60 - The Spice Girls with Michael Cragg (Maidenhead) episode artwork

EPISODE · Apr 19, 2025 · 49 MIN

60 - The Spice Girls with Michael Cragg (Maidenhead)

from Music Maps Podcast

In this episode of Music Maps we are joined by Penderyn Prize winning writer Michael Cragg to dig into the history and impact of the Spice Girls.We explore their formation in 1994 via an audition process & their early days sharing a house in Maidenhead. Originally they are known as Touch & original member Michelle Stephenson leaves after 3 months & Emma Bunton completes the lineup. They part company with original handlers Chris & Bob Herbert (also known for Bros, 5ive, Bewitched & Hearsay) & bring in Simon Fuller. The Spice Girls sign to Virgin Records in 1996 'Wannabe' becomes their debut single. The subsequent debut album quickly breaks 20 million in sales. We also touch on the concept of 'Girl Power', who came up with 'zig-a-zig-ah', the BRIT Awards appearance, the huge tours, their significant success in America, the Spice World movie, Geri Halliwell's departure, the struggles surrounding their final album 'Forever' & more. It takes anything from 5 to 40 hours to prepare each episode of Music Maps - if you’d like to make a contribution to help us cover the costs & time of producing these episodes for you, you can do so at this link: ko-fi.com/musicmapsIt is hugely important for us to get positive reviews & star ratings - if you have enjoyed Music Maps & can spare the time to do either we would hugely appreciate it. You can see our upcoming live events here: https://rocknrollbookclub.co.uk/live/Instagram: @rocknrollbookclube17Blue Sky: @musicmaps.bsky.socialX: @simonmusicmapsFacebook: E17rockbookclubHosted by Mark Hart & Simon CardwellWritten & Produced by Simon CardwellEdited, mixed & spruced up by Andy Maxwell  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Music Maps we are joined by Penderyn Prize winning writer Michael Cragg to dig into the history and impact of the Spice Girls.We explore their formation in 1994 via an audition process & their early days sharing a house in Maidenhead. Originally they are known as Touch & original member Michelle Stephenson leaves after 3 months & Emma Bunton completes the lineup. They part company with original handlers Chris & Bob Herbert (also known for Bros, 5ive, Bewitched & Hearsay) & bring in Simon Fuller. The Spice Girls sign to Virgin Records in 1996 'Wannabe' becomes their debut single. The subsequent debut album quickly breaks 20 million in sales. We also touch on the concept of 'Girl Power', who came up with 'zig-a-zig-ah', the BRIT Awards appearance, the huge tours, their significant success in America, the Spice World movie, Geri Halliwell's departure, the struggles surrounding their final album 'Forever' & more. It takes anything from 5 to 40 hours to prepare each episode of Music Maps - if you’d like to make a contribution to help us cover the costs & time of producing these episodes for you, you can do so at this link: ko-fi.com/musicmapsIt is hugely important for us to get positive reviews & star ratings - if you have enjoyed Music Maps & can spare the time to do either we would hugely appreciate it. You can see our upcoming live events here: https://rocknrollbookclub.co.uk/live/Instagram: @rocknrollbookclube17Blue Sky: @musicmaps.bsky.socialX: @simonmusicmapsFacebook: E17rockbookclubHosted by Mark Hart & Simon CardwellWritten & Produced by Simon CardwellEdited, mixed & spruced up by Andy Maxwell  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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60 - The Spice Girls with Michael Cragg (Maidenhead)

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This episode was published on April 19, 2025.

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In this episode of Music Maps we are joined by Penderyn Prize winning writer Michael Cragg to dig into the history and impact of the Spice Girls.We explore their formation in 1994 via an audition process & their early days sharing a house in...

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