S Club 8

2001–2002: Formation and Together S Club Juniors was formed in 2001 through a CBBC reality television show, S Club Search, and originally was supposed to consist of seven members aged 11–14. S Club Juniors were intended to be a one-time support act to pop group S Club 7, who were the inspiration behind the group. Thousands of children auditioned, and were whittled down in several rounds. Notable people who also auditioned for S Club Search included Rylan Clark, Ferne Mccann, and Lorna Want. The 14 children who made the final round met S Club 7, who helped judge the finalists. As he was unable to make the audition date, eventual member Jay Asforis sent a video tape of himself to the producers, and was immediately put into the final round. The first seven members chosen were Asforis, Calvin Goldspink, Daisy Evans, Stacey McClean, Rochelle Wiseman, Francesca Sandford and Connor Daley. All were aged 11–12. The producers of the show and S Club 7 discussed two other candidates who had impressed them: 13-year-old Aaron Renfree and 10-year-old Hannah Richings. It was decided to make S Club Juniors a nine-member group. Shortly after, the group went into rehearsals, taught by choreographer Gary Lloyd and vocal coaches David and Carrie Grant. In the later stages of rehearsals, three weeks before their support act slot at Wembley Arena, Daley was removed from the group. S Club Juniors' appearances were considered a success by 19 Entertainment, the management company that had created S Club 7 and auditioned S Club Juniors. Consequently, it was decided they should perform as a support act at all of the venues on the tour. The juniors made their first television appearance on Children in Need on 16 November 2001. By the end of the tour, S Club Juniors had created a following and Polydor Records signed the group. Their first single was called "One Step Closer". It was promoted by the TV series S Club Junior: The Story, and released in the UK on 22 April 2002, staying in the UK chart for eleven weeks. The group began working on their first album in June 2002. A video for the second single, "Automatic High", was filmed in Spain, while S Club 7 began their fourth TV series. Released on 22 July 2002, the single reached number 2 in the UK charts. The third single, "New Direction", was released on 10 October and also reached number 2. BBC1’s The Saturday Show ran a karaoke competition to find a member of the public to perform “New Direction” alongside The Juniors. The winner, 14-year-old Aidan Salter, later appeared on the junior version of Stars In Their Eyes and went on to compete on The X Factor under the name Aidan Martin. The Juniors then released their debut album Together on 21 October reaching number 5. Their fourth single, "Puppy Love/Sleigh Ride", was released on 9 December 2002. The single debuted at number 6 in the UK charts. The song was also used in the 2003 film Love Actually. 2003–2023: Sundown, I Dream, split, The Big Reunion, Instagram live series The group joined the S Club United tour in April 2003, billed as S Club 8, releasing a fifth single, "Fool No More", on 30 June. It reached number 4 in the UK chart. A second single, "Sundown", was released in the UK on 29 September 2003 reaching number 4 in the UK. The album, Sundown, was released on 13 October 2003 and reached number 13. The record company perceived the album as a failure. In a review for BBC Music, Jack Smith stated that some of Sundowns tracks, "come across as brattier, livelier, younger relatives of... S Club('s)", and that "the album only really flags when the '8 attempt to do more grown-up songs". The third single, "Don't Tell Me You're Sorry", was released on 29 December 2003 in the UK where it reached number 11. After this, the band turned to acting and were cast in the show, I Dream which portrayed S Club 8 as members of a larger ensemble cast. Despite the show being tailored around them, every member of S Club 8 still had to audition. I Dream revolved around the summer school Avalon Heights, run by Professor Toone (played by Christopher Lloyd of Back to the Future fame), where the characters tried to improve their talents in the performing arts. On 15 November 2004, the show's theme tune "Dreaming" was released as a single, sung by members Sandford and Goldspink. The single charted at number 19. On 29 November 2004 an album titled Welcome to Avalon Heights was released, containing songs from the show performed by S Club 8 members and the rest of the cast. The album debuted at number 133. The group disbanded in 2005. In 2012, member Franks revealed that the band had been “so close to being part of” ITV’s The Big Reunion. Member Renfree also spoke about the show on an Instagram live, citing that once member Goldspink had later decided to not take part, that the band were dropped from the potential lineup. In 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdown, member Asforis (now Perry) held an Instagram live series, interviewing the other seven members in turn over the course of seven weeks. In 2023, when S Club reunited for The Good Times tour, many fans asked if S Club 8 would also be reuniting. Members Franks and Renfree held an Instagram Live Q&A to confirm that S Club 8 had not been asked to reunite for the tour. Both Franks and Renfree encouraged fans to “make some noise” in support, to encourage a paid opportunity for a professional reunion. A petition was started shortly after, aiming for an initial 500 signatures. As of 2025, it has garnered 324 signatures. ==Members==