from Smash Hits magazine - November 2001
"UNTIL THE TIME IS THROUGH - OUR TRIBUTE TO FIVE, THE BADDEST BOYBAND EVER"
When Five boys with the power to rock you burst onto the music scene four years ago, it wasn't just the gloomy winter of 1997 that was brightened up...
Fans all over the country rejoiced that a boyband had finally arrived who drank, swore and admitted to snogging girls. They gave the term 'boyband' a whole new meaning and after winning the 1997 Smash Hits Poll Winners Best New Tour Act award, they released their debut single Slam Dunk Da Funk. It came as no surprise that it soared straight into the top ten, and Ritchie, Scott, Abs, J and Sean became pop's newest heartthrobs.
After numerous fights, three No.1s, ten top ten singles and two platinum selling albums, the boys have called it a day. They may have been riding a new wave of success but at 4:30pm on Thursday, September 27, it was the end.
Smash Hits has had a fantastic four years with the lads - and here are some of our favorite bits...
WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT - They may have been in a boyband, but there was no 'you must stay single' rule for these bad boys of pop...
SCOTT - A mere two days after the announcement that Five were splitting, Scott walked down the aisle with his childhood sweetheart, Kerry. The happy couple threw a huge ceremony in Essex, where Scott serenaded his new wife with a specially written love song. They were watched by his ex-bandmates, their two-month old son Brennan, and a whole host of celebrity guests.
J - After stepping out with a number of famous ladeez including Mel C and Dani Behr, J is currently single (no, he's not!). "I've been to every country you can imagine and snogged hundreds of beautiful women, " laughs J.
ABS - Since the start of their career, Abs was very open and honest about his long relationship with Danielle Brent from Hollyoaks. The pair met at stage school and were together for four years before splitting in the summer of 2000. He hasn't been sulking at home for the past year though. "There have been a few snogs lately," confessed Abs during out last interview (recent rumors have it that he's back with Danielle). "Maybe there were a couple of celebs in there somewhere, but I'm not gonna say who!"
SEAN - Sean's private life has always been just that - private. However, after two years of living with J, Sean now shares a home with his girlfriend (dancer Suzanne Mole). The pair got together after she was a backing dancer on their 1999 tour. "I always liked blondes when I was little," admitted Sean in their first ever Smash Hits interview. Not much has changed since then!
RITCHIE - Ritchie's love life has been the most high-profile out of all the lads. In 1998, when Billie Piper got booed off-stage at the Smash Hits Poll Winners Party, Ritchie was happy to offer her a shoulder to cry on. The pair broke hearts all over the world when they announced they were in love. However, in the spring of 2001 (it was December 2000, really!) Billie ended their relationship via a text message. Since the split, Ritchie's had a brief on/off fling with the gorgeous Joanna Taylor from the TV soap Hollyoaks.
THE MISDEMEANORS - Never big on early nights, Five have got themselves into some outrageous situations over the years...
The pressures of touring took their toll on Ritchie and J in Dublin last Christmas. The pair were involved in a bar brawl after which J was charged with assault and being drunk and disorderly, while Ritchie got away with a fin for L3000 for disturbing the peace. The rest of the band joked about the incident by hanging handcuffs on their dressing room doors for the rest of the tour.
Abs has had a bit of a reputation as a fire starter and whilst recording We Will Rock You with Brian May in Ireland in 1999, he set his hotel room alight after a night out drinking. "It was just an accident with a cigar, " he claims. "I've even got a scar from it. Me and fires just don't mix. As soon as anyone sees me with a packet of matches, they panic." Scott's explanation of what happened is a lot simpler. "Abs happened!"
While on a promotional trip to Amsterdam, the lads got the shock of their lives in a local nightspot. "We ended up in this transsexual club," recalls Abs. "There were all these muscular women. It was so weird 'cos you look at them and think, 'She's kinda pretty'. Then you realise she's actually a he!"
The normally chirpy Scott lost his temper with some Five fans in 1998. A small group of them knocked at his door only to be met with a string of swear words and abuse. The naughty boy later apologised for his rude behavior.
Never one to hide his feelings, J has started pop feuds with everyone from a1 to N'Sync. The infamous battle of the boybands between Five and Westlife was called to a truce at last year's Poll Winners Party when Bryan appeared on stage wearing a Five t-shirt. The lads have since become great mates and infamously wrecked a hotel room together in Tel Aviv. However, some bands haven't been quite so lucky: "I'd like to skip over to America and shoot N'Sync! J once fumed.
