POP Idols WILL YOUNG, GARETH GATES and ZOE BIRKETT are to
make £1million EACH from their own joint UK shows.
The trio are about to join music’s big earners after
announcing a 14-date tour called Will and Gareth.
It means they are set to make a fortune from merchandise
and record sales on top of earnings from tickets.
Zoe, who came fourth on the TV show and who will support
the lads on stage, is yet to release a record — though already she looks like
becoming a huge star.
But one mystery puzzling Pop Idol fans is: “What the
hell happened to DARIUS?”
Despite coming third in the ITV show, he was not even
considered for the line-up.
Will and Gareth are signed to SIMON COWELL’s BMG label and
Zoe is expected to follow soon.
But Darius has not been taken on by TV’s Mr Nasty, leading
many to suggest that is why he is not on the bill.
To celebrate the tour — which kicks off at the London
Arena on October 3 — the trio yesterday held a surprise 45-minute gig in Covent
Garden, central London.
Hundreds of office workers and tourists who were in the
famous piazza at 1pm were stunned to see the Pop Idols perform nine big band
numbers — including Get Happy, Mack The Knife and Let’s Face The Music And
Dance.
In an exclusive interview just minutes before going on
stage yesterday, Will told The Sun: “We’ve only just finished the full Pop
Idol tour, which was great.
“But this will be just the three of us, so it will be
extra special.
“Zoe was brought in for the tour because she received such
a great reception last time. There was no clique on the road but Gareth, Zoe
and I got on that bit better.
“Nothing against any of the others, but we work great
together. There wasn’t an inner circle. There are people you get on better with
but there was no clique.
“It would be great to release a song as a trio but the
problem is we’d all be fighting for the microphone.
“We don’t think about the money we’ll earn. We just love
to perform.”
Zoe added: “I love working with these guys. We are such
good friends and it’s great being on stage with them. I enjoy being the only
girl. I get treated like royalty and have a dressing room to myself.”
A music industry insider added: “Considering they were
complete unknowns a year ago, they have already earned a fortune.”
THE Will Gareth tour dates are:
October 3/4 – London Arena. October 7/8 - Wembley Arena.
October 12/13 – Sheffield Arena. October 16/17 – Nottingham Arena. October 18 –
Manchester Evening News Arena. October 21/22 – Birmingham NEC. October 25 –
Newcastle Telewest Arena. October 28/29 – Glasgow SECC.
Ó The Sun