Tony Hadley would have marked his 40th anniversary in music with Spandau Ballet if the group was still together. 

The band signed their first record deal back in October 1980 and, shortly afterwards, released their debut track To Cut A Long Story Short. 

Alongside brothers Martin and Gary Kemp, Steve Norman and John Keeble, the group notched up 23 hit singles, including True, Gold, Only When You Leave and Through The Barricades, making them one of the most successful acts of the ‘80s. 

And while Tony departed in 2017, insisting he wants nothing more to do with the band, the singer has since admitted it’s a “shame” he can’t mark the milestone with his old band.

Speaking to the Daily Star, he said: “It is a shame because I am celebrating my personal 40th anniversary in the music industry but if Spandau had been together we would be doing it as a band. But that’s life.

“You get to a point in life where you don’t need the angst, I just go out there and have fun.

“It would be nice if somebody asked them, ‘Why did Tone really leave?’ It’s for them to say, they started it, that’s how I look at it.”

While Tony is preparing to hit the road for a new solo tour, Gary Kemp is also back with new music, launching his second solo LP ‘INSOLO’ in July.

Speaking exclusively to Retro Pop, he admitted the demise of the group gave him the freedom to revisit making music alone. 

“I went for a long period of having writer’s block…I was really stuck and not knowing what to write about, and I think that was because I still had one foot in Spandau Ballet world,” he said.

“Once I’d let go of that and stepped away from that shadow of possibility, I felt free.”