A former band member from an iconic X Factor act has admitted he spent £250k in one year on gambling and strippers alone.
Jonathan Ansell was one part of the now-legendary operatic band G4. The quartet surprised everyone when they reached the final of the first ever series of the show, finishing in second place behind eventual winner Steve Brookstein.
During their time on the show all the way back in 2004, the band was catapulted into the limelight as they won the hearts of the nation, from young children to mums and grans. After the show ended, the boys went on to have an illustrious career as a group, going on sell-out tours and releasing a number of albums.
READ MORE: Simon Cowell addresses X Factor return rumours and says there would be ‘changes’
READ MORE: Join the Daily Star Soaps WhatsApp for all the latest spoilers and exclusives
Now, as the band looks back at 20 years in the business together, Ansell has revealed some of what the band got up to behind the scenes that would have any yummy mummy mortified. Speaking to The Sun, the band said that they made a lot of money from their success on the show, and Jonathan spent his on lavish parties and sexy women.
(Image: Redferns)
Ansell revealed that he had spent a whopping £250k on alcohol, strippers and gambling – all within the space of one year. He added that there were several threesomes that happened at parties, some rather flashy moments from fans, with some even going as far as to ask the quartet to sign their privates, which they happily obliged.
Looking back, baritone singer Mike explained that they had no clue on how they had been propelled to this level of stardom. “No one believed it, because it’s very much, ‘Mothers love us’, or ‘My grandma loves you’, but actually we were rock ’n’ roll early on.”
(Image: WireImage)
He added: “We fell out of clubs drunk all the time but paps never really caught us.” Jonathan added that he had hooked up with two girls during a Christmas party being held by OK! magazine.
Ansell said he was approached by two girls, and seemingly joked about getting with them at the same time when they made the proposal. “Three hours later I got caught in the back kitchen with both of them and security had to drag me out,” he explained.
However, he said that due to that threesome, it caused the band to run into issues as there was meant to be a photoshoot for The Sun newspaper that day. Jonathan would turn up to the shoot some two hours later than originally planned, with Jonathan remembering that he “turned up really bleary-eyed” to the event.
(Image: WireImage)
But the band admitted that there were moments when the partying would become too much and the band complained that they had no time to “just wind down after a studio session, gig or in day-to-day life”. Things became so bad that Jonathan resorted to paying former bandmates Matt and Ben £100 each to go on a night out with him.
The band were the first real success story of the ITV show which ran for 14 years, until being cancelled in 2019. G4 initially split in 2007 after three years together, but reunited in 2014, with Duncan Sandilands taking the role from original bass singer Matt Stiff.
Four years after getting back together, Ben Thapa also decided to call time on his stint in the band. He was replaced in the group by Britain’s Got Talent winner from 2011, Jai McDowall.
For more of the latest showbiz and TV news from the Daily Star, make sure you sign up for one of our newsletters here.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
