It would have been very hard to convince someone watching Girls Aloud being crowned the surprise winners of Popstars: The Rivals back in 2002 that the group would go on to become one of the greatest girl bands of all time. Or that they would turn pop on its head and have 21 top 10 singles – four of them number ones.
Yet, last night’s show, the band’s second of five performances at the O2 as part of a sold-out reunion tour, was a vivid and potent reminder that they are owners of the most scintillating collection of singles in British pop history – and also that their bubbly, fearless attitude was crucial to that success.
