Girls Aloud have confirmed big news for their fans after they were photographed seated on a plane.
The picture saw Cheryl joined by bandmates Kimberley Walsh, Nicola Roberts and Nadine Coyle on a flight as they confirmed their UK tour is set to kick off. Cheryl shared the image on her Instagram page as she pouted and flashed a peace sign at the camera.
She captioned the post: "Ready for take off," adding a plane and a star emoji, promping fans to excitedly head to the comments section. However, it wasn't the pending string of tour dates they were keen to discuss - it was Nadine's passport.
One fan wrote: "Nadine found her passport." A second added: "At least Nadine brought her passport." A third quipped: "Cheryl remembered her password and Nadine remember her passport! HALLELUJAH." A fourth social media user joked: "Bet Nadine was searching her bag for her passport just to tease customs officers." A fifth said: "Don't forget the passports! See you Monday!"
The followers were of course referring to a famous incident when she appeared on the show that created Girls Aloud - Pop Stars. At the time - back in 2001 - the singer lied about her age in order to compete on the TV talent competition – she was 16 but the minimum age requirement was 18.
In a famous clip, she accidentally let her real date of birth slip and said: “Date of birth is the 15th of the sixth ’85, making me a Gemini.” Nadine then pretended to search for her passport when asked to prove her age but eventually came clean and was sent home.
She previously spoke about the incident in an interview with Gay Times in November last year. She said: “When people see my passport, I think it’s triggering for them! I’ve literally had people gasp in airports because they’ve seen my passport. They’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, it’s the passport!’
“I’m like, ‘Yes, the passport is required in this particular establishment, the passport is required to get from A to B’. So, yes, definitely it causes a reaction in people all the time. People ask to see it and they’re quite blown away by it.”
Girls Aloud are heading to Ireland where they are set to kick off their tour in Dublin this weekend before heading to Belfast on Monday with a string of dates scheduled around the UK in the coming weeks including shows in Manchester, Cardiff, Sheffield, Newcastle, Aberdeen, Glasgow, Nottingham, Leeds, Birmingham, Liverpool and London.
The shows mark the first tour for the group since they reunited and after the tragic loss of their bandmate Sarah Harding who passed away from metastatic breast cancer in September 2021. The tour will feature a touching tribute to Sarah from her former bandmates.