Girls Aloud left pop fans (and indeed fellow member Nadine Coyle) devastated when they announced they were splitting back in March 2013.
After 10 years at the top of the pop tree, the group broke the news with an update on Twitter following the conclusion of their Ten tour.
Just hours later, a clearly upset Nadine posted her own tweet, ensuring fans knew she had “no part in any of this split business”.
It was just one of the many iconic moments the group served up during their time as a band, but there is now hope the girls could be about to make some more together.
Kimberley Walsh has hinted that she, Cheryl Tweedy, Nadine Coyle, Nicola Roberts and Sarah Harding could reunite to celebrate the band’s 20th anniversary in 2022.
With the excitement of a possible reunion in the air, we’re taking a look back at the moments that earned them their place in pop culture history...
1. Sarah’s reaction when she realises she’s in the band
After weeks of competition, Popstars The Rival all boiled down to this moment. And what a moment it was.
2. Sarah hits the mother of all bum notes
It happened 11 years ago, but the sound of Sarah singing completely the wrong note during a performance of The Loving Kind on GMTV still makes us wince.
3. Cheryl is NOT up for climbing to the highest point in Greece
Girls Aloud’s E4 fly-on-the-wall documentary served us many iconic moments, but Cheryl’s dislike of sightseeing was undoubtedly a real highlight.
Moaning and groaning as girls tried to reach a viewing point during a trip to Greece, an increasingly irate Chezza delivered some classic one-liners.
Our favourite? Well, let’s just say she is not impressed when she discovers “the people do no have the fookin poop n scoop rule”.
4. Nicola ain’t bovvvered
After Busted guitarist Matt Willis branded her a “rude ginger bitch” (charming), Nicola responded by getting his words emblazoned on a mini-skirt, proving she was not an girlbander to be messed with.
The fact she was also rocking some serious crimping also adds something a little extra special.
5. Cheryl won’t let Ashley trick her twice
The narrative around Cheryl in the wake of then-husband Ashley Cole’s much-publicised infidelities was very much one of a victim, with many questioning her choice to take him back.
Chezza took that criticism and turned it on its head with this subtle dig during the Tangled Up tour, thanks to a couple of lines borrowed from Kelis.
6. Sarah’s Brit Awards acceptance speech
The girls finally won their first Brit Award in 2009 when The Promise picked up Best Single, and after Kimberley gave the usual thanks to management and their label, Sarah grabbed the mic and shouted “Can I just say, it’s about timmmeee!... I think I just wet myself.”
And that is why we heart the Harding.
7. The girls go on a ghosthunt
Cheryl wasn’t exactly convinced about the paranormal when the band signed up to appear on ITV2′s Ghosthunting With..., but she soon learned the hard way not to mess with ghosts.
8. Nadine’s post-split tweet
After the girls decided to end the group with a tweet (it still cuts deep), Nadine wanted to distance herself as far as she could from “this split business” in her own sassy post on the social networking site.
9. Nadine skipping the Brits because she’d lost her passport... again
Long-term fans will know that way before Nadine was part of Girls Aloud, she involved in a now-iconic incident involving a passport.
Fast-forward nine years, and she managed to “misplace” it once again, meaning the other girls were forced to attend the 2008 Brit Awards as a four piece.
10. Hey Dolls
We know celebrity dolls are never exactly great, but these were particularly bad.
11. Cheryl ‘looks like a dickhead’
Another classic from their Off The Record series saw Cheryl kick off at her team when she realised Nadine had been sent to wardrobe ahead of a TV appearance, while she’d had to wear her own clothes.
12. Cheryl starts her beef with Nicole Scherzinger
Remember the days when Cheryl had no hesitation about telling everyone exactly what she thought? We miss those days.
Someone who probably doesn’t though is Nicole Scherzinger, was Chezza was less than complimentary about her during an interview way back when.
However, karma came back to bite her when Cheryl lost her job on X Factor USA in 2011, only to be replaced by – you guessed it – Nicole Scherzinger.
13. The girls fall victim to Ant and Dec
In one of Ant and Dec’s most memorable Undercover sketches, Girls Aloud were led to believe they were taking part in a religious daytime talk show fronted by two nuns.
Highlights include Cheryl reading the joke of the day (“how do you shock a nun? Tell her she’s pregnant…”), the girls trying their best to link Love Machine to Jesus, and Nicola’s clear disdain for the whole experience.
14. Little Girls Aloud
Baby Nicola’s mum was played by Cilla Black. Need we say more?