Spandau's Tony Hadley wins Gold in his home city

Spandau Ballet frontman Tony Hadley has been honoured for his contribution to music in a celebration of what makes London great to visit.
Hadley, 49, who reunited with his bandmates after a solo career of nearly 20 years, last night won the outstanding achievement award at the BT Visit London Awards.
The singer, who lives in Muswell Hill, said it was an honour to win his first personal award in his home city. He added: “I've lived in London all my life, I love London and it's still great and excites me.
“As a Londoner born and bred I'm thrilled to be receiving this award. London has been a tremendous influencing force in my career.
“In the 80's Spandau Ballet were a formative part of the new romantic scene that had its beginnings here.
“Today London continues to be one of the most exciting and vibrant cities in the world, at the forefront of music and fashion and it's an honour to be recognised as part of its rich heritage.”
The award, previously given to Dame Helen Mirren, is voted for by the public. Musical Wicked won the Evening Standard award for best family fun.
The Natural History Museum took the Standard's award for best free day out. Visit London named Emma de Souza the capital's first London Hero for organising Kids Week which encourages children to visit theatres.
People's Choice Awards
Evening Standard's Best Family Fun Award Wicked the Musical
Evening Standard's Best London for Free Experience Natural History Museum
Kiss 100's Hottest Music Event West End Live
Magic 105.4's London's Hero Emma De Souza

Spandau Ballet: It's Gold for Spandau's Steve

As Spandau Ballet get return on the road for the first time since the 1980s, guitarist Steve Norman will find even less time to watch his beloved Spurs.
And there's no doubt that he will be receiving a load of 'stick' from his fellow band members after Saturday's result at the Emirates!
He laughs: "Unfortunately for me, the rest of the band are all Gooners!
"It has made for endless banter in the past and getting back together with a lot of history to catch up on has only reinforced that."
Speaking in hotspur magazine, Norman reveals that it was his uncle who introduced him to Spurs - despite the fact that Steve grew up in a block of flats overlooking Highbury!
"My uncle, thankfully, took me to a few games at White Hart Lane in the mid to late 70s...and I was hooked instantly, watching tremendous players such as Alan Gilzean, Martin Peters, Jimmy Greaves, Jimmy Neighbour and others. Martin Chivers was my ultimate hero."
Read the full interview in the November issue of our official monthly magazine, hotspur. It actually takes you behind the scenes and is a ‘must' for all Spurs fans.

Spandau Ballet Supportive stars

Spandau Ballet helped Gary and Martin Kemp cope with the death of their parents. The brothers say their bandmates – Tony Hadley, John Keeble and Steve Norman – became their "second family" after their parents died within 48 hours of each other in January.Guitarist Gary said: "I think I coped and my brother did too because of the band. It was like having another family to catch us. I think they understood what we were going through."They knew our parents very well. They were moved by it and they supported us."Eileen Kemp was undergoing heart surgery at Bournemouth hospital when her husband Frank had a fatal heart attack. Eileen died shortly afterwards. Bassist Martin told Britain’s Hello! magazine: "It came as a tremendous shock. They spent 50 years of their lives together. My dad wouldn't even go down to the pub with me because he wouldn't leave my mother on her own."That's how close their marriage was. The fact that they went together was in some ways comforting. Like it was meant to be. That's how I came to see it and that helped me deal with the loss."The group – who officially reunited in March this year – split up in 1989 and spent the next 20 years in bitter conflict, with Tony, John and Steve suing Gary over royalty payments in 1999.They eventually reconciled and kicked off their reunion tour in Dublin earlier this month.

Spandau Ballet at The O2

The air in London somehow smelled of roses around North Greenwich last night as Spandau Ballet played the last of three nights at The O2. Surprisingly enough, many young faces could be spotted amongst the sleek eighties driven attire habitués of the audience.
The new romantics don’t do support acts, they prefer bold statements with a definition of the word Reformation on a make shift screen and the resonance of heartbeats as their time on stage drew close. - "Recession, Unemployment, Gloom, War, Tragedy… and Dreams" flashed up with requisite library videos in the style of Evening Standard headlines from the Thatcherite eighties, followed by videos introducing the Islington based lads. As you might expect, ex-Eastender Martin Kemp received the largest cheer.
Then suddenly they appeared, fittingly starting with the synth-pop driven "To Cut A Long Story Short" followed by "The Freeze". Within the first few songs they appeared closer than ever, chatting about how they lived, ran and were sloshed together in the studios recently. With plenty of hits to offer up, the mix of a few lesser known tracks from the new album “Once More” caused a slight lull. However the prominence of the core velvety saxophonist matched the passion of Hadley, who can still hold those high notes impressively with little effort. Such highlights included "Chant No. 1 (I Don’t Need This Pressure On)", "Lifeline", "Round & Round" and of course, "True".
Notably the crowd seemed to lighten up in the encore when both Kemps returned on stage without the sharp suits, but now sophisticated vests. Leaving the crowd on tenterhooks, they closed the gig with “Gold” against a star lit background. Definitely the best reformed group of the year and as more artists still continue to sample their work, this band certainly isn’t an endangered species.

Spandau Ballet Supportive stars

Spandau Ballet helped Gary and Martin Kemp cope with the death of their parents.
The brothers say their bandmates – Tony Hadley, John Keeble and Steve Norman – became their "second family" after their parents died within 48 hours of each other in January.
Guitarist Gary said: "I think I coped and my brother did too because of the band. It was like having another family to catch us. I think they understood what we were going through.
"They knew our parents very well. They were moved by it and they supported us."
Eileen Kemp was undergoing heart surgery at Bournemouth hospital when her husband Frank had a fatal heart attack. Eileen died shortly afterwards.
Bassist Martin told Britain’s Hello! magazine: "It came as a tremendous shock. They spent 50 years of their lives together. My dad wouldn't even go down to the pub with me because he wouldn't leave my mother on her own.
"That's how close their marriage was. The fact that they went together was in some ways comforting. Like it was meant to be. That's how I came to see it and that helped me deal with the loss."
The group – who officially reunited in March this year – split up in 1989 and spent the next 20 years in bitter conflict, with Tony, John and Steve suing Gary over royalty payments in 1999.
They eventually reconciled and kicked off their reunion tour in Dublin earlier this month.

Go back on the road Spandau Ballet

After 20 years away, Spandau Ballet are about to kick off their world tour. The reformed 1980s band are back on the road, opening in Dublin on Tuesday night.
They say they cannot wait for fans to look the show.
Tony Hadley said: "We just want to get our there. We're fully rehearsed, we're just fixing the lights and the backdrop, which looks a million dollars."
Steve Norman added: "We need an audience now, we need to step up."
The group are also releasing their first album in two decades. Once More is out on October 19.

Spandau Ballet Tony’s a glass act

IF the SPANDAU BALLET doesn't return work out, TONY HADLEY is lining up a nice little fallback.
The Gold singer is eyeing up a vineyard in France and wants to launch his own wine.
He is also talks about a range of chocolate and food.
Tony, who already produces a beer called Hadley's Gold, says: "I've found a vineyard run by a British bloke who is looking to get into the UK market.
"I've tasted the wine and it's fantastic. The only trouble is, I'll likely drink most of it."
Spandau will go head to head with the likes of LEONA LEWIS and ALEXANDRA BURKE when they release their new single and album Once More later this month. But MARTIN KEMP isn't impressed by the competition.
He said: "There's no individuality in shows like X Factor. The people who go into them want success on a plate and when they win, just become SIMON COWELL's puppets."