As Sarah Harding announced her breast cancer battle on Wednesday, MailOnline takes a look at the singer’s life throughout the years, which has seen her top the music charts, become known for her wild child party girl image, win Celebrity Big Brother, and battle depression and alcohol addiction.
Sarah Harding shot to fame as one fifth of uber-successful girl group, Girls Aloud, formed on 2002 reality show, Popstars: The Rivals.
She was raised with her two half brothers in Ascot, Berkshire and followed in her musician dad John Hardman’s footsteps by striking up an interest in performing from an early age.
The life and times: Sarah Harding shot to fame as one fifth of uber-successful girl group, Girls Aloud, formed on 2002 reality show, Popstars: The Rivals (pictured in 2002)
After studying hair and beauty at Stockport College, the media personality worked many jobs before finding her feet as an artist – including jobs as a nightclub promoter, a Pizza Hut waitress, a van driver, a debt collector and even a BT telephone operator.
She finally pursued her musical passion in her early 20s when she auditioned for both Fame Academy and Popstars: The Rivals in 2002, before getting her shot at stardom on the ITV show.
Winning a place in the band as a fresh-faced 21-year-old alongside Cheryl Tweedy, Nicola Roberts, Kimberley Walsh and Nadine Coyle, she was catapulted into the limelight when they scooped the Christmas number one single with Sound of the Underground.
The musician toured the nation as part of the UK’s biggest girl bands from 2002 until 2013 and quickly became known for her party girl image as well her her hits.
Party girl: Dubbed ‘Hardcore Harding’ by her band mates and referred to as the ‘caner’ of the group the star was often photographed swigging from whisky bottles and stumbling out of nightclubs (pictured 2007)
She also became a favourite pin-up girl for the lads’ mags, appearing in a racy 2004 cover for FHM Magazine.
Dubbed ‘Hardcore Harding’ by her band mates and referred to as the ‘caner’ of the group the star was often photographed swigging from whisky bottles and stumbling out of nightclubs.
Fun-loving Sarah became a tabloid favourite after living in Primrose Hill, where other celebrity residents included the ultimate party girl Kate Moss.
In 2007 she was photographed swigging from a bottle of scotch whisky after the NME Awards in London and, at a separate event that year, appeared a little worse for wear as she stumbled around on the phone while holding a champagne glass.
When she wasn’t hitting up the capital’s A-list haunts like Mahiki and Gilgamesh or attending London Fashion Week, Sarah was partying in Ibiza with her then DJ boyfriend Tom Crane and friends.
Pals: Sarah rose to prominence in 2002 when she became a member of the pop band Girls Aloud, through talent series Popstars: The Rivals (pictured at the time)
After splitting with fiance Tom in September 2011, Sarah described herself as hitting ‘rock bottom’.
This concerned her band mates Kimberley Walsh and Nicola Roberts who recommended she seek professional help.
Describing herself as ‘such a mess’, from October that year Sarah spent a stint in a US clinic to battle alcohol and sleeping pill addiction.
‘I’ve been told by those close to me that was when I hit my worst,’ she said.
Wild child: Fun-loving Sarah became a tabloid favourite after living in Primrose Hill, where other celebrity residents included the ultimate party girl Kate Moss (pictured 2006)
‘I was crying hysterically. I felt ashamed, embarrassed, terrified – my emotions were all over the place.’
In July 2009, Girls Aloud took a hiatus to pursue other projects, which lasted until 2012.
Throughout their 10 year reign in the charts, Girls Aloud were dogged by rumours of secret feuds within the band, with Cheryl, Nicola and Kimberley forming a notably closer bond.
Nadine has previously claimed their split was due to the friction between them because she was given more lines to sing – although she has since ended her feud with Kimberley.
Kimberley has also said to MailOnline in November 2019: Cheryl, Nicola and I… we were just very close. I just don’t click with the other girls.
‘There is honestly no rift, we just didn’t click in the same way with Nadine and Sarah that we’d want to see each other every week. It was more that we were work friends.’
Alongside her singing career with the band, Sarah pursued acting and appeared in the St Trinian’s films and Run For Your Wife alongside Danny Dyer.
In 2015, Sarah embarked on her own solo career, releasing Threads, which failed to chart.
That year she also appeared in Coronation Street as Joni Preston, the wife of Robert Preston, with the star making a number of guest appearances in the summer.
