S Club 7 took to Instagram on May 14 to pay tribute to band member Paul Cattermole, who tragically died at the age of 46, and fill fans in on the status of their upcoming tour. The ’90s-’00s pop group behind hits like “S Club Party” and “Don’t Stop Movin'” announced this year they would be heading on a tour of the UK and Ireland. All seven members of the group were set to return to the stage, including Rachel Stevens, Tina Barrett, Hannah Spearritt, Jo O’Meara, Bradley McIntosh, Jon Lee, and Cattermole.
The band, who will now go by the name of S Club, posted the video on social media, speaking of their “brother Paul” and how they have been taking time to process the devastating news. “You’ve probably noticed that there’s only five of us here today, and although Hannah will always be part of S Club 7 she won’t be joining us on this tour,” Lee said in the video. “We wish her all the best for the future.”
Spearritt and Cattermole dated while they were in the group together for five years, splitting in 2006. They briefly reconciled in 2015, before splitting again. As such, Spearritt has taken the decision to not continue on the S Club tour following Cattermole’s death.
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“It’s just really sad, it’s really really hard to process it right now,” Barrett says in the video, while McIntosh adds: “No one could ever replace our Paul, but he lives on inside each and every one of us.” Visibly emotional, the band explained they are renaming the tour “The Good Times Tour” in honor of Cattermole, who was going to be singing that song, and will be going by the band name S Club.
The band confirmed the tragic news of their friend’s passing on social media on April 7. “We are truly devastated by the passing of our brother Paul. There are no words to describe the deep sadness and loss we all feel. We were so lucky to have had him in our lives and are thankful for the amazing memories we have,” S Club said in a tweet. “He will be so deeply missed by each and every one of us. We ask that you respect the privacy of his family and of the band at this time.”
According to the BBC, Cattermole was found dead at his home in Dorset on April 7. On May 18, it was announced he died by natural causes.
S Club 7 first hit the limelight with their ABC Family show “S Club 7 in Miami,” which followed the group relocating to Miami to find fame. The theme song, “Bring It All Back,” was their first UK No. 1 single. They went on to score four more No. 1s in the UK and sold 10 million albums worldwide, inspiring spinoff group, S Club Juniors. Despite Cattermole leaving the group in 2002, they continued as S Club (minus the “7” in their name) before eventually splitting a year later. The band previously reunited for a reunion tour in 2015.
