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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Entertainment
Tina Campbell

Kimberley Walsh reveals Girls Aloud backed cancer project in Sarah Harding’s name

Kimberley Walsh has revealed that Girls Aloud have helped to fund an entire cancer research project in honour of late bandmate Sarah Harding.

Harding passed away from breast cancer in September 2021 aged 39.

Since then, her bandmates have been fundraising tirelessly in her honour, including running a 5k Race For Life event, hosting a charity ball and launching a nightwear range with Primark with proceeds going towards Cancer Research.

Now, Walsh, 40, has shared an update on their efforts during an appearance on ITV’s This Morning on Monday and vowed that they would continue to fundraise in Harding’s memory.

She also dashed fans’ hopes that the group – which also comprises Cheryl Tweedy, Nadine Coyle and Nicola Roberts – could reunite on stage to mark their 20th anniversary this November, admitting it would be “too painful”.

Kimberley Walsh says it would be too painful to perform without Sarah Harding (Getty Images)

Speaking to hosts Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary, the mum of three explained: “We’re not really doing anything to celebrate that for obvious reasons, but what’s been really nice is we’ve been able to still come together and do some really positive fundraising for Sarah’s charity.

“It’s been incredible. We’ve funded a whole research project that she wanted us to raise money for. We are really proud of the fact we’ve managed to do that for her.

“We’ve got our Sound of the Underground re-release and all the money’s going to go to breast cancer research and the hospital that looked after Sarah, so that’s been a really good way I think of us finding something positive and a way to channel that.”

O’Leary then pressed: “Do you think sometime in the future you might do something to celebrate … you’ve got this incredible fan base who’d love to see you live?”

To which Walsh replied: “We did a gala for Sarah last weekend and we were all together, and lots of our GA [Girls Aloud] family were there and it just felt really special to have that night, but I just feel for all of us, it would just be too painful.

Girls Aloud have done a number of fundraising initiatives including launching a range of charity nightwear with Primark (Cheryl)

“We’re so grateful that we had the time that we did and that we can find a way of doing something positive. But I don’t think it’s going to be something that we’ll do.”

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