Take That fans camp outside stadium ahead of show

Take That fans have been camping out overnight to get a good vantage point for the group's gig in Southampton on Friday.

The band kick off 17 nights across the UK and Ireland with two dates at St Mary's Stadium, with support from Belinda Carlisle and The Script.

The tour is a reboot of the band's Circus Live tour in 2009, and is timed to coincide with their 10th studio album, due out later this year.

"You think you're a bit nuts until you see all the other fans and you feel right at home," band devotee Nicola said.

Take That will be performing in their current guise as a trio, with Gary Barlow, Mark Owen and Howard Donald taking to the stage.

They originally formed in the early 90s along with Robbie Williams and Jason Orange.

They went on to have 12 UK number one singles and nine number one albums.

By 06:00 BST on Friday at least 100 people were in the queue, ahead of doors opening at 17:00.

Amy, who is attending the concert with her daughter and friends, travelled from Cornwall on Wednesday and was ninth in the queue.

She first saw Take That after a friend spotted that the group were playing a local nightclub in Smash Hits magazine.

"We all went down there for my 14th birthday and then all fell madly in love with them," she said.

"Then the years went by and we got children and responsibilities."

She said when the band reunited in 2005 it was "such a big deal for us as adults, to be able to come and do this and pretend we're 14-year-old girls again".

"When we get those opportunities it's really special," she said.

Amy will also return on Saturday for the second concert, but instead of standing at the barriers she will be seated with her husband and the rest of her children "so we can do it all nice and civilised".

"It will be a bit calmer, we'll have had some sleep, and we'll be able to sit back and enjoy," she said.

Sabrina, from Argentina, told the BBC she learned English through listening to the band and learning their lyrics.

"I needed to know what they were singing. I took lessons and here I am."

Sabrina, who has been to every Take That tour since 2006, will return on Saturday and will also watch them in Glasgow next month.

She said she was used to camping out ahead of the group's shows.

"It's always a good vibe, you make a lot of friends, you see your old friends that are always here camping, so it's quite a nice experience," she explained.

When the band take to the stage she said she would get a "feeling of achievement... the hours you didn't sleep, the pain in your back, but it's completely worth it".

Nicola, from Glasgow, flew in with her sister on Thursday to catch the band live, and "we've been in a Take That bubble ever since", she said.

"I remember being really young, and for their first concert at Glasgow I couldn't get a ticket," she recalled.

"I was standing outside the door, crying, listening to them singing their songs, and I swore that I was never going to miss another Take That concert."

Nicola will also watch the group's show in Glasgow and hopes to catch more dates on the current tour.

She puts the group's continuing popularity down to the fond memories they conjure up.

"We all loved them as kids and it's a bit of an escape from normal life," she said.

"Life's hard sometimes and Take That take us all back to when we were all kids and stress-free.

"All we loved was our boy band, and following them everywhere."