Steps fans rejoice: Claire Richards is going solo

Claire Richards solo

by Hollie Richardson |
Published on

It's time to begin now count it in, 5, 6, 7, 8...

C'mon, let's admit it - Steps were THE biggest guilty pop pleasure of the 90s, and we secretly mourned when they split in 2001.

The band - Ian 'H' Watkins, Lee Evans, Lisa Scott-Lee, Faye Tozer and Claire Richards - eventually reformed, released a new album and toured earlier this year, but now Claire has announced a SOLO album.

Claire Richards
©Shutterstock

It's fair to say that Claire is the one with the best set of pipes, right? So this is a well-deserved feat for the 40-year-old star, who has also lost a whopping six stone and looks AMAZING.

Almost 22 years (yep, it's been that long) since the band formed, Claire told The Sun Online: “I don’t feel this is going to take anything away from Steps, it’s very much an entity in itself.

“No single one of us is ever going to be bigger than Steps as a whole, I don’t think."

Talking about her bandmates, she continued: “We’ve been through our ups and downs and our difficulties but I don’t think that’s there any more.

Claire Richards steps
©Shutterstock

“And we’re all old enough and ugly enough to realise now that the only way to make it work is to be honest and be up front about everything."

Steps are best known for their Wotsits level cheesy hits including covers of The Bee Gees' Tragedy and Kylie Minogue's Better The Devil You Know (don't pretend you don't know all the moves). And who can forget One for Sorrow and Deeper Shade of Blue?

We don't know if Claire's new single ‘On My Own’ will be any good when it's released on Monday, but we do know this is the perfect excuse for some 90s nostalgia.

So excuse us while we go and put our 90s pop playlist on for the rest of the day.

GALLERY: Get some more 90s nostalgia with the Spice Girls

Gallery

Spice Girls through the years (slider)

Spice Girls1 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 REX/Shutterstock

Spice Girls

The Spice Girls formed in 1994 after replying to an advert posted in a trade magazine looking for singers and dancers.

'Wannabe'2 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 Virgin/EMI

'Wannabe'

In 1996, the Spice Girls released their debut single 'Wannabe' which reached Number 1 in the UK and was certified 2x Platinum in the UK.

'Spice'3 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 Virgin

'Spice'

In November 1996, the debut album from the Spice Girls 'Spice' was released. It went to Number 1 around the world and was certified 10× Platinum in the UK.

'2 become 1'4 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 Virgin

'2 become 1'

'2 Become 1' was the Spice Girls' first Christmas Number 1. Moving away from their upbeat pop, '2 Become 1' was a slow pop ballad, which sold over 1,200,000 copies, certifying it 2x Platinum in the UK.

Geri Halliwell's iconic Union Jack dress5 of 18
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Geri Halliwell's iconic Union Jack dress

The Spice Girls gave an iconic performance at the BRIT Awards in 1997, singing 'Who Do You Think You Are' - also known as when Geri Halliwell wore THAT Union Jack dress which is influential to this day.

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CREDIT: u00a9 Virgin

'Spiceworld' (album)

'Spiceworld' was the Spice Girls' second studio album to be released in 1997. As before, it was incredibly popular and went to Number 1 around the world, selling over 1.5 million copies in the UK.

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CREDIT: u00a9 Shutterstock

Spice World (film)

In 1997, Spice World the film was released. The girls promoted their film at the annual Cannes film festival held in the South of France.The film starred all five members of the group along with Richard E. Grant, Claire Rushbrook, Naoko Mori, Meat Loaf, Barry Humphries, and Alan Cumming.

'Too Much'8 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 Virgin

'Too Much'

'Too Much' became the Spice Girls' second Christmas Number 1 in the UK. The girls' fifth single went Platinum, selling 682,000 copies and stayed at the top for two weeks.

Geri left the Spice Girls9 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 RAY TANG/Shutterstock

Geri left the Spice Girls

In May 1997, Geri left the Spice Girls. In a statement released through her solicitor, she said, "Sadly I would like to confirm that I have left the Spice Girls. This is because of differences between us. I'm sure the group will continue to be successful and I wish them all the best."

'Goodbye'10 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 Virgin

'Goodbye'

'Goodbye' was the group's third consecutive Christmas Number 1, this time as a quartet. The girls became the first act to have three consecutive Christmas Number 1s since The Beatles in 1965.

Spiceworld Tour11 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 Sipa Press/Shutterstock

Spiceworld Tour

The Spice Girls took to the road on their 'Spiceworld' Tour. Starting in Ireland and the UK with Geri, in February 1998, they continued after she left at the end of May, to mainland Europe and the USA.

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CREDIT: u00a9 Spice Girls

Christmas in Spiceworld Tour

This eight-day tour saw the Spice Girls (without Geri) perform in Manchester and London in December 1999.

'Forever' (album)13 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 Virgin Records

'Forever' (album)

The Spice Girls' third and - as yet - final studio album 'Forever' was released in 2000 and spawned singles 'Goodbye' and the double A-side 'Holler'/'Let Love Lead the Way'.

Spice Girls won multiple BRIT Awards14 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 Shutterstock

Spice Girls won multiple BRIT Awards

Over the years, the Spice Girls have won multiple BRIT Awards including Best British Single for 'Wannabe' and Best British Video for 'Say You'll Be There' in 1997. They also picked up, the Outstanding Contribution Award in 2000.

The Return of the Spice Girls tour15 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 Shutterstock

The Return of the Spice Girls tour

In 2007, the Spice Girls reunited as a group of five, and went on their 'The Return of the Spice Girls' tour. They performed across the UK, mainland Europe and the USA.

Spice Girls perform at the Olympics16 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 Shutterstock

Spice Girls perform at the Olympics

The Spice Girls reunited once again in 2012 for the Closing Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics. Their spectacular performance saw them standing on top to black cabs whilst they were singing.

GEM - mini reunion17 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 YouTube/Spice Girls GEM

GEM - mini reunion

In 2016, on the 20th anniversary of 'Wannabe', Emma, Mel B and Geri had a mini-reunion. They posted a video saying they would be back under a different name - GEM (named after their collective initials). Despite this video, nothing was released.

Spice Girls reunite in 201818 of 18
CREDIT: u00a9 Instagram/emmaleebunton

Spice Girls reunite in 2018

Earlier this year (2018), Spice Girls fans all over the world went wild when it was confirmed that all five of the Spice Girls had met up at Geri's house, along with their former manager Simon Fuller.Since the initial meeting back in February there have been continued rumours that we could see a full reunion, new music or even a tour, however nothing has been confirmed.

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