'It's not ending' - Jade Thirlwall's pledge to Little Mix fans as band takes a break

The most successful girl group in the history of the UK charts – they became the first one to have at least one track in the Official Singles Chart’s Top 10 for 100 weeks in August – stunned the industry earlier this month with the announcement they were calling it a day, at least for now.

The band made the announcement through their official Instagram account last night, confirming they would be taking time off at the end of their Confetti tour next year.

The trio – Jade, fellow Sandancer Perrie Edwards and Leigh-Anne Pinnock – rose to fame after forming Little Mix with former bandmate Jesy Nelson during the the eighth series of The X Factor in 2011, having initially all auditioned individually.

Since then, they have sold 60 million albums and enjoyed success worldwide.

Jesy left the group in December last year, citing its continuing impact on her mental health, and Leigh-Anne and Perrie have both become mums this year.

Leigh-Anne welcomed twins in August with footballer fiance Andre Gray, as well as making her acting debut in festive film Boxing Day, while Perrie gave birth to baby Axel with footballer Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on August 21.

Speaking ahead of Cancer Connections’ Boxing Day Dip, Jade – who was celebrating her 29th birthday on the same day – said the time was right for the group to take a breather.

But she promised fans they would be back.

"We have said this so many time, that it is not ending,” she said.

"It has been an amazing ten years and it just felt like the right time to take a little break – it has been literally non-stop for a decade.”

Jade, who has been a supporter of Cancer Connections for years and regularly takes part in the Dip, is looking forward to some hard-earned downtime of her own with a break in the New Year.

"I went straight from South Tyneside College to Little Mix,” she said.

"I have spent my entire adult life in the music business.”

Support your Gazette and become a subscriber today.

Enjoy unlimited access to all of our news and sport, see fewer ads, experience faster load times, test your brain with daily puzzles and get access to exclusive newsletters.

Your support for our journalism means we can continue telling South Tyneside’s stories for generations to come. Click here to subscribe - and click here to get a snapshot of the Gazette’s news and sport to your inbox through our email newsletters.