Tony Hadley says there’s ‘more to’ his exit from Spandau Ballet than band let on

Tony Hadley has urged his former Spandau Ballet colleagues to be honest about why he left the band. (Redferns)

Tony Hadley has claimed the other members of Spandau Ballet lied about the reasons for his departure, saying “there’s a lot more to it”.

The 61-year-old singer did not rejoin the Gold group when they reformed in 2017, with the band and Hadley releasing statements about the split.

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The group said on its website: “Much to our frustration, Tony had made it clear in September 2016 that he didn’t want to work with the band any more.

“This has not changed and 2015 was the last time we were able to perform or work with him. So we have now made the decision to move on as a band.”

Spandau Ballet rose to fame with major chart success in the 1980s. (Getty)

In a new interview with the Mirror, Hadley said the reasons for his exit from the group — which replaced him with Ross William Wild — were more complex than that.

He said: “I have nothing to do with Spandau at all now. I wish they would be honest and someone would ask them: ‘Why did your lead singer leave the band?’

“It’s not just, as they said in the past, ‘he didn’t want to do it any more’. That’s a lie.”

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Hadley said that he wouldn’t go into the real reasons for the split publicly, but said his bandmates “have to be honest” and correct the record.

He added: “There’s no going back from that, which is sad for them, the fans and there’s a bit of sadness for me too. We had some brilliant times but something happened.”

Ross William Wild replaced Tony Hadley when Spandau Ballet returned to the stage in 2018. (Getty)

Spandau Ballet formed in London in 1979 and rose to fame in the 1980s as one of the most successful examples of the New Romantic era.

They had huge hits with tracks including Gold and True, releasing six studio albums before they split in 1990.

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In 2009, they reformed in the original line-up and embarked on a tour as well as releasing their seventh album.

The group has been inactive since 2019, when Hadley’s replacement Wild announced that he too was stepping away from the band.

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