Spice Girls: The Singles Collection review – stop fleecing your fans right now, thank you very much

(Virgin)
The reunion that fans were hoping for turns out to be a cash-grab box set – though there is a worthwhile curio featuring Posh on lead vocals

Is there a more taunted fanbase than that of the Spice Girls? Seemingly every other week a story – usually perpetuated by Mel B, the band’s number one cheerleader – appears in the tabloids hinting at some sort of reunion. Or film. Or documentary. Swift denials then emerge, typically linked to Geri or Victoria, and all is calm until a week or so later.

So when teasers showing landmarks from 1996’s Wannabe video suddenly appeared on the band’s official social media accounts in September, it felt as if the fans had something tangible to celebrate. The comments quickly filled with hopes of another reunion tour following 2007’s full-band jaunt and 2019’s Posh-less stadium trek. In a music landscape littered with nostalgia tours, surely Ginger, Scary, Baby, Sporty and (maybe) Posh could strap on some Buffalo boots for a final zig-a-zig-ah?