An open letter to Girls Aloud from the Alouders:

*Calls up the stairs* CHERYL ANN COLE, NADINE ELIZABETH LOUISE COYLE, SARAH NICOLE HARDING, NICOLA ROBERTS, KIMBERLEY JANE WALSH - GET DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW!!!!!! (Nadine, you win the award for the best full name to shout in the tones of an angry parent). (That wasn't in favourite order by the way, it was alphabetical, a mother doesn't have favourites).

First of all, we're not mad, we may have seemed initially angry, but it was just shock, we're not angry at any of you, I don't want you think that. Understandably we're upset - last night I got so pissed drowning my sorrows that I fell head first down a set of stairs and almost broke my ankle - but deep down, we realistically knew it was never going to last forever, we've just never been able to confirm that ourselves, so I'd just like to thank you for doing that. I can't even begin to imagine how any of you are feeling right now, or how hard the decision was to make to end your time as a group. (I will not say the word "split" because it makes me vomit). And for making that decision we respect you all so much because the amount of pressure you must have been feeling is unimaginable, to try and keep so many thousands of people happy, and to know that by ending your time as a group, you will be breaking so many thousands of people's hearts. Putting it like that makes it sound selfish, but it's not, not one bit, and I don't want you to feel guilty or upset at the fact we're upset. If anyone should be feeling guilty it's us. We've had you for 10 years, that's a decade of your lives, spent on us, on keeping us happy, on making us smile, do you know how selfish that makes US? Yes we love you - unconditionally - but I honestly don't think any of us have properly thought about it and given 2 shits about what you might actually want to be doing with your personal lives before. Simple things like seeing family, watching siblings and nieces and nephews grow up, going on holiday, spending quality time with your partners, settling down, getting married, having kids. You've put so many important things like that on hold for us. Because you'd rather keep us happy, and don't want to upset anybody. All we ever think about is when the next album is out and when the next tour is going to be. Yes you enjoy what you do, but I bet you can't count the amount of times you've craved normality, and I particularly feel guilty for being the reason that you've left a lot of important things - like marriage and kids - later than you may have liked.

We want you to know how eternally grateful we are for this, for the past 10 years that you have spent on us. It's been the best 10 years of our lives, even though most of us were under the age of 18 when you formed - I personally was only 7 years old, but I'm 18 now and the rest of my life is going to have to be pretty fucking awesome if it's going to live up to ANY of the last decade. We're sad that it's over, but we're happier that it's happened, and we mean that. I can't imagine having lived the past 10 years of my life without your posters plastered all over my walls, without your faces on every SINGLE birthday cake, without the stress of begging Mum and Dad to buy me concert tickets each year, without following you around the country like somebody sectioned under the mental health act of 1976. I can't imagine not being "the one obsessed with Girls Aloud". I can't imagine being a normal, boring person with no passion for anything. I can't imagine not being a part of this fan base. I've met people who I now treasure dearly and are some of my best friends through your music, I've travelled to places I would never have traveled to thanks to your music, I've gotten through things I'm not sure I could have made it through without your music. I can't imagine not being an Alouder.

Don't be upset. We're not angry. We're happy. Ten Tour was a celebration of the past 10 years, of the fact that the past 10 years have happened. Girls Aloud will always be. You might not be making music anymore, you might not always be with each other anymore, but the five of you as women, will always be Girls Aloud. And the thousands of us will always be supporting you as Alouders. Always.

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you so much for the past 10 years, for spending them on us, for putting important things on hold to keep us happy. And you know what? We're excited for you all now, for the next chapter of your lives, we're excited for you to do normal things and just live your lives the way that you want to live them, rather than shaping them around us and your careers. And most of all, we're excited for your happiness. So smile. :)

"Could you imagine us doing the Love Machine dance at 30 years old? It's just not realistic." - Cheryl. (I think you went and proved yourselves very wrong). ;)

Eternally and unconditionally love from,

The Alouders.
(A million billion O's and X's).

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