Take That have reacted angrily to
plans for a musical based on their songs, which will be given its
world premiere in Cardiff.
The boy band, currently topping the chart with Shine, are furious
that new show Never Forget, which will open at the Wales Millennium
Centre, will feature their hits.
'The band would like to state categorically that this production is
being undertaken with neither their involvement nor their
endorsement,' said a statement issued last night on behalf of the
group.
'They would wish their fans and the general public to know that
this production is absolutely and 100% nothing to do with Take
That.'
Never Forget is a fictional story about a Take That tribute
band.
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It will feature the chart hits Relight My Fire, Pray and Back For
Good, as well as the show's title song.
Record label EMI licensed the songs to the musical's producers in
2005, but the band had no idea they were intended for use in the
show.
The musical opens at the WMC on July 20 and the producers have
already extended an invitation to Gary Barlow, the band's main
songwriter, along with Mark Owen, Jason Orange and Howard Donald to
attend the premiere performance.
Tickets went on sale at 10am yesterday and within a few hours
almost 3,000 had been purchased from the WMC box office for
performances in Cardiff.
Last night a spokesman for the producers of Never Forget said they
had never claimed the show was endorsed by Take That.
She said, 'EMI licensed Gary's songs to us in 2005. It's an
original musical and the band are not involved. Although it's not
the story of the band, we will be inviting the boys to come and see
the show.'
The producers have described Never Forget as a 'feel-good comedy
about love, friendship, ambition and betrayal' and stress it is not
about the real boy band's rise to fame.
The original story was created by TV writer Danny Brocklehurst,
best known for Shameless and Clocking Off.
Never Forget will visit Glasgow, Manchester, Stoke and Edinburgh
after opening in Cardiff. It will then hit a West End venue, yet to
be announced.
When he announced the plans, producer Tristan Baker said, 'We are
the biggest fans of Take That's music and we are so excited about
the wonderful opportunity to create a new musical based on the
fantastic catalogue of their work.
'We look forward to creating a legacy with these well-loved songs
in the way that shows such as Mamma Mia! have done before.'
WMC chief executive Judith Isherwood said that the world premiere
was a coup for the £106m arts venue, which opened in November
2004.
'We're delighted that Never Forget will be starting its UK tour at
the Wales Millennium Centre in July,' she said. 'Having the UK
premiere of Never Forget at WMC represents a very important
landmark for us - it is without doubt one of the highlights of our
year.'
The news of the musical comes as Take That enjoy a massive revival.
Since reforming a year ago, the band have scored a chart-topping
album, two chart-topping singles and they won a Brit Award.
They have also enjoyed a sell-out tour, which included performing
in front of around 60,000 fans at the Millennium Stadium last
summer.