whenever and however I can. It’s definitely spending quality time with Mum and seeing my friends whenever I can. Life has got so much smaller, and my priorities have changed, but the other Sarah Harding is still in there somewhere too, trust me. Given half a chance, I know she’d be back with a vengeance, dancing on tables and laughing and joking with everyone.”
Sarah Harding
Speaking out publicly will no doubt have led to more women approaching their doctors, similar to Jade Goody’s cervical cancer in 2008.
“As scary as it was to go public about my diagnosis, it was the right thing to do, and the amount of support I’ve received is incredible,” Harding said. “I’ve been inundated with lovely messages from my fans. I’m grateful beyond words for that.”
That gratitude is no doubt being felt right back by women around the world.
Entertainment
‘We’re having the time of our lives’: Westlife on 25 years of touring, family fame and fans
They were one of the main staples of noughties music in the UK and Ireland and to celebrate 25 years of touring, Westlife have returned to the spotlight again.
The boy band has released a new song called Chariot, with an album following suit in February and a tour that will take them around the world next year.
“The Westlife story is fairy tale stuff and we’re very lucky and proud to be part of it”, Shane Filan tells Sky News at the Royal Albert Hall, where they have just performed for two nights.
“It took our breath away. We came out to the Royal Albert Hall thinking it might be a little bit more intimate than a big arena and just the sheer noise, the sheer screams from the women and everyone just having good fun.
“The support and love, we never felt it like we did in the room. It was amazing.”
Westlife started their 25th anniversary celebrations with two sold-out shows at the Royal Albert Hall in London
Formed by their manager Louis Walsh in the late 1990s, the group originally consisted of Filan, Mark Feehily, Brian McFadden, Nicky Byrne and Kian Egan.
McFadden left the group in 2004 to pursue a solo career, but the other four have remained together.
Due to health issues, Feehily can’t join the celebrations, but representatives say he is still very much part of the band and features on their new music and upcoming album.
Westlife were blown away by the ‘sheer noise’ of screaming fans at the Royal Albert Hall. Pic: Sony Music
Pic: Sony Music
History-making chart successes
Westlife are joint third with Sir Cliff Richard and Ed Sheeran for the most UK number one singles in history, just behind Elvis and The Beatles.
In their first 18 months, they secured seven of those top spots thanks to songs like Flying Without Wings, I Have A Dream and If I Let You Go.
Reflecting on the years gone by, Byrne says the nostalgia hits harder than ever.
“You see the generations coming to the shows, people letting their hair down, people remembering the songs from their first kiss, the first dance, all those special things that music does,” he says.
“Not even just for the fans – we’re having the time of our lives.
“We’re singing these songs up there… I remember breaking the wardrobe door when we were promoting Swear It Again, and now we’re singing it in front of the Royal Albert Hall and look, I mean, just look at this place.”
(L-R) Kian Egan, Nicky Bryne and Shane Filan say they are having ‘the time of their lives’ performing together again
Famous fans and furniture
For Byrne, finding out about fans of their music never gets old, and their song Flying Without Wings seems to be a key component of their stature in music.
“I did Soccer Aid with Tom Grennan recently, and he was talking all about how he grew up listening to Westlife – his dad is Irish. Big Zuu, who scored the winning goal, he was like, ‘Flying Without Wings, man, is the best song I’ve ever heard’.”
It’s the same song Sheeran first learned to play guitar on, and years later, he began writing songs for the group, including their latest single Chariot.
Oddly, it’s their choice in furniture that receives just as much attention as their music over the years, with four stools becoming synonymous with the group.
Stemming from their lack of dancing skills, according to Simon Cowell at least, they chose to change it up and simply rise from their chair on the key change of the song.
“We are stool connoisseurs. It’s become a very strange thing and it’s nearly as big as our music. It’s genuinely as big as You Raise Me Up,” Filan laughs.
Filan (R) jokes that the band have become ‘stool connoisseurs’
Keeping their kids grounded
As the band continued to release music, each member settled down and had families of their own. Now their children are around the same age they were when they first started as a group.
Egan says they all made a conscious decision to raise the next generation away from the spotlight.
“We don’t want our kids growing up in this world and at the end of the day they are privileged, so it’s really important for us to keep them grounded and to try and give them as much of a natural kind of upbringing as they possibly can, and I think that’s why we choose to bring them up in the same places that we grew up,” he adds.
Byrne chimes in jokingly: “Slightly bigger houses, though!”
It was this tour that caused Byrne’s children to realise the extent of their father’s fame.
“I have twin boys who are 18 and a half, and the middle girl is 12. So last week, when the tour went on sale in Ireland, and we went from five nights in the 3Arena to 13, and from Belfast it went from three right up to seven, and the boys are looking at me, going, ‘You’re doing 13 nights in the 3Arena’.
“And it is even me looking at them going, ‘Yeah, right’. It hits you, it hits you there in a way, to be honest with you. I got a little bit cooler then.”
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Running from September 2026, Westlife 25 – The Anniversary World Tour, will kick off in Dublin for 13 shows before heading to Aberdeen, Glasgow, Newcastle, Leeds, Sheffield, London, Brighton, Bournemouth, Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester and then Belfast for seven nights.
Gigs in Paris, Hamburg, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Amsterdam, Antwerp, Cologne and Zurich will follow.
Tickets for Westlife’s UK tour dates go on sale this Friday.
