The Spice Girls, like the Teletubbies, were a symbol of the 1990s. Their debut album, Spice, sold 28 million copies worldwide, a record for a female group. They were one of the biggest pop groups of all time and they were certainly the biggest British pop group after the Beatles. Last year the Spice Girls performed at the closing ceremony of the London Olympics. They were chosen as a symbol of British culture.
POSH SPICE
Of the five Spice Girls, ‘Posh Spice’ is the most famous. Victoria Adams came from a rich family: her father owned a Rolls Royce and at school the other children hated her. This was because, in Britain’s class-conscious society, she was considered ‘posh’, or a snob. Today she is married to footballer David Beckham. They have four children with very unusual names: Brooklyn Joseph, Romeo James, Cruz David and Harper Seven. Presumably, these children will also have a hard time at school. The Beckhams live in a luxury home which has the nickname ‘Beckingham Palace’. Victoria and David Beckham, or ‘Posh and Becks’, have a net worth of more than £100 million.
ginger SPICE
Ginger Spice, real name Geri Halliwell, was born in Watford in 1974. She supports the local football team: so does another famous British musician, Elton John. Geri Halliwell was the first Spice Girl to leave the group. She quit in 1998 because of “depression and personal differences”. She had a solo career, but she became the mother of a baby girl in 2006. According to rumour, the father is Sacha Gervasi, who recently directed the film Hitchcock. Geri Halliwell has also written some children’s books about a little girl called Ugania Lavender.
baby spice
Baby Spice, or Emma Bunton, also had a solo career after the Spice Girls split up, but today she works mainly as a radio presenter.
the two mels
And then there are Mel B, or ‘Scary Spice’, and Mel C, or ‘Sporty Spice’. Mel B, or Melanie Brown, has had three children: American actor Eddie Murphy is the father of one of them. Mel C, or Melanie Chisholm, says that the Spice Girls are “Better friends now than we’ve ever been. We’ve all grown up, become mums and are more chilled out”.