Allstars (band)
| Company type | Pop music group |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 2001 |
| Defunct | 2002 |
| Headquarters | United Kingdom |
| Products | Music albums, singles, television series |
Allstars (styled as allSTARS*) was a British pop ensemble active between 2001 and 2002, enjoying moderate chart success in the UK. The group consisted of Sam Bloom, Thaila Zucchi, Ashley Taylor Dawson, Rebecca Hunter, and Sandi Lee Hughes, with the initials of the members contributing to the "stars" element in their name. During their active years, they also appeared in the television series STARStreet* broadcast on CITV.
Formation and disbandment
Within a single year, allSTARS* released four singles that entered the UK Top 20. Their initial release, "Best Friends," reached number 20 in June 2001. The follow-up was a double A-side single featuring their original track "Things That Go Bump in the Night" alongside a cover of Duran Duran's "Is There Something I Should Know?", which climbed to number 12 in September 2001; notably, the original song was included on the soundtrack for the Scooby-Doo movie.
In January 2002, their third single—a rendition of Bucks Fizz's "The Land of Make Believe"—became their sole top 10 hit, peaking at number 9. Their fourth release came out in April 2002 as another double A-side featuring original compositions "Back When" and "Going All the Way," with the latter appearing on the soundtrack of Thunderpants; this single reached number 19. Their eponymous debut album peaked at number 43 on the UK Albums Chart and stayed on the chart for two weeks.
Due to disappointing album sales, allSTARS* parted company with Island and disbanded in June 2002. Subsequently, their album was reissued accompanied by a bonus remix CD.
The group’s TV show, STARStreet*, aired on ITV1's CITV segment, portraying fictionalized versions of the band members living together in a house with supernatural elements. The series’ theme was "Best Friends," and each episode featured a performance by the band. The first season premiered in early 2001 with numerous reruns; the second season aired during Spring 2002 and ended following the band's dissolution. The show was also broadcast in Canada on Vrak.tv, titled S.T.A.R.S in French.
A soundtrack album titled STARStreet: The Music was planned but ultimately cancelled after the group broke up.
Post-band careers
- Thaila Zucchi moved into television presenting for Meridian on ITV and announced regional results for Record of the Year in 2003. She portrayed Bunny Boiler on Channel 4's Balls of Steel (2005), appeared in Star Stories (2006), and took part as a "fake" contestant on Big Brother 8 (2007). She also featured alongside Des Lynam in a Setanta Sports commercial (2007), had minor roles in Shameless and Hollyoaks Later (2013), and starred in Dominic Brunt's film Attack of the Adult Babies (2017).
- Rebecca Hunter played Melanie in Channel Five's soap opera Family Affairs from 2003 until 2005. She married in 2007, moved to California, and has two children born in 2010 and 2013.
- Ashley Taylor Dawson returned to his role as Darren Osborne on Channel 4's Hollyoaks starting in 2003. He received three British Soap Awards nominations in 2010 and competed on Strictly Come Dancing paired with Ola Jordan in 2013. He is engaged to Karen McKay, with whom he has two sons.
- Sandi Lee Hughes has kept a low profile since leaving the band; she married children's TV presenter Dominic Wood in 2005. The couple appeared together on ITV1's All Star Mr & Mrs (2008) and have two sons.
- Sam Bloom pursued minor television roles before briefly working on stage. In 2009, he co-founded Inspiring Interns, a London-based recruitment firm specializing in placing interns and recent graduates.
Albums
| Title | Album information | Highest chart rankings | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | |||||||||
| AllSTARS* |
|
43 | |||||||
| Starstreet: The Music |
|
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Singles
| Year | Single title | Highest chart positions |
Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | AUS | |||
| 2001 | "Best Friends" | 20 | 91 | AllSTARS* |
| "Things That Go Bump in the Night" / "Is There Something I Should Know?" | 12 | – | ||
| 2002 | "The Land of Make Believe" | 9 | – | |
| "Back When / Going All The Way" | 19 | – | ||