1997–1998: Formation S Club 7 were formed by
Simon Fuller after he was fired as manager of the
Spice Girls in November 1997. He described S Club 7 as a continuation of ideas he had for the Spice Girls, but with a softer, more uplifting image. The same songwriting team was used for both acts. Fuller placed an advert in
The Stage and held auditions with more than 10,000 applicants.
Jo O'Meara and
Paul Cattermole were spotted by producers from Fuller's company, 19 Management, and asked to audition. According to the journalist
Steven Poole, after Fuller's disagreements with the Spice Girls, he picked "the blandest, most malleable characters ... nice kids who wouldn't answer back". Once the lineup was decided, the members flew to Italy to become acquainted with each other. Stevens remarked that the group "felt comfortable with each other from the beginning". At one point they were nearly called Sugar Club.
1999–2000: Debut and success S Club 7 rose to fame in a children's television series,
Miami 7, first broadcast on
CBBC between April and July 1999. The members played fictional versions of themselves and went on adventures and performed a song in each episode. The use of the television show to publicise the group was likened to
the Monkees. S Club 7 released their debut single, "
Bring It All Back", on 9 June 1999, which
The Guardian likened to
the Jackson 5. S Club 7's debut album,
S Club, was released in October 1999. It reached number two in the
UK Albums Chart In September 1999, "
S Club Party" entered the UK charts at number two and number one in New Zealand. The double A-side with the ballad "
Two in a Million" and the uptempo "
You're My Number One", reached number two in the UK charts in December 1999.
Hasbro announced a licensing deal to create S Club 7 dolls. In April 2000, S Club's second television series,
L.A. 7 (renamed
S Club 7 in L.A. in the US), began airing. Later that year, S Club 7 starred in the television series
S Club 7 Go Wild!, in which they travelled the world raising awareness of
endangered species. "
Reach", another retro-styled uptempo track, was released as a single in May 2000 and reached number two on the UK charts. and gold in the US. The second single from the album, "
Natural", reached number three in September 2000. Alongside numerous other artists, they contributed vocals to a cover of
the Rolling Stones song "
It's Only Rock 'N' Roll" for Children's Promise, an alliance of seven children's charities. It entered the UK charts at number nineteen. In November 2000, S Club 7 recorded the ballad "
Never Had a Dream Come True", the year's official song for the
Children in Need charity campaign, which became a number one in the UK and a top-ten hit in the US. and became the seventh-best-selling single of 2001. It won
The Record of the Year and earned S Club 7 their second
BRIT Award, this time for best British single. S Club 7 donated more than £200,000 to Children in Need after it reached number one. On 20 March 2001, Cattermole, Lee and McIntosh were caught with
cannabis in
Covent Garden, London. They were cautioned by police at
Charing Cross Police Station and released without charge. They released an apology through their publicity firm.
BT and
Cadbury, who had sponsorship deals with S Club 7, said they were "disappointed" but kept their contracts with the group,
Pepsi signed a sponsorship deal with S Club 7 within a month of the caution. PMS, a merchandising company, sued the group for £800,000, claiming that the drugs scandal ruined its sales. After spending most of early 2001 rehearsing, the S Club Party 2001 tour began on 19 May 2001.
