Lindsay Armaou from nineties girlband B*witched has given an exclusive interview to HELLO! Online in which she reveals that she found precancerous cells during a routine smear test less than two years after her mum died of cervical cancer.
The former popstar, who is back on our screens on Thursday as the group are seen embarking on their arena tour in The Big Reunion: On Tour, has opened up about the traumatic time.
She also chatted about how it felt to reunite with the girls on the hit ITV show, her relationship with ex-husband Lee Brannan from 911, who also took part, and playing pranks on Blue…
Finding out I had precancerous cells was terrifying…
It was two years after my mum had died of cervical cancer so for me it was very traumatic. I was still dealing with the grief of losing my mum and I went for a routine smear test and they found pre-cancerous cells. Luckily they took me in straight away and removed them with a laser.
I was 23 when I lost my mum…
I was really young and I find it sad because it was at a point where we were becoming really close. I went through a rebellious stage as a teenager and wanted my independence. Then I got into the band and was flying all over the world so I didn't get to see my mum as much as I would have like to. Things had started to quieten down with the band and we were just starting to really spend quality time together. We were building a really lovely friendship and then she got diagnosed.
My bandmates couldn’t have been more supportive…
Even to this day I get choked up talking about how supportive they were. They practically moved in with me and my dad and helped with my mum. Then at the very end when she was in the hospice they stayed over and made sure we were OK. They were like family.
The band split shortly after…
The ending of the band is a bit of a blur for me because I was dealing with losing mum. Sometimes I get asked, 'How did you deal with the ending of the band? Was it really devastating?' and I don't remember feeling like that. I don't remember feeling much at all.
It almost came as a relief…
I just remember thinking, 'I just want to be alone, I just want to deal with my grief'. That's what I was focused on more.
The Big Reunion has been a very emotional experience for me…
It was a challenge in quite a few ways and I think the four of us, both as individuals and as a band, have gone on a bit of a journey over the last year. The programme focused on what went on behind the scenes and relationships and I knew that in order to become a band again and feeling comfortable moving on together, we had to address certain things.
It was difficult to relive my personal life…
I like to be quite private about the personal side of things and I found that probably the biggest challenge because I wasn't prepared for the amount of attention that that side of things would bring. I was prepared to talk about things within the band but my personal life seemed irrelevant.
My relationship with Lee is good…
We're friends and we separated amicably so there was never any problem there but he definitely spoke about it more than I did. That was his decision, and it was my decision not to. I wanted to protect our privacy.
I was pleased to be reunited with the girls…
When the opportunity presented itself, it felt right. I knew in my heart that I wanted to do it. I think since we split up as band years ago I always felt like we would get back together at some point and do something but it never felt like the right time or there wasn't the right opportunity. This came along and I felt pretty certain that it was the right thing for us to do.
We were the most mischievous on the tour…
We played a lot of pranks on Blue, who we got on really well with. One night, when they were on stage, we crept into their dressing room and turned all the furniture upside down. We threw their sweets around the dressing room and tied their trainers from the ceiling. Then we left a note saying, 'The Upside Down man was here' and ran back into our dressing room like naughty little school girls! Luckily they found it very funny.
I don't have any regrets…
don't really believe in them. think that whatever decisions you make, and whatever you do and say at the time, you did and said for a reason. They're also things that mold you and make you who you are today. t's good to learn from things.
I
do, however, have a few fashion regrets…
I look back now at some of the old outfits and think, 'God I really did look like a boy!'. I remember telling my stylist all the time that I wanted the baggy jean look. She'd buy baggy jeans and then cut them to make them baggier. I'd try them on and said, 'No, I want them baggier!'. I definitely could have done with a pair of fitted jeans now and again!
The Big Reunion: On Tour starts Thursday 5 September on ITV2 at 9pm.