Bucks Fizz star Cheryl Baker shares 'tense moment' Mike Nolan quit the band
The 1981 Eurovision winner has spoken of the moment her former band member Mike Nolan quit spin-off band 'The Fizz' in a difficult exchange back in 2024.
Speaking in a new interview with Slingo, Cheryl who was part of 1981 Eurovision-winning group 'Bucks Fizz', admits Mike 'had been talking about [quitting] since lockdown' but she managed to 'keep talking him out of it'.
However, she said the final straw for Mike came during a 2024 photoshoot, when he revealed to Cheryl and fellow member Jay Aston he didn't want to do any of their upcoming gigs.
She said: '[The Fizz] have just finished working on a ship, we did an 80s cruise and we had so much fun.
'We've got a festival in a couple of weeks up in Sunderland and I can't wait. We're rehearsing some songs they haven't learnt yet, for them, they're still learning stuff.
'We've got two guys now who are very happy to be there, whereas Mike didn't want to be there. He'd had enough.
'He'd been talking about it since lockdown. I kept talking him out of it but in the end, we did a photo session for a newspaper and it was a really good session, we did the photos, interviews etc.
'We then went to have some lunch, and me and Jay were chatting about gigs we had coming up, and Mike's face just went (sighs), he looked upset. I went, whatever's the matter.'
Cheryl recalls giving him an ultimatum on his future in the band, which led to Mike leaving, but not before a 'very special' last gig in November last year.
'He said, 'I don't want to do them!' I slammed my fists down on the table and said,' you can't keep playing like this, you're either staying or you're going', so he said, 'I want to go'. We had to make a final date which was in November last year, we did it in a small theatre, a 500-seater, but it was a favourite in Kent, we all live there.
'It was a very special night with all our families and friends there, but I think he was relieved it was the last one.
'I miss Mike Nolan, because he's like a brother to me but he'd really had enough. Scott Mills kept playing, audio of Mike saying 'I've had enough', and he had.
'He was fed up with the journeys, with the driving and trains. I talk to him every couple of days, and we check in with each other.
'He's not envious in the slightest, he's very happy with us to carry on working.'
But she said she still talks to Mike every few days.
'We have the best memories! And the most fun. Mike and I were like naughty children, going back to sneaking back in Dublin, we have a lot of fantastic memories, Mike and I.
'But we're making new memories with our new guys, they're so much fun, I love them.'
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