Take That back, but not for good

Take That back, but not for good - page 2

20-11-2005 00:00

The multi-millionaire singer revealed how being in Take That saved his life.

The star believes he would have wound up in jail, or worse, had it not been for the Manchester-based group. He claims he would have been forced to turn to drug dealing or burglary to fund his own addictions.

He said: "I'd have had a problem with drugs. "I would have been a dealer or a burglar and that's the truth because I wouldn't have had the money to fund my addiction and I'd have probably been in jail now - so Take That probably saved my life.

"Before Take That, I'd done acid, speed and smoked a lot of weed. "For me, the drug intake obviously sped up a lot quicker until it was my life, but for the other lads it wasn't really part of their lives."

Robbie also spoke of how lonely he felt during his days in the band and admitted he used to drink a bottle of vodka a day to help him through it.

Former Take That boss Nigel Martin Smith - who sued Robbie when he left the band - says the 'Angels' singer is still bitter and could self destruct at any minute.

He said: "He's so bitter and it's hard to know what his problem is, but he's always had a self-destruct button.
"Despite all the nasty things he's said about me, I still worry about Rob.
I'm scared that one day I'm going to wake up and be told that he's dead, like Paula Yates.'

Martin also revealed the singer was frequently in a bad state towards the end of his time with the band.

He told ITV during the documentary: "We were supposed to be doing the MTV Awards in Germany but Robbie was unwell. He'd been in bed with an international model the night before - I can't say who - and he was shaking. A complete state. I called a doctor and told Robbie to be honest about what he'd taken so we'd get him the right shot. "He was a real mess."

The boys held a glittering event in London's Notting Hill to air the ITV show before it was shown on television. All of the band turned up to celebrate but Robbie snubbed the launch.

The four remaining members admitted that they would have liked Robbie to attend the reunion but said that he was forgiven. Mark Owen insisted there were no hard feelings. He said: "It would have been great to have had Robbie here tonight, but we were really glad he was involved in the documentary. We understand that he's got a day job and we haven't.

Mark was recently voted the nation's favorite member of Take That - despite having his career hugely overshadowed by Robbie. Cheeky Mark came out on top in a Radio One poll which asked listeners to vote for the former band's best member.

Celebrity big brother winner Owen was always a favorite with the fans during Take That's heyday. And his cheeky charm and boyish good looks have proved lasting.

Despite his enormous fame as a solo artist Robbie came in second, followed by Gary Barlow - former lead singer and songwriter for the band.
Howard Donald and Jason Orange were fourth and fifth respectively.

But Mark hasn't let his popularity go to his head. He said: "I think when you're in a band like this it becomes about pecking order. Its like dogs, you get your chief dog and you all find your little place and I think that my pecking order was probably, in my head, lower to the bottom, I wasn't like top dog at all."

Following the release of their greatest hits CD and DVD Take That have also announced they are to go on a reunion tour - without Robbie Williams.

The band revealed they are considering offers to do a Greatest Hits tour and if they do Robbie, who acrimoniously parted company with the group in 1995, won't be invited.

Gary said: "There's a lot of offers on the table. I don't think we could make another record. But we're well known for our live shows. So that's an option, it could be good fun."

However, fans hoping to see the boys reproduce the energetic live shows of their heyday will be disappointed because the group admit they haven't got the stamina anymore.

Mark has confessed his fitness is not what it was when he was in the band, and admits he was left puffing and panting when he went clubbing after the premiere of the group's new documentary. The pop heartthrob has ruled out a toned down show because he doesn't want Take That to become Westlife.

He said: "I went for a little dance after the premiere the other night. I only lasted an hour, I was out of breath. So I don't know what we'll do. We can't sit on stools - that's too much like Westlife."

Whatever the boys choose to do in the future their army of loyal fans will be around to ensure they retain their reputation as the most iconic boy band of the last 20 years.