Tony Hadley claims Spandau Ballet lied about leaving the band

Former Spandau Ballet lead singer Tony Hadley claims his reason for quitting was not because he no longer wanted to work with the group

Tony Hadley has claimed his ex-Spandau Ballet bandmates are lying about why he left the group in 2017.

The former lead singer of the new romantic group – who were at the height of their fame in the 1980s with hits like Gold and True – has included photos of the band as youngsters in his new book, My Life In Pictures.

In addition to Tony, the group also included brothers Gary and Martin Kemp, John Keeble and Steve Norman, and the five had been friends since they were 11.

Spandau did not record or tour from 1990 to 2009, while Tony pursued a solo career and the Kemp brothers turned their attention to acting – both playing infamous East End gangster twins Ronnie and Reggie in the movie The Krays.

Martin played as Steve Owen in EastEnders for four seasons from 1998 to 2002.

The band reunited after a 19-year hiatus, but Tony issued a statement on Twitter in July 2017, which read: “Due to circumstances beyond my control, it is with deep regret that I must announce that I am no longer a member am the band Spandau Ballet and as such I will no longer perform with the band in the future.”

In response, the other band members released a statement on the Spandau Ballet website, which read: “To our great frustration, Tony had made it clear in September 2016 that he no longer wanted to work with the band.

“That hasn’t changed and 2015 was the last time we were able to perform or work with him. So now we have made the decision to continue as a band.”

Ross William Wild later became Spandau’s new lead singer in 2018, but in May 2019 he also announced on Twitter that he had left the band, which has since been inactive.

Regarding his claim that his former bandmates lied about the reasons he left the group, Tony told The Sun: “I thanked the guys in the book.

“Now I have nothing to do with Spandau anymore. I wish they were honest and someone would ask them, ‘Why did your lead singer leave the band?’

“It’s not just like they’ve said in the past, ‘He didn’t want to do it anymore.’ That’s a lie.

“There’s a lot more to it than that. There’s no turning back, it’s sad for them, the fans, and there’s also a bit of sadness for me.

“We had some brilliant times but something happened. It’s not my place to say, it’s up to them and they have to be honest.”

Do you have a story to sell? contact us under webcelebs@mirror.co.uk or call us direct 0207 29 33033.