Nadine Coyle and Cheryl Cole shared a sweet moment during their latest Girls Aloud performance when the Geordie singer was unable to sing her line.
Irish singer Nadine, 38, looked panicked as Cheryl, 40, tried to signal on stage that she needed to cover her next part during their Belfast SSE Arena show on Monday.
During the chorus of their iconic hit The Promise, Cheryl gently taps Nadine on the elbow who then pulls a face and nods that she will sing the line.
She then belts out: ‘If you wanna forgive me start again, if you wanna be with me in my arms…’
Fans speculated that Cheryl was perhaps not feeling well although it seems more likely that there was something not quite right with her microphone.
The sweet moment when panicked Nadine Coyle stepped in to cover Cheryl as she was unable to sing her line during the Girls Aloud show in Belfast on Monday
During the chorus of their hit The Promise, Cheryl can be seen signalling to Nadine to fill in for her. Fans were convinced Cheryl was ill, though it seems her mic wasn’t working properly
After recovering from the mishap, Nadine joined Cheryl, Kimberley and Nicola Roberts, 38, by throwing her arms up in the air ahead of the final chorus.
MailOnline has contacted Girls Aloud’s representatives for more information.
After recovering from the moment, Nadine joined Cheryl, Kimberley and Nicola Roberts, 38, by throwing her arms up in the air ahead of the final chorus.
The sweet moment was a poignant one because the ladies had a very public feud back in the day but it seems they have well and truly moved on.
Ten years ago, they performed the final gig of their 2013 comeback tour at Liverpool’s Echo Arena.
At the time, it was thought the decision was mutual but Nadine claimed she was ‘blindsided’ by the decision to break up and accused the others of ‘plotting’ behind her back.
She claimed she was only told just minutes before gong out on stage for the final performance of the Ten: The Hits Tour and none of the other girls had ‘breathed a word’.
She told The Mirror in 2014: ‘I didn’t want the band to end, it was as simple as that. I didn’t think we were going to end – we had done all the promo saying we were all together, having a great tour, wearing Victoria’s Secret wings and stomping up and down the catwalk every night, loving every single minute of it.
‘And then, on the very last night of the tour, our management and publicist came up to me and said the girls wanted to split up the band. I was thinking, “What?!” I was in hair and make-up, about to get into my costume, and the show was starting in 20 minutes.
During the moment, Nadine nodded at Cheryl to confirm she would sing for her before grimacing nervously but she pulled the moment off
Nadine looked nervous that she might forget the words before belting out: ‘If you wanna forgive me, start again, if you wanna be with me in my arms…’
The sweet moment was a poignant one because the ladies had a very public feud back in the day but it seems they have well and truly moved on
Nadine claimed she was ‘blindsided’ by the band’s decision to break up in 2013 and accused the others of ‘plotting’ behind her back but Cheryl later said she was ‘full of s***’
‘I was shocked. I went back to my make-up lady and told her, and was like, “F***! I don’t have a job! What am I going to do?” I screamed and cried on stage and off stage.’
Cheryl later hit back, telling Attitude magazine that Nadine was ‘full of s***’.
She said: ‘She was the one who wanted to make a solo record. Which is why we took the hiatus. She wants to come out and say we broke the band up? No! She shouldn’t tell porkie pies.
‘Okay, so do you want us to tell the truth? She wasn’t going to make another Girls Aloud record until she got a solo deal.
‘I feel she held us to ransom and then made her solo record deal. It’s the truth. She’s saying that we broke the band up. So there you go.’
Now all has been resolved, the band returned to the stage for the first time in 11 years for the first night of their reunion tour in Dublin on Friday following the death of the late Sarah Harding.
Original band member Sarah died aged 39 from breast cancer in 2021.
The stars formed the iconic girl band in 2002 after winning Popstars: The Rivals in 2002 and reunited with new music for their 10th anniversary in 2012. A second reunion for their 20th anniversary was planned but came as Sarah received her diagnosis.
Nadine and Cheryl previously supported one another performing this song on stage before as during the tour’s opening night.
They supportively held hands after a heartbreaking Sarah tribute was shown during their reunion concert.
The girl group’s opening night had their late bandmate at its centre with a rendition of The Promise which featured Sarah’s vocals as she was shown in old footage singing on the screen.
Nadine, Cheryl, Kimberley and Nicola turned around for the tribute to watch Sarah on the screen, with their backs to the audience.
Then then turned around after Sarah’s vocals on part of the song had finished as they carried on with the next part of the tune.
They then briefly held hands during the tough moment and Nicola continued with her part of the song.
Elsewhere the band made other sweet nods to Sarah including with their hit I’ll Stand By You set to a video of Sarah and her vocals, leaving fans in tears.
Before the ballad began, Nadine told the crowd: ‘We’re going to do a duet with Sarah tonight. It’s going to be us, Sarah, you. Lets do this together.’
Sarah’s vocals then began to play as her four bandmates sang live on stage alongside their late friend.
Keeping Sarah as the focus from the start until the end of the performance, the show began with hit Untouchable which was set against a backdrop of footage of Sarah displayed on pink curtains.
Later they performed Whole Lotta History, which was also dedicated to the late star.
Nicola reflected: ‘When we recorded this next song 19 years ago, we had no idea 19 years later it would become so poignant on our journey.’
Black and white footage of Sarah singing were then shown, followed by a emotional montage dedicated to the late star which read: ‘The darkest nights produce the brightest stars.’
