In recent years, there has been a substantial increase in popular music bands participating in reunions. One of the most notable reunions to have taken place is that of nineties pop group Take That, who, since initially reforming in 2005, have had continued success in various line-ups and have arguably influenced several subsequent bands to reunite themselves. Since the reunion of Take That, the phenomenon is now mainstream within the music industry. This thesis discusses the phenomenon of reunion and determines the reasons behind its longevity and the multitude of factors that enable a successful reunion.

Little scholarly consideration has hitherto been given to the reunion phenomenon, so this study draws from a range of academic fields including popular music studies, sociology, and media studies, with areas of focus such as fandom and fan studies, nostalgia and memory, and celebrity studies. Its opening chapters provide an understanding of the phenomenon itself, looking at the factors that motivate bands and groups to reform (Chapter 1). Later chapters outline theoretical frameworks and build upon existing literature through several case studies: the Spice Girls, The Big Reunion, McBusted, New Kids on the Block, ABBA, and Take That. The Spice Girls case study provides an examination of the role of social media within reunions, the increasing interest in celebrities, and particularly those linked to the reformed bands and groups (Chapter 2). Following this, I analyse The Big Reunion and McBusted to examine the relationship between fans and reunions and the need to accommodate newer fan types within the phenomenon (Chapter 3). The case studies of New Kids on The Block and ABBA are used to explore the growing fascination with nostalgia, alongside the expansion and rebirth of our identities that are entwined with bands situated within the phenomenon (Chapter 4).

The thesis culminates with the exploration of Take That’s long-running reunion (Chapter 5). To date, Take That are the only boy band to have achieved a lengthy and successful reunion that has accommodated several various manifestations of the phenomenon and continue to shed light on the phenomenon. This case study therefore brings together, and extends, many of the theoretical perspectives explored in previous chapters. By way of conclusion, I suggest directions in which the phenomenon might develop in the future, I will speculate as to how technology and AI could be used to advance reunion, what are the potential limits to the phenomenon and lastly at what point does a reunion eclipses a group’s initial period of activity.