Take That lit up London during their headline performance at the British Summer Time (BST) event in Hyde Park on Saturday, July 1, with a spectacular concert full of surprises.
Gary Barlow, Mark Owen and Howard Donald came together for their only UK live date of 2023 in London's Hyde Park - marking their first concert in four years and some 30 years since the group enjoyed their first Top 10 hit, It Only Takes A Minute.
Kicking off the show with The Flood, taken from their 2010 album Progress, the trio kept the 70,000-strong crowd entertained with a mix of high-energy numbers and heartfelt ballads, all brought to life with an army of dancers, pyrotechnics, multi-coloured confetti and a host of special guests.
Britain's Got Talent star Calum Scott joined Gary, Mark and Howard for a performance of 2008 hit Greatest Days, re-worked for the band's musical film of the same name, out now in cinemas, and coming to Prime Video later this year.
Officially the nicest guys in pop, Take That then gave Calum his own time to shine in the spotlight, with Mark saying: "We thought we couldn't be here tonight in the middle of Hyde Park without asking Calum to sing for us, the song that introduced him and his beautiful voice to the world,' with Calum clearly overwhelmed as he sang his hit Dancing On My Own.
However, Calum was not the only special guest and fans were shocked during the performance of Relight My Fire when Gary brought out Scottish singing legend Lulu to reprise her original powerhouse vocal on the 1993 disco hit.
It wouldn't be a Take That show without the boys enjoying some chatter with their fans, with the trio reading out a number of humorous banners on display such as "This song is older than us" and "I left my husband in hospital to be here".
But there was one message that really caught Take That's attention, as Howard read out: "Today is my greatest day, I made it through cancer", with the band dedicating 2008 song The Garden to cancer survivor Laura.
As the hits kept coming - and the crowd kept singing - it was clear Gary, Mark and Howard did not take their 30-year success for granted.
"This is our first proper show since I think 2019, how amazing that we can do this because a few years ago we couldn’t do things like this so we really appreciate that you’re all coming out again seeing shows," said Mark.
Before performing 2006 hit Patience, former X Factor judge Gary enjoyed a moment of nostalgia: "In the middle of this 30 years, we didn’t perform together, we weren’t a band at all. So when we did eventually come back, we were amazed to see this amazing audience waiting to see us again.
"And oh my goodness did we need a song at that point, it’s so funny because after all the years of being together, we finally learnt to work as a team. We went in the studio and wrote this next song we are about to sing, it’s the song that brought us back."
Following a rousing rendition of Never Forget - the song that has become Take That's anthem - the concert closed on Rule The World, with the band literally 'lighting up the sky' with a fantastic firework finale bringing an end to what was simply the greatest day.
Take That have since taken to Twitter to thank BST Hyde Park for a show they will 'never forget':
What a day we had at @BSTHydePark! Thanks for a show we'll never forget 💙📸 @callumshots Dave Hogan pic.twitter.com/yF4gTtq6tgJuly 3, 2023
You can watch the Take That-inspired movie Greatest Days in cinemas now. The film is also coming to Prime Video later this year.
