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L-R: Kimberly Wyatt, Jessica Sutta, Nicole Scherzinger, Ashley Roberts, Carmit Bachar

 

 

 

 

The Pussycat Dolls reunion was supposed to be top secret.

Rumours had been swirling for several months, but journalists were under instruction not to confirm anything ahead of the group's surprise reunion performance on X Factor: Celebrity this weekend.

Louis Walsh, however, may have missed the memo.

"You know who's coming on? The Pussycat Dolls are the special guests!" he told Lorraine Kelly during a live TV interview on Monday. "There's an exclusive for you. They're back together."


"Half the time, Louis doesn't even know what he's talking about, so I was just surprised he got that one right," laughs his co-judge Nicole Scherzinger, lead singer of the Dolls.

"You could see in his face though," adds Carmit Bachar. "After he said it, he was like 'did I just drop the ball?'"

It's now officially announced that Nicole and Carmit, along with Ashley Roberts, Kimberly Wyatt and Jessica Sutta, are all set to return for nine live UK shows in April 2020.

"It's been a few years in the making," explains Kimberly. "But I think ultimately there's some unfinished business with the Pussycat Dolls. Image caption The Pussycat Dolls had UK number one hits with Stickwithu and Don't Cha

"We're ready to get out there and do what we love. And the stars aligned. We've all been busy making babies and all those kinds of things," she adds (before Nicole interjects: "Speak for yourself!").

The Dolls broke up relatively early, in 2010, having released just two albums. And it's not as if their star was fading at the time they split.

They'd scored number one hits in the UK with Stickwitu and Don't Cha, while Jai Ho, Beep, Buttonz and When I Grow Up all hit the top 10 over their five years together.

Nonetheless, the group splintered off for various solo projects, but all have kept strong links with the UK.

Kimberly now lives in London with her British husband. Ashley appeared on Strictly and I'm A Celebrity and now presents on Heart radio. Nicole has performed in the West End, judged on X Factor and topped the UK singles chart with one of her solo hits, Don't Hold Your Breath.

"LA was our home, but the UK was our second home because the British just scooped us up," says Ashley. "So our lives ended up here as well, some of us, so the fans have just been holding on strong with wanting this reunion and our biggest fanbase is over here."

One member - Melody Thornton - is notably absent from the reunion, amid suggestions that she was requesting a larger share of the singing parts. Nicole sang 95% of the group's vocals across their first two albums, by her own admission.