Gary Barlow hails premiere of Take That musical onboard P&O Cruises' Arvia

Interviewed on stage by Olly Smith, wine expert and P&O Cruises Food Hero, Barlow said the musical had been inspired by a Take That fan who wrote him a letter about the impact the band had made on her life:

“We wanted to get a sense of friendship into the show because that’s something our band has been built on from day one and to this day friendship is very important to us. The other big thing we wanted to do was to turn a mirror on the audience because our audience have been with us forever and we love them so much. So this wasn’t a celebration of a band, it was a celebration of our audience.”

Greatest Days follows the story of a group of teenage friends, at school in 1993, who lose touch and reunite 25 years later. It’s nostalgic, uplifting, emotional, and by the end of the performance the entire audience were on their feet dancing.

Barlow said: “It took about four years from concept to live show [The Band in 2017]. They are things you keep coming back to. It’s a process, making musical theatre. You tour it round, you learn about it. This is a cut down version of the main theatre show but I think they’ve done a really good job.”

He explained that he first met Tim Firth when he was 15 and they kept in touch, eventually working together on Calendar Girls The Musical before joining forces again for this show. “Tim felt like a very safe place. He’s not only a nice man and an old friend, but he’s brilliant and he’s done all the book for this.”

Ally Streeter, homeworker with Holidaysplease, told me: “I have seen the show in a theatre, which is two hours long. I was very impressed how it was condensed into 50 minutes for the cruise, portraying this wonderful story about friendship, along with Take That’s hit songs. Arvia is definitely attracting younger couples in their 20s and 30s and this will help draw them in.”

Ross Johnson, founder of Travlux, added: “It’s a great jukebox musical and the visuals were amazing. It’s a feel-good show and I may or may not have been tearing up at one point. In cruise entertainment we’re starting to run out of ideas, but this shows that all you need at the base of it is a great story and great music. Arvia is an easy transition for clients who have been on P&O Cruises’ older ships, if you can get them past the fact it is a bigger ship – it’s beautiful."

Barlow was staying onboard to perform two concerts in Arvia’s Headliners Theatre (yes, I was tempted to remain onboard as a stowaway!), and he’ll be popping up at the end of this week with his Take That bandmates as the closing act with a 60-piece orchestra at the Coronation Concert on Sunday evening.

Meanwhile Arvia is now sailing 14-night Mediterranean cruises until 14 October when she crosses the Atlantic ahead of a winter season in the Caribbean.