STARRY, STARRY NIGHT

"Take That will stay together for as long as you want us!!"

When Take That (minus Bob) did a full dress rehearsal in Manchester for their last tour, FF's Andrew sneaked his way in...

From the very first firework, it was clear that Take That's summer shows were going to be explosive. Jason was lowered down from the roof, Mark was brought on on a bed and Gary and Howard slid down some poles!

They kicked off with Relight My Fire wearing crowns and capes. Then they reappeared on stage in two huge white American classic cars - Howard jumped out of the driver's seat and let the other out from the boot! Dressed in silver space outfits they whipped through Every Guy.

The biggest surprise was when the four lads played instruments for a rock tribute - they sang Pink Floyd's classic Another Brick in the Wall and Nirvana's excellent Smells Like Teen Spirit.

For Babe, Mark appeared at the top of the stage dressed in a page boy outfit, looking like Little Lord Fontleroy. Four violinists in huge powdery wig played while he sang his stuff. The Crimbo chart topper left not a dry eye in the house - even their big beefy bouncers were reaching for the Kleenex!

Even though Robbie's left you'd never have known - all four sang Everything Changes and Could It Be Magic together. But they took the time to dispel all the rumours - they wouldn't replace Robbie, they were still best buddies with him and that they wouldn't split up after the tour.

"Take That will stay together for as long as you want us," said Howard, before launching into their finale amid all the screams.

Gary whipped a screaming girlie from the audience to sing A Million Love Songs, before four angels appeared for Pray.

Then it was time to bring on about a zillion singers to help the boys with the latest number one chart-topper Never Forget.

They might be a foursome, but it was their best show yet!

Rockin': Another Brick in the Wall was originally a hit for crusty rockers Pink Floyd. It's Gary's favourite song and he played it non-stop at his ninth birthday "do"!

Lulu's loss!: Disco diva Lulu was unable to make the tour, so the boys drafted in their other fave girlie singer Juliet Roberts to strut her stuff on Relight My Fire.

Groovy Gaz!: All the dance routines had to be replanned when Robbie left. It meant Gary, who doesn't really dig dancing, had to step in and take some of Rob's fiddly moves.

Crikey!: The stage set cost #2 million (gulp!), includes a lift and two moving staircases and takes over 14 hours to build.

Trendy clobber!: The funky stage costumes, including gold tight pants and angel wings were designed by students at London fashion colleges.

Chill out!: Before each show, Mark does an hour of spooky meditation to relax himself.

Big Boy now!: Howard plays the drums on stage for one song - the last time he did that was when he was in the Boys Brigade.

THE SONGS THEY SING: Relight My Fire, Sunday to Saturday, Hate It, Lady Tonight, Babe, Every Guy Needs a Girl Like You, Why Can't I Wake Up With You, Sure, Back for Good, Another Brick in the Wall, Smells Like Teen Spirit, Could It Be Magic, I Found Heaven, It Only Takes a Minute, Everything Changes, Holding Back The Tears, The Day After Tomorrow, Pray, Never Forget

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