'We were a train crash": 5ive talk tears, breakdowns and anger on The Big Reunion

'We were a train crash": 5ive talk tears, breakdowns and anger on The Big Reunion

Pop group 5ive - AKA everyone's favourite Nineties boyband (apart from Take That. And Boyzone. And Westlife. Oh dear...) - have told how life in the band was "mental" and describe it as a "train wreck".

In scenes from ITV2's brilliant new show The Big Reunion, which sees bands including Liberty X, Atomic Kitten and B*Witched reform, the boys reveal how behind their fresh faces and cool hair cuts lay anger, exhaustion and a whole lot of attitude.

“On stage we were the best ever. Off stage we were a train wreck," says Scott, who now has two children. We know - someone who used to have that ridiculous spiky hair managed to procreate. Go figure.

He adds: "Life in 5ive was mental. It was five years of very hard work.

"You see the inside of a hotel room, an airport, a radio studio. It’s hard.”

Band mate Abz addz: "I know there were times when one of them would be p*ssed off with another one (in the band). There’d be fights going off.”

The way they were

Billie Piper's ex-boyfriend Richie agrees, saying: “We were difficult, bordering on being ar*eholes. We were delinquents.”

Life was particularly hard for 5ive-r Sean, who reveals that he left the group after suffering a breakdown - although at the time it was explained as 'glandular fever'.

Sean says: “I remember looking in the mirror and thinking to myself, 'Who is that?' I didn’t know myself and I just had the strongest feeling that no matter what happens no matter how much money they throw at me I’ve got to find Sean. Otherwise I make thousands of pounds but I’d be spending it all on therapy.

“I just wanted a week off from being Scott from 5ive. I was on the edge. We quit at our peak, we were number one at the time and we jumped ship.”

Richie also recalls the moment that he knew it was all over after Scott broke down in tears.

We're getting a little emotional looking at this. Mainly because we'd forgotten all about VIRGIN MEGASTORES!

He says:  “We were in this hotel and Scott just broke down, he was crying his eyes out.  Jay and I walked out to him and put our arms around him and he said,  ‘I just can’t do it anymore.'  I remember looking at Jay and he just looked at me and just went, ‘It’s done isn’t it?’  And I went, ‘I think it is.'"

Nowadays, the five bad boys with the power to rock you have become, umm, FOUR bad boys with the power to rock you, after fifth member Jay decided not to take part in the reunion - which hasn't gone down too well with the rest of the band.

Scott says: “I was annoyed with Jay when he said he didn’t want to be a part of this.  I was really angry because I’ve been personally myself been trying to get this band back together for years and years and someone’s let it down. He will be missed."

And Abz adds:  “I don’t want him to regret because it could be something amazing."

'Could' be something amazing? We've no doubt about it, Abz.

The Big Reunion starts at 9pm tonight on ITV2.