Nadine and Cheryl have clearly healed their rift now a decade on
They supportively held hands after a heartbreaking Sarah tribute was shown during their reunion concert on Friday
And the girl group’s opening night had their late bandmate at its centre with a rendition of their iconic hit The Promise which featured Sarah’s vocals as she was shown in old footage singing on the screen
Nadine, Cheryl, Kimberley and Nicola turned around for the tribute to watch Sarah on the screen, with their backs to the audience but when they turned back Nadine looked emotional
Nadine, 38, looked particularly emotional as she turned back around, with her close pal Cheryl, 40, quickly noticing and offering a supportive hand on her back
They then briefly held hands during the tough moment and Nicola continued with her part of the song
They shared a tender moment after the emotional tribute to Sarah which played on the screens
They duetted with her vocals during first reunion concert as a four-piece in Dublin on Friday night
Elsewhere the band made other sweet nods to Sarah including with their hit I’ll Stand By You set to a video of Sarah and her vocals, leaving fans in tears
Sarah tragically died in September 2021 after a battle with breast cancer (pictured in 2017)
Holding back emotion, Kimberley told the audience: ‘Standing feeling all the emotions you’re feeling. I hope you know it means as much as it means you to you.’
Cheryl added: ‘Thank you for your support through everything we went through with Sarah. It’s hard to believe but it’s such a beautiful thing to be on stage with these ladies again.’
The stars formed the iconic girl band in 2002 after winning Popstars: The Rivals in 2002 and reunited with new music for their 10th anniversary in 2012. A second reunion for their 20th anniversary was planned but came as Sarah received her diagnosis.
Taking to Twitter after their first show, the band thanked fans as they wrote: ‘Show 1 done Dublin you were absolutely INCREDIBLE. What a start to the #TheGirlsAloudShow tour’.
Replying fans wrote: ‘amazing show! so entertaining, both fun and then also lots of beautiful tributes to Sarah ❤️ well done girls’.
‘You did Sarah proud! Love you all so much! See you next month’; ‘Absolutely smashed it, you all looked and sounded incredible too’; ‘I was in the front row, you were INCREDIBLE!’.
‘you’ve done Sarah so proud’; ‘You were amazing and Sarah would be so proud! Good luck with the rest of the tour.’
Others penned: ‘This is what you call a tribute. Taking out her demo vocals to showcase her incredible legacy is something only this band would do. Long reign Girls Aloud!’ and ‘If you see me crying in Cardiff at the Girls Aloud show, yes you did ‘cause Sarah Harding was a legend. RIP Queen,’;
‘What a beautiful tribute to Sarah. Girls aloud truly breathtaking. Girls be proud! Sarah will be. x,’;
‘Well this just broke my heart,’; ‘I’m honestly crying. We miss you Sarah,’;
‘this moment is going to be the end of me, my goodness… SARAH FOREVER ❤️❤️❤️,’;
‘Sarah tribute is so special, so nice to hear her voice part of the tour,’; ‘This is a moment wow.’
After two back-to-back opening nights in Dublin’s 3Arena, Girls Aloud will play two concerts at the SSE Arena in Belfast on Monday and Tuesday.
They will then head to the Manchester AO Arena from Thursday to Saturday.
In November, the group had to add six extra dates to their UK and Ireland 2024 arena tour due to ‘unprecedented demand’ following ticket pre-sales.
When they announced the tour, Cheryl revealed they had been discussing the plans for some time but put the idea on ice when Sarah – who died in September 2021 – was diagnosed with breast cancer.
She said: ‘We all started talking about the possibility of doing something to celebrate Girls Aloud’s 20-year anniversary a few years ago. The anniversary seemed like an obvious thing that we would celebrate.
‘But when Sarah fell ill all priorities changed. She passed away a year before the anniversary and it just didn’t feel right, it felt too soon.’
The group plan to use the tour to “celebrate” their late friend.
Cheryl added: ‘But now, I think there is an energy that does makes it feel right. It’s the right time to celebrate Sarah, it’s the right time to celebrate the band and the right time to celebrate the fact we can still do this 21 years later. That’s a big honour in lots of ways.’
Kimberley said: ‘Over the last year, we’ve felt this outpouring of love – obviously towards Sarah, but actually towards all of us as a group.
Black and white footage of Sarah singing were then shown, followed by a emotional montage dedicated to the late star which read: ‘The darkest nights produce the brightest stars’
Later they performed Whole Lotta History, which was also dedicated to the late star. Nicola reflected: ‘When we recorded this next song 19 years ago, we had no idea 19 years later it would become so poignant on our journey’
Nadine Coyle, Cheryl, Nicola Roberts, Kimberley Walsh and Sarah Harding formed the iconic band in 2002 after winning Popstars: The Rivals in 2002 (pictured)
Holding back emotion, Kimberley told the audience: ‘Standing feeling all the emotions you’re feeling. I hope you know it means as much as it means you to you’
‘And I guess it’s ignited something in all of us again. It feels like something has changed and it does feel like the right time to celebrate Sarah and the 20-year anniversary that we didn’t celebrate at the time.’
The group hope fans will enjoy the tour just as much as them.
Nadine said: ‘Girls Aloud are a band that made such a huge impact on people’s lives. We grew up with the band, but so did so many other people.
‘So for us not to do something again feels like such a shame and a waste. We want to have that moment with fans where we can all enjoy it together.’