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She also competed on BBC gymastics show Tumble in 2014 where she placed third and Celebrity MasterChef in 2015.
In 2016 she competed on Channel 4 series The Jump but had to withdraw after tearing a ligament in her knee during a training session.
The star also appeared in a UK tour of Ghost The Musical but was replaced midway through the run after pulling out due to her painful The Jump injury.
In August 2017, Sarah was one of the more high-profile names to join the 20th series of Celebrity Big Brother, which she won.
Feud? Throughout their 10 year reign in the charts, Girls Aloud were dogged by rumours of secret feuds within the band, with Cheryl, Nicola and Kimberley forming a notably closer bond (pictured 2009)
The star set tongues wagging on the show with her steamy romance with American reality star Chad Johnson, which ended acrimoniously shortly afterwards.
The media personality has maintained a low profile in recent years and changed her Twitter bio to read ‘taking a timeout’ last year.
In April, her ex-boyfriend Chad, 33, said that he doesn’t know where she is and nobody has ‘really heard from her’ after it was reported last year she had ‘quit fame’ to go into hiding.
The former couple embarked on a brief romance after meeting in the Celebrity Big Brother house, but split after struggling with the long-distance aspect of their relationship.
In May, she returned to the social media for the first time since July 2019, sparking a delighted reaction from fans, as shared a series of tweets after ex Chad Johnson claimed that ‘nobody has really heard from her’.
The artist’s first post showed a gif of a T-Rex reaching out his arms saying: ‘I miss you this much’.
Captioning the tweet, she penned: ‘Lmfao….@taskmaster….#splatchat’ with several prayer hand emojis.
Following her initial dinosaur inspired post, the blonde beauty was met with comments from delighted fans who missed her during her ‘timeout.’
The songstress then replied to fans: ‘Fankooo lovelies. Missed you all…. Hope Ur all well and staying safe xxx’
And she was not done there, the Promise singer then celebrated by Star Wars Day by adding ‘#MayThe4thBeWithYou,’ before telling fans she was a ‘new found fan girl’ of the franchise.
Finally, Sarah retweeted a post from a Girls Aloud fan that said: ’15 years ago today #GirlsAloud opened up their amazing debut Tour ‘What Will The Neighbours Say?’. What’s your favourite track from the album?’
The singer revealed her diagnosis to fans on Instagram on Tuesday along with a snap taken from her hospital bed, and said she was ‘fighting as hard as she could.’
Sarah’s post was soon flooded with support, from fans and stars alike, including her bandmates Cheryl – who tweeted a heartbreaking emoji – and Nadine Coyle.
She wrote: ‘Hi everyone, I hope you are all keeping safe and well during these uncertain times. I’ve not posted on here for so long, thank you to everyone who has reached out to check in on me, it really does mean a lot.
‘I feel now is the right time to share what’s been going on. There’s no easy way to say this and actually it doesn’t even feel real writing this, but here goes.
‘Earlier this year I was diagnosed with breast cancer and a couple of weeks ago I received the devastating news that the cancer has advanced to other parts of my body.’
Sarah continued: ‘I’m currently undergoing weekly chemotherapy sessions and I am fighting as hard as I possibly can. I understand this might be shocking to read on social media and that really isn’t my intention.
‘But last week it was mentioned online that I had been seen in hospital, so I feel now is the time to let people know what’s going on and this is the best way I can think of to do so.
‘My amazing mum, family and close friends are helping me through this, and I want to say a thank you to the wonderful NHS doctors and nurses who have been and continue to be heroes.
‘I am doing my very best to keep positive and will keep you updated here with how I’m getting on. In the meantime I hope you’ll all understand and respect my request for privacy during this difficult time. Sending you all so much love….xx.’
Sarah’s post was soon flooded with supportive comments from fans, with bandmate Cheryl posting a love heart emoji.
Nadine also tweeted: ‘I love you!!! You have always been able to achieve miracles when needed!! I am here for the all the way & always will be!!!’
Steps Ian ‘H’ Watkins also wrote: ‘Sending HUGE ❤️❤️❤️ Stay Strong xx We’re all behind you xx.’
TOWIE’s Jess Wright also responded with a flurry of heart emojis, while singer Michelle Gayle wrote: ‘Love you honey. xxx’
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