I think there should be a committee that assesses whether defunct bands are allowed to reform, given that every group in pop history seems to want to reunite following the success of the Take That reunion.
The most horrifying pop reunion in the pipeline (the one said committee would surely block, for all our sakes) may or may not be signed, sealed and ready to go, depending on who you believe. The Mirror seemed pretty damn sure last week that Boyzone were about to regroup for a big charity gig in aid of Bono's Red whatnot, and then a UK wide tour. They also reported that the group had all but signed a new record contract with one Universal label or another. The tabloid cited a source as saying: "Everyone's excited. They had arguments in the past but now they get on better than ever".
But the Belfast Telegraph yesterday quoted Boyzone boy Stephen Gately as saying that, while a reunion may be in the pipeline, nothing is, as yet, confirmed. Gately: "I think it would be a really good laugh to see the band back together. The timing is right, there's a great want for nostalgia right now. But nothing has been signed yet and I never kind of think that it's happening unless I see six signatures on a piece of paper saying that it is. The reality is that, despite our meetings, that hasn't happened yet".
Of course, if Boyzone want to capitalise on the Take That reunion, perhaps they should wait around for the Take That boys to split up for a second time, and then swoop in to fill the vacuum left by Gary Barlow et al with their special brand of mediocre pop nonsense. I mean, that strategy worked well for them first time round.
The other much talked about reunion, of course, is the Spice Girls, though, to be fair, there's been talk of this one since long before the Take That reformation. The latest gossip is that they too might reform for some kind of charity event and/or a UK tour. After earlier talk of an early summer reunion (which didn't seem that likely, given the timetable of Emma Bunton's pregnancy) talk is now of an Autumn reunion. It's not the first time a Spice Girls reunion has been reported on as fact, of course, and none of those reports turned out to be true. But perhaps this time they will, and soon we'll be able to enjoy once more all those Spice Girl classics like 'Wannabe' and, you know, erm, the others.