The Sun Newspaper, UK, 3rd May 1997
Interviewd by Andy Coulson
"Huge worldwide companies like Mercedes and Pepsi are paying a fortune to sponsor the girls" he says. "Take That had Kellogg's Corn Pops. I think that says it all." For Gary, a self confessed tightwad, the Spice Girls' incredible rise to fame has left him full of admiration and just a little bit envious.
He adds: "I've watched The Spice Girls clean up and wondered, "Why didn't we do it like that? I don't think they're any bigger in Britain than we were at our peak. But the marketing of The Spice Girls and the success they're having in America is phenomenal - and we should have had it first! I think they watched Take That for six years and took what we did one step further. Now the girls are turning over multi millions in less than a year.""I'm not complaining because I came out of Take That with more money than I could ever spend but I do think there were missed opportunities. We had a hit in America with Back For Good yet we were completely unrecognisable over there. The Spice Girls had a hit with Wannabe and were almost instantly a household name. It was partly because we didn't have the time to promote ourselves but mostly it was down to our American record company RCA being so crap."
"I got together with the other lads from Take That recently and we talked about The Spice Girls. It doesn't seem fair that we had all the same hassle and grief as them but, as a group nowhere near as much money. I know the girls and I can see a lot of similarities to how we were when we were the hottest thing. They're professional, hardworking and lively and their characters are very similar to us. "My only worry is that they've become very famous, very quickly. I hope they don't disappear as fast."
Gary has been closer to The Spice Girls' success than most as they share a manager, Simon Fuller. With Fuller - now a serious player in US music circles - Gary stands a very real chance of making his American dream a reality.
He also has the backing of one of the most influential men in showbiz, Arista Records' Clive Davis.
They have helped him create an album of self-penned songs, co-writes and cover versions painstakingly made with the difficult-to-please Yanks in mind. But one man not now in Gary's life is Take That's creator Nigel Martin-Smith. Gary admits - not without shame - that he parted company from Martin-Smith because he didn't 'fit in' with his ambitious plans.
"It's not something I'm at all proud of" Gary says. "And I did it in a really s**t way. I sent Nigel a letter from my lawyer and didn't even phone him. He had no warning and it must have been a hell of a shock. But I couldn't cope with doing it face to face. After six brilliant years I just couldn't walk into his office and tell him I was looking for a new manager. But it was time to move on and Simon was the right man to help me crack it as a a solo artist here and in the States. He has shown that with The Spice Girls. I can never repay Nigel - I wouldn't be here now if it wasn't for him - but I just had to act in my own best interests."
Now that he's on his own. Gary - always the ugly duckling in Take That - knows how important his looks will be as a solo artist competing with the likes of George Michael. He decided a washboard stomach was the way to make sure his career doesn't go belly up.
Gary, 26, is now a devoted keep fit fanatic and is in incredible shape having lost two stones. He says: "I was always the least fancied one on Take That. I was determined to change myself. I still have very vivid memories of stepping off the tour bus to be confronted by a thousand screaming fans - only for every one of them to push past me to get to the other lads. I absolutely hated photo sessions and video shoots. But I've worked hard to get in shape and I really do feel like a new man. It was a combination of dieting and working out and it has changed my life."
Gary transformed himself with the help of his stunning girlfriend, dancer Dawn Andrews, 27. The pair started dating on Take That's last tour and Gary has hinted at marriage.
"If you'd asked me six months ago, I would have said Dawn and I would be engaged within two years. But I think it's going to be a lot sooner than that now. My career is hopefully going to move up a step and from now on I'll be spending two weeks of every month in America. Dawn has her own career and being apart is bound to put an enormous pressure on us. But if we can survive the mad period that's about to start then I think we'll be together forever. We've talked about it and we are realistic. But I love her - she's a fantastic girl and we have a great relationship. If we keep it together. I'd want to have children and that's when we'd get married. Now is just the wrong time."
Gary is already looking at buying an apartment in New York as a base for his US jaunts. Home, however, will always be his 60-acre Cheshire estate he shares with Dawn, mum Marjorie and dad Colin.
The reported £6million he pocketed as Take That's songwriter is safely invested in that £1million house and the antiques that fill it. Gary's first single for ten months - Love Won't Wait, written by Madonna - will chart on Sunday. A Top Five hit would be great - a No 1 perfect. "The Spice Girls have shown it can be done. Now I want to be flying the flag as well."
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