REBORN and repackaged but still as cool as ever, Tony Hadley talks to Chris Brown ALEGEND of the '80s and occasional reality television show star, Tony Hadley still pulls in crowds of dedicated fans. As cool now as he was singing "Gold" with Spandau Ballet, he was a runaway winner of the ITV programme "Reborn in the USA." The show took popstars no longer in the charts and toured them around America to see if they still had what it took to make it big on the other side of the Atlantic. And unlike some of the other stars of the programme, he didn't need the publicity. Since the split of Spandau Ballet he has still maintained his appeal. But Tony admits he was hesitant before signing on the dotted line for the show. It was more to do with where the cameras might be positioned, as he explains: "When I first got the offer I was a bit worried. "The last thing I wanted was that Big Brother thing of cameras in the toilets. "Tony Hadley does not go to the toilet on television. But they then explained exactly how they were going to do it and I agreed when I knew that the cameras would not be on me 24-hours a day." After the win Tony returned back to recording and touring and is about to go on the road again. He will be on tour for months at the start of this year and this time will be with one of his contestants from Reborn In The USA. Peter Cox from Go West will be joining him on the road. The reason, according to Tony, for the partnership between the two friends is public demand. He says: "I think that in Reborn In the USA the public wanted us to be together in the final. "As it happened Pete had a bad one in the semi-final in New York and Michelle made it through to the final. HIS is a way of letting the fans see what they wanted to in the end." As part of the tour Tony and Peter will be in Liverpool. They play the Philharmonic on January 25. The grand setting of the Phil is different to the concerts that he used to play as Spandau Ballet but for Tony it is just as enjoyable. He says: "When I was with Spandau we played the Royal Albert Hall. I love to play those kinds of places because it always sounds great. We get people of all ages in to see us. "There must be people who listened to us then and now their children have grown up a bit they are playing it to their children as well. "It's good that you know that the songs are not just a fad and still work as music to different people." With Spandau Ballet Tony enjoyed great success. Their first single release, back in 1980, To Cut a Long Story Short, achieved Top 5 status in the UK and began a run of over 20 chart singles. The band went on to sell over 20m records worldwide, and True reached the number one spot in 21 countries. It was only 10 years and six albums later that the band ceased to function. From there, he went on to launch a solo career and has continued to work since. An album is also being released to coincide with the live dates. It features a live recording by the pair in London. The concert was a success but at the time he was feeling the strain. Tony says: "We didn't finish until 4.15 this morning finishing off the production for it. "The first gig was really to do the recording and to test out how it was received. "The crowds were great, though, and there were his fans and my fans. "We do some of our own stuff and then some songs from Reborn, and there are a few more songs together as well. "It's a long tour and we are looking to add more dates but the great thing is that the demand is there and people still want to hear us." * TONY Hadley and Peter Cox play the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall on Sunday, January 25. | 
