Spice GirlsAll five Spice Girls took to the stage in London last night for their first UK show as a quintet in nine years, even though Emma Bunton sprained her ankle after a fall onstage in Las Vegas earlier in the week.

The start of the show at the O2 Arena was delayed for half an hour as dance routines were reworked at the last minute to take the pressure of Emma’s ankle and she also had some help from some special friends to get her back on her feet.

She told the Sunday Mirror that fashion designer Roberto Cavalli, who designed the outfits for the tour, made some special shoes to protect her joints: “Roberto’s absolutely amazing. He’s made me a pair of padded boots and a pair of soft sandals so I can get through the concert.”

“I’m also being cared for by David Beckham’s doctor. He’s flown over from LA especially to treat me. I spent all of Thursday and Friday sitting down with my feet up too.”

“I will soldier on. My ankle is in a lot of pain but I owe it to the girls and our fans to carry on.”

Geri Halliwell kicked off the show, shouting “Hello London” then added: “Are you lot ready for girl power? You lot are looking good. We’re home. Thank god were home!”

As with the shows in Canada and the US, the night included frequent costume changes and a set list including many Spice Girls classics such as ‘2 Become 1′, ‘Stop’, ‘Holler’, ‘Say You’ll Be There’, ‘Mama’ and ‘Wannabe’ as well as solo numbers from Geri and Melanie Chisholm.

At the end of the gig, Geri told the 10,000 strong audience: “This is our best night ever.”

  • The show was a kid-fest with Brooklyn, Romeo and Cruz Beckham watching their mum and her friends from the front row accompanied by their dad David Beckham, while Emma Bunton’s four month old son Beau was given some lime-green ear defenders so he could watch from the sidelines too. Emma told the Sun she loves having Beau and partner Jade Jones close to hand: “I love being with Beau, I feel very lucky that he’s constantly with me and Jade.”
  • And other family members came out for the show too: Melanie Brown’s mum Andrea travelled down from Leeds to watch the show and to make amends with her daughter and new son-in-law Stephen Belafonte. Andrea initially branded the sudden marriage “a big mistake” but a source told the Sunday Mirror she’s “decided to bury the hatchet” with her famous daughter.
  • Victoria Beckham’s sister Louise Adams was also in the crowd and told the News of the World that Victoria was more nervous about the UK shows than she had been about the ones in north America last week: “Victoria has been terrified all day. I think once tonight is over she’ll be better. It’s a huge night for them all.”
  • And with most of the band having their husbands or boyfriends in the crowd, the girls are rallying around Single Spice, Geri Halliwell, to find her a new man. Melanie Brown told the Sun: “We have lined [possibilities] up for her but she is very picky. They have to have a job, they have to be respectful and well travelled. [And she] doesn’t want them too young because they’ll be too obnoxious.”