Singer-songwriter Gary Barlow, who found fame with Take That, embarks on a UK tour this month. We celebrate his 40-year career and look at his life away from the spotlight.
His CV is impressive: he’s one of Britain’s most successful songwriters and record producers. As part of boy band Take That, he has won eight Brit Awards and sold more than 45 million records. Now Gary Barlow’s new solo tour, The Songbook Tour 2025, will see the 54-year-old showman play 41 UK dates.
Born in Frodsham, Cheshire, Gary taught himself to play the piano aged ten and began writing songs. In 1986, at 15, he entered a BBC ‘Pebble Mill at One’ Christmas song competition with ‘Let’s Pray for Christmas’, reaching the semi-finals.
While performing on the northern club circuit, singing cover versions and his own songs, Gary was spotted by agent Nigel Martin-Smith, who wanted to use the teenager as the frontman for a new boy band – and so in 1990 Take That was born. By 1996, Gary was pursuing a solo career. He was awarded an OBE in the 2012 Queen’s Birthday Honours List for his services to the entertainment industry and to charity.
Love & Life
Behind the scenes, Gary is loving, loyal and fiercely protective of his family. Gary is married to Dawn Andrews, a dancer on Take That’s 1995 Nobody Else Tour. Gary has described her as ‘the love of his life, the one constant’. She gave up her career after the couple’s first child Daniel was born in 2000, the year the couple wed. Emily was born in 2002 and Daisy in 2009.
“I travel all around the world; she gave up her job to bring our kids up,” said Gary. “Left her dreams to one side and I got to do mine still… She’s a wonderful woman.”
In August 2012 Gary and Dawn’s fourth child, Poppy, was stillborn. The pain is still there for Gary. Speaking on ‘The Imperfects’ podcast last year, he revealed: “I’ve been angry for a long time about that, I haven’t really found peace with it yet.”
Gary has also been frank about battling an eating disorder when his career plummeted in the late 1990s.
Back On Tour
Away from music, Gary Barlow has been commissioned by ITV for another wine tour following his successful debut travel series, ‘Gary Barlow’s Wine Tour: South Africa’, which aired in January and February 2025. The new series will follow Gary as he tours Australia.
Last year’s series coincided with the third anniversary of Gary’s award-winning wine range. He said, “Someone told me recently that we have sold the equivalent of 10 million glasses since Gary Barlow Wines were launched, which is an incredible milestone.”