Hollywood 7 aired alongside a new
CBBC reality show,
S Club Search, which invited children to extend the S Club brand and audition to form a younger version of the group. The new group were to be chosen to sing with S Club 7 on
Children in Need 2001 and to tour with them on their future
S Club 7 Carnival 2002 tour. The winning children formed a new group,
S Club Juniors, and had six top-ten UK hits. In November, they recorded a second Children in Need single, "
Have You Ever", co-written by
Chris Braide and
Cathy Dennis. The performance on the night featured many primary school children who had pre-recorded their own versions of the chorus, including the first television appearance by S Club Juniors. The single became the S Club 7's fourth number one The third single from
Sunshine, "
You", reached number two in the UK. He later described frustration with the S Club 7 management, and said that "things were being handled so badly, I had to go". Cattermole stayed with S Club 7 until June 2002, featuring in four episodes of their final television series,
Viva S Club. His final concert before his departure was
Party at the Palace, part of
Queen Elizabeth II's
Golden Jubilee celebrations. Skua failed to secure a record deal. "
Alive", S Club's first single without Cattermole, reached number five on the UK Singles Chart,
2003: Film and breakup In April 2003, S Club released their first feature film,
Seeing Double, a
children's fantasy, in which the group fought the evil scientist Victor Gaghan in his quest to clone the world's pop stars. The film's release was marred by rumours that the group were about to split, which they denied. According to Spearritt, of the
€75 million the group had made for Fuller, whilst the members had received €150,000 each a year. The group members travelled economy on flights and prepared their own food and laundry when working abroad. Spearritt's parents reportedly hired lawyers to collect payments owed to them by Fuller and his management company. Ten days after the release of
Seeing Double, during their
S Club United tour on 21 April 2003, S Club announced on stage that they were breaking up. Fans expressed anger after S Club had denied rumours of a split only weeks prior. Their final single was a double A-side, coupling "
Love Ain't Gonna Wait for You", from their fourth album
Seeing Double, with a new ballad, "
Say Goodbye", released on 26 May, which reached number two in the UK. Her debut solo album,
Funky Dory, reached number nine on the UK Albums Chart and was certified gold. In 2004, Spearritt acted in the films
Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London and
Seed of Chucky, and played the lead role of Abby Maitland for five series of the ITV science fiction series
Primeval. After leaving the show, O'Meara denied that she was racist and said that the show's editing had misconstrued her behaviour. In 2008, O'Meara, Cattermole and McIntosh began performing at British nightclubs, universities and holiday camps as S Club 3, joined occasionally by other former members. On 28 April 2015, S Club 7 reissued
Best: The Greatest Hits of S Club 7, with a previously unreleased song, "Rain", as well as "Friday Night" from the
S Club album. In May, S Club 7 performed in UK arenas on the
Bring It All Back 2015 tour. By December 2017, the group had reverted to a trio once more and released the single, "Family". In 2019, Cattermole said that Fuller, not the group members, had been signed to Polydor as S Club 7. The members were merely affiliates and received "pittance" from merchandise. In January 2023, Spearritt said she had been forced into homelessness, living in four temporary homes over a six-month period.
2023–present: Second reunion and death of Cattermole On 13 February 2023, S Club 7 announced on
The One Show that they would reunite for a two-week 25th-anniversary tour that October. On 6 April, at age 46, Cattermole died of several heart conditions: cardiac arrhythmia, acute
myocardial ischemia and severe
coronary artery atheroma and intraplaque
haemorrhage. Following his death,
Best: The Greatest Hits of S Club 7 reached number seven on the Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100. On 14 May, the group announced they had changed their name back to S Club and that Spearritt would not join them on their coming tour, which they would honour as the Good Times Tour as a tribute to Cattermole. Though Lee said Spearritt remained a member, other sources reported that she had left. On 30 June, "Don't Stop Movin" entered the vinyl charts at number one. On 26 July, S Club released their first new single in more than 20 years, "
These Are the Days", in memory of Cattermole. It was written and produced by S Club's original songwriting team; Barrett described it as "a nod to our old sound". Spearritt did not take part, saying she was still too upset by Cattermole's death. The group partnered with the
British Heart Foundation to raise awareness of heart conditions and raise funds for research. The Good Times Tour began on 12 October at the
Manchester Arena, with the group paying tribute to Cattermole. A review noted that the members may have been
lip syncing during some of their UK tour performances. The group also announced their first ever North American tour as a second leg of their Good Times tour. S Club performed at the
2023 Jingle Bell Ball on 10 December. On 7 March 2024, a new version of the song "Good Times", featuring McIntosh and Lee on lead vocals, was released on digital platforms in honour of Cattermole's birthday. In February 2026, it was announced the group would serve as supporting act for
Boyzone, as part of their "Two for the Road" event at London's
Emirates Stadium. They will support the 5 June concert. ==Musical style==