(Image: Newsquest)
It’s 24 years since a baby-faced Bradford lad had us all glued to our TV screens hoping he would become the next big popstar.
17-year-old Gareth Gates, who grew up in West Bowling, would finish runner-up to Will Young in that tense Pop Idol final.
Flash forward to today and he was back in Bradford performing in a very different kind of show.
Gates was the main man in the 18+ rated Boyband in the Buff at St George’s Hall.
They played a few slower numbers (Image: Newsquest)
What to expect from Boyband in the Buff
Ironically, the last time I was at this historic venue, where the likes of Ozzy Osbourne and Queen have played in the past, Gates’ name was mentioned several times by a certain Katie Price.
Like his former flame, the now 42-year-old left nothing to the imagination as he stripped down to his bare chest and sometimes went even further throughout a set list full of boyband cheese.
He was joined on stage by four other performers who were all good dancers, to be fair to them.
It was Gates’ voice which stood out of course.
At times, his moves did look a bit stiff compared to the others, but I suppose that was to be expected.
You could tell he was pleased to be back home. Gates referenced the night before when he went to his parents’ house for tea, he made sure not to go too heavy on the mash potato - can't be damaging his physique for a show like this.
The Boyband in the Buff stage (Image: Newsquest)
Which songs did they do?
The set list surprisingly included some slower numbers like Westlife’s Flying Without Wings and Christmas favouriteStay Another Day.
It was the likes of Relight My Fire by Take That and Backstreet Boys’Everybody that sent the crowd wild.
The audience was full of women of all ages enjoying a girly night out, with muscles and hip-thrusting up close and personal.
Some particularly enjoyed the moment when they were invited on stage to get their own 'private' dance.
The outfits constantly changed (Image: Newsquest)
Faded Bradford popstar
A Gareth Gates Greatest Hits album was one of the items being sold alongside the Boyband in the Buff t-shirts around the show.
3.5 million album sales, West End theatre performances and appearances on TV hits Dancing On Ice and Celebrity SAS Who Dares Wins followed that Pop Idol success.
For someone who was quite possibly once the most famous popstar in the UK, it was a bit sad to see that this is what his career has become.
But I guess there is certainly an audience for it as Thursday night proved.
The show continues to tour the UK right up until October 2027.