Little Mix have spoken about their recently announced break, saying it has been “terribly emotional”.
The girl band said on Thursday they will be going on hiatus after finishing their Confetti tour next year to work on “other projects”.
The threesome – Perrie Edwards, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Jade Thirlwall – reassured fans in messages on social media saying they are “not splitting up” and still have plans for future “music, tours and performances”.
Appearing on The Graham Norton Show on the same day they announced their break, Thirlwall said: “It’s been terribly emotional.
“We’ve still got the tour next year and a few other bits, but it’s been an 10 incredible years and we always said if we’re going to take a little break it would be on an incredible high, at our peak, so it seems like the right time.
“We are family and love each other to bits, so what’s lovely is that whatever we go off and do we can support each other through it and celebrate each other – it’s a lovely way to do it.”
Pinnock added: “It’s time to spread our wings a little bit and do our individual things.”
The trio recently released new album Between Us to mark the 10-year anniversary of the band’s formation.
Formed on The X Factor in 2011, they became the first group to win the competition and earlier this year made history as the first female group to win the best British group gong at the Brit Awards.
They have attracted fans across the globe thanks to hits such as Shout Out To My Ex, Black Magic and Sweet Melody.
Jesy Nelson,30, announced her exit from Little Mix in December last year, saying the high-profile role had “taken a toll” on her mental health.
During a solo appearance on The Graham Norton Show in October, Nelson spoke about no longer being in contact with her former bandmates.
She told Norton at the time: “We’re not talking any more. It is sad but honestly there is no bad blood from my side, and I still love them to pieces and genuinely wish them all the best.”
Pinnock, 30, welcomed twins in August with her footballer fiance Andre Gray and has made her acting debut in festive film Boxing Day while her bandmate Edwards, 28, gave birth to baby Axel with footballer Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on August 21.
They trio, who performed their song Between Us during Thursday’s recording of the show, are joined by Spider-Man stars Tom Holland and Zendaya, The Witcher’s Henry Cavill and actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who stars in BBC psychological thriller The Girl Before.
The Graham Norton Show is filmed on a Thursday night and airs on Friday nights on BBC One.
Tonight’s show airs at 10.35pm.
