Gary Barlow `confirms Robbie Williams has left Take That`

Robbie first left the group in 1995 and recently re-joined his old bandmates for an album and a record-breaking tour. But Gary confirmed that although the time has come to go in their separate directions, the reunion ended 'perfectly' and the door will always be open for Robbie to re-join.

The 40-year-old X Factor judge told the Radio Times, 'It was beautiful. We got on well. We finished the tour. We're all happy.

'The fans have come along and been happy. Great, great, great, great, great. Now Rob's doing a solo record, and from this point it's back to where it was.'

He continued, 'You know what, we can revisit it whenever we want.

'He's our brother, Rob is, and if he's ever in trouble or he wants to have a year off being Robbie Williams, he's welcome any time he wants.'

Talking about his long-running feud with Robbie - which didn't end until the reunion - Gary admitted that he now sees things very differently.

'It would be unfair for me to say he's the one with the ego because I've got a pretty big ego as well,' Gary explained.

'And especially in those younger days when I was 24 and he was 20, but then you come back - I was 38 and he was 34 - and it's like 'Let's talk this through'.'

A Take That spokesman said that the band is simply taking a break.

'I can confirm that the band is not splitting and there is no pending announcement of a split,' he said. 'The band is on a break, Gary is doing X Factor and Robbie is working on his new solo album.'