This time two decades ago, Girls Aloud were still a distant twinkle in music mogul Louis Walsh's eye - a girl group power house put together on Pop Stars: The Rivals in December 2002.
And their 20th anniversary this year should have been cause for celebration. But with the death of bandmate Sarah Harding still so fresh, there will be no reunion. Instead, a heartbroken Nadine Coyle, Kimberley Walsh, Nicola Roberts and Cheryl will come together to remember their friend and her bravery in the face of a late breast cancer diagnosis.
Despite various fall outs in the years since their 2012 split, the group immediately rallied around Sarah as soon as they learned of her illness.
Putting their differences to one side, the five-piece enjoyed a girls weekend at Soho Farmhouse in the Cotswolds, where they laughed, cried and watched their 2006 reality docuseries, Girls Aloud: Off The Record.
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In her book, Hear Me Out, Sarah admitted she was nervous about seeing all her bandmates together for the first time in eight years.
"I was picturing them all turning up looking fabulous and glamorous, while I looked … well, like I did. Not myself. Not my best," she wrote.
"It’s not that I thought they wouldn’t understand or be judgemental, of course; it’s just that when we were together as a group, part of our thing was the glamour."
As Sarah's cancer tragically refused to respond to treatment, she and the group grew closer than ever. And when Sarah sadly passed away on September 5 last year aged just 39, all four were devastated.
A grief-stricken Cheryl pulled out of a headline slot at Birmingham Pride weeks later, explaining that she was not "emotionally, physically or mentally able to perform".
"My heart is heavy. Grief is such a harsh experience and an absolute rollercoaster of emotions. Questions without answers and pain without resolve. So tumultuous and constant," she told fans on social media in a heartfelt apology.
Nadine - who turns 38 today - remained close to Sarah after the band split, and explained how, despite her grief, she had no choice but to carry on working because her calendar had been booked out before anyone realised the end was coming.
But while filming Irish musical talent show Last Singer Standing just days later, she experienced a series of odd goings-on that she believes were from Sarah.
"I was so close to her in life. There's definitely been things, she's made her presence known a few times. As I was shooting the show, it was right in the middle of it all and people were being so kind," she told The Ryan Tubridy Show on RTE Radio 1.
"There was a couple of days when the headphones just flew across the table and it happened three days in a row and the makeup girls were saying, 'that has to be Sarah'.
"One night something flew off the shelf. I was like, 'Is this Sarah?' I'm still thinking she's going to phone."
Meanwhile, unpacking the grief was an incredibly raw experience for Nicola, 36, who found it impossible to open up to anyone outside the group.
She would often end up feeling 'infuriated' because people 'didn't get it', and instead retreat into herself.
"I’m very much somebody who needs to process stuff by myself so I will just sort of go quiet and process it as much as I can alone. Some people might say that’s really unhealthy and some people need to just talk and talk and talk it out," she told Laura Whitmore's Hear Her Voice podcast.
"I’m not one of them people because, it’s hard as well because only the other four know.
"So you’re talking to people who weren’t there. And they might ask a question which really infuriates you at the time because you think how can you not understand that? What perspective has that even come from?"
As for Kimberley, 30, while her agony has been a 'daily challenge', she made her it focus to 'check in' on others, including Sarah's mum Marie, who devoted herself to her daughter's care.
But she still struggles with a sense of denial and fears she may never truly come to terms with the loss.
“Until you’re actually experiencing something like this with somebody who was close to you, it’s impossible to imagine what it’s going to feel like," she told Psychologies.
“And I honestly still can’t work out how you ever truly accept it."
One good thing has come out of the ashes of their heartbreak though, and that is the repair of their once-fractured friendship.
For years, Cheryl, Nicola and Kimberley remained firm friends, while Nadine insisted she had only ever been their colleague.
But when Cheryl reportedly reached out to organise a tribute to Sarah, her former nemesis Nadine is said to have been the first to reply.
According to a source, the pair have “gained a lot of perspective with everything that’s happened”, and realised it’s “not worth holding grudges”.
Now plans have been unveiled for an event to raise money in memory of Sarah. The girls are hoping to raise enough for a piece of medical equipment that will diagnose cancer earlier
And in a rare Instagram live, Cheryl said they're also going to join forces for Race For Life in London's Hyde Park on July 24.
Cheryl said: "Around this time last year when Sarah was really sick we were all desperately trying to find ways to help her, comfort her, you feel so helpless in times like that and one of the only things she really wanted was a gala dinner.
"While that's underway we felt like we could be doing more and we decided to do a Race for Life for Sarah at Hyde Park on the 24th of July and I know so many of you wanted to support her, you were helping her all the way through her illness and we'd really love it if you could join us there."
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