Originally published: 6 August 2010
You may remember Nicola Ward as the girl who turned down the chance to be in Girls Aloud in 2002.
Then 19, Nicola declined the contract on offer after beating 10,000 auditionees on ITV1’s Popstars: The Rivals to a place in the band, claiming that she thought she’d be paid a pittance.
So, previously rejected red-haired Nicola Roberts, just sixteen at the time, left school to become one of the five-piece that is so well loved today.
Ms Ward, who is an office manager for a recruitment agency in Kent has now revealed that a jealous boyfriend was the reason she refused the contract.
'He said, it's either me or the group... I'm never going to see you and that's it between me and you, it's over'
She recalls: “He said, ‘it's either me or the group, you're going to have to make a decision because if you continue with this then I'm never going to see you and that's it between me and you, it's over’. And at the time, that was quite an ultimatum.”
As a result of her decision, she has missed out on making more than £5 million.
She admits: 'Obviously it was a great opportunity that I missed out on. At 19, I didn't realise how hard it was going to be to get into the industry or how big a chance it was at the time.'
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And speaking about her time on the show, the Daily Mail quotes her as saying: "I bonded with Nadine Coyle, who was to win through to the group, and another Popstars contestant, Javine Hylton, more than the others. They were really nice, down-to-earth girls.
"We didn't get up to much because we were confined to the house. We'd cook, sit in each other's rooms, read magazines, watch telly.
"I always remember Cheryl being downstairs in front of the TV, chatting around the coffee table having a cigarette. She did mingle, though she was always close with Kimberley."
'I need to go out and spread my wings, not have anyone controlling me'
After auditioning on Pop Idol 2 and being told by Simon Cowell that he didn’t see her as a solo star, Ms Ward was in two bands, Cookie and Cushh, which supported Girls Aloud and had a number 29 hit respectively.
Speaking about her boyfriend’s jealousy when she was in girl band Cushh, she said: "He preferred that I didn't go out with the girls in my group, that I stayed in with him.
"By then I had grown up. I wasn't that enamoured 18-year-old that met him. I realised this wasn't for me. I need to go out and spread my wings, not have anyone controlling me."
Nicola is trying to get her music career back on track.
Best of luck Nicola!
By Anisa Kadri