Five fans were left delighted this week when the chart-topping boy band announced they were reforming with the full lineup for the first time in 25 years.
Abz Love, 45, Ritchie Neville, 45, Scott Robinson, 45, Sean Conlon, 43, and J Brown, 48, were one of the UK’s biggest boybands before they split in 2001.
Part of their success came from being known as the ‘bad boys of pop’ a label that stuck after they featured on ITV’s Neighbours From Hell in 1998.
The group moved in together on a quiet street in Surrey after they were formed but left their neighbours furious with their antics.
On the show, the boys were screen screaming and playfighting at all hours, with their exasperated neighbours claiming the group were a ‘nightmare’ to live next door to.
‘They’ll be up in the toilet discussing who did what in the toilet, they didn’t care, didn’t have a worry in the world!’ one neighbour claimed.
Notorious show Neighbours From Hell show rocketed Five to fame in 1998 and earned them their ‘bad boys of pop’ status (pictured: Sean Conlon, Abz Love and Ritchie Neville)
The group moved in together on a quiet street in Surrey after they were formed but left their neighbours furious with their antics (pictured Scott Robinson)
Neighbours From Hell aired in the Nineties and featured fed up members of the public lamenting their living situations
The neighbour continued: ‘They have got loads of bloody attitude, if you can get to the top of the charts with attitude then yeah they’ll do it, if they can get to top of the charts with their voices, no way!
‘They will just bawl and shout at each other, going up and down the stairs at 90 miles per hour with those big boots on, slamming doors.
‘I would just lay there thinking why can’t they just sit in the lounge and talk among themselves? But they never spoke, they would just holler at each other.
‘Who do you think you are?’
Revealing how their TV cameo came to be, manager Chris Herbert revealed on the recent Boybands Forever documentary that he moved the boys into a shared home a week after signing them so they could bond.
‘If it was to be authentic these lads needed to look like they knocked around together for years,’ he explained.
Simon Cowell then suggested they document the process so they’d have footage of where the band began.
Chris continued: ‘Simon being Simon, looking at this footage he thought – Neighbours From Hell!
‘Neighbours From Hell was getting massive viewing figures so we put a package together of all their stuff and they jumped at it
‘It was laddish behaviour and it played into everything we were trying to do, to give them an image.’
The band had achieved a No. 10 single with Slam Dunk (Da Funk) before their TV appearance but after gaining a wider audience, their next single, When The Lights Go Out, reached No. 4.
On the show, the boys were screen screaming and playfighting at all hours, with their exasperated neighbours claiming the group were a ‘nightmare’ to live next door to
One neighbour claimed: ‘They have got loads of bloody attitude, if you can get to the top of the charts with attitude then yeah they’ll do it, if they can get to top of the charts with their voices, no way!’ (pictured: J Brown)
A neighbour added: ‘They will just bawl and shout at each other, going up and down the stairs at 90 miles per hour with those big boots on, slamming doors’
Two decades on and the group have calmed down with their wild antics, but have promised to still bring the energy to their tour.
The tour will kick off in Brighton on Friday, 31 October 2025, before traveling across the country with shows in Bournemouth, Cardiff, Nottingham, Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, Newcastle, Aberdeen and Glasgow, as well as London’s The O2.
Announcing the news on social media on Thursday, the group wrote: ‘It’s true, the five of us are reuniting for a tour across the UK!!’
They continued: ‘This has been a long time coming and it really does feel right for all of us now – 25 years on and we’re so ready for it.
‘We really can’t wait to get back on stage together and see you all in person, it’s gonna go OFF!! Let’s goooooo!
‘Tickets go on sale Friday 7 March. Sign up at itsfiveofficial.com for special access to presale tickets on Wednesday.
‘International fans, make sure to sign up there so we know where in the world you are too.’
Fans were left giddy by the news, flocking to the comment section to share their excitement.
Five fans were delighted this week when the chart-topping boy band announced they were reforming with the full lineup for the first time in 25 years (L- Ritchie, Scott, J, Sean and Abz)
Speaking about the reunion, Scott said: ‘This has been a long time coming and it really does feel right for all of us now – 25 years on and we’re so ready for it.
‘Reconnecting as a 5 over the last year has been special and I know I speak for all the boys when I say we can’t wait to do this all over again. Hope you’re ready!!’
Abz added: ‘We really can’t wait to get back on stage together & see the fans, it’s gonna go OFF! Buzzing to have Naughty Boy on tour with us too…
‘5 bad boys and a naughty boy, that sounds like a lot of fun. Let’s gooooo!’
The news also came a 25 years after Five won their first BRIT Award for Best British Pop Act.
Five have been teasing their comeback on social media for the past few days and created a new website and Instagram, both stating ‘27.2.25 Loading…’
On Tuesday night, the Instagram account posted a picture of a conversation between the band starting with J, who has created his first ever Instagram profile, commenting: ‘Mic check… is this thing on?,’ adding ‘Five bad boys are coming to rock’, a lyric from the band’s song Everybody Get Up.
Formed in 1997, Five went on to sell more than 20 million records worldwide.
Charting in over 20 countries, Five are the only UK act to hit the Top 10 with all of their 11 singles, including three No.1.
Tickets to Five’s Keep On Movin’ 2025 Tour go on general sale on Friday, 7 March at 10am via www.itsfiveoffical.com.
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