Entertainment
Suspects arrested over Louvre heist ‘partially admit involvement’ – as officials address inside job theory
The two suspects arrested over the Louvre jewellery heist have “partially” confessed to their involvement in the robbery, according to a prosecutor.
Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau revealed the development at a news conference on Wednesday.
Four thieves stole nine items – one of which was dropped and recovered at the scene – in a heist pulled off while the world-famous Paris museum was open to visitors on 19 October.
It took the thieves less than eight minutes to steal the jewels. They forced open a window and cut into cases with power tools after gaining access via a vehicle-mounted mechanical lift.
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Suspects in Louvre robbery ‘partially confessed’
Ms Beccuau also said the jewels had not yet been recovered.
“These jewels are now, of course, unsellable,” said Ms Beccuau. “Anyone who buys them would be guilty of concealment of stolen goods. It’s still time to give them back.”
‘No evidence’
Ms Beccuau also addressed reports that police believe the robbery could have been an inside job.
She said that there was “no evidence the thieves benefited from inside help”.
Under French rules for organised theft, custody can run up to 96 hours. That limit is due to expire late on Wednesday, and prosecutors must charge the suspects, release them or seek a judge’s extension.
Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau speaks during a press conference about the investigation into the Louvre robbery. Pic: Reuters
One suspect is a 34-year-old Algerian national who has been living in France since 2010, Ms Beccuau said. He was arrested Saturday night at Charles de Gaulle airport as he was about to fly to Algeria with no return ticket.
Ms Beccuau said that he was living in the Paris suburb of Aubervilliers, and was known to police mostly for road traffic offences.
The other suspect, 39, was arrested Saturday night at his home in Aubervilliers.
“There is no evidence to suggest that he was about to leave the country,” said Ms Beccuau.
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Louvre jewels ‘have not returned’
The man was known to police for several thefts, and his DNA was found on one of the glass cases where the jewels were displayed, and on items the thieves left behind, she added.
Earlier, French police acknowledged major gaps in the Louvre’s defences.
Paris police chief Patrice Faure told politicians that ageing security systems had left weak spots.
“A technological step has not been taken,” he said.
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Mr Faure also revealed that the Louvre’s authorisation to operate its security cameras quietly expired in July and had not been renewed.
He said the first alert to police came not from the Louvre’s alarms, but from a cyclist outside who dialled the emergency line after seeing helmeted men with a basket lift.
Members of a forensic team inspect a window believed to have been used by the culprits. Pic: Reuters
Mr Faure also rejected calls for a permanent police post inside the museum, warning it would set an unworkable precedent and do little against fast and mobile thieves.
“I am firmly opposed,” he said. “The issue is not a guard at a door; it is speeding the chain of alert.”
Five new arrests have been made in the investigation into the Louvre jewellery heist, the prosecutor for Paris has said.
French radio station RTL reported the arrests on Thursday, following an interview with Laure Beccuau.
The Paris prosecutor’s department shared the interview on social media with the caption: “Louvre Burglary: Five New Suspects Apprehended.”
In the interview, Ms Beccuau said one of the five suspects was identified through DNA traces left at the crime scene, but she added that it was “too early” to comment further on the suspects’ identities.
All five were arrested in coordinated raids in Paris and its surrounding areas late Wednesday, but searches overnight “did not allow us to find the goods”, Ms Beccuau said.
It comes after the prosecutor said two suspects arrested over the jewellery heist had “partially” confessed to their involvement in the robbery.
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Suspects in Louvre robbery ‘partially confessed’
Four thieves stole nine items – one of which was dropped and recovered at the scene – in a heist pulled off while the world-famous Paris museum was open to visitors on 19 October.
It took the thieves less than eight minutes to steal the jewels worth £76m. They forced open a window and cut into cases with power tools after gaining access via a vehicle-mounted mechanical lift.
Ms Beccuau urged the thieves to return the French crown jewels on Wednesday.
“These jewels are now, of course, unsellable,” she said. “Anyone who buys them would be guilty of concealment of stolen goods. It’s still time to give them back.”
Footage shows the moment thieves escaped the Louvre with £76 million worth of jewellery in broad daylight
Regarding the two suspects in custody since Saturday, Ms Beccuau previously revealed that one is a 34-year-old Algerian national who has been living in France since 2010.
He was arrested Saturday night at Charles de Gaulle airport as he was about to fly to Algeria with no return ticket.
Ms Beccuau said that he was living in the Paris suburb of Aubervilliers, and was known to police mostly for road traffic offences. His DNA was found on one of the scooters used by the thieves to leave the scene, according to the prosecutor.
The other suspect, 39, was arrested Saturday night at his home in Aubervilliers.
“There is no evidence to suggest that he was about to leave the country,” said Ms Beccuau.
Members of a forensic team inspect a window believed to have been used by the culprits. Pic: Reuters
The man was known to police for several thefts, and his DNA was found on one of the glass cases where the jewels were displayed, and on items the thieves left behind, she added.
The heist exposed major gaps in the Louvre’s defences, with Paris police chief Patrice Faure telling politicians that ageing security systems had left weak spots.
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“A technological step has not been taken,” he said. Mr Faure also revealed that the Louvre’s authorisation to operate its security cameras quietly expired in July and had not been renewed.
He said the first alert to police came not from the Louvre’s alarms, but from a cyclist outside who dialled the emergency line after seeing helmeted men with a basket lift.
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