Mel C opens up about image struggles

The 37-year-old singer, who battled depression and bulimia during her time with the girl group, admitted that media criticism about her appearance took its toll.

“Being in The Spice Girls was amazing, but also very tough,” she told the Daily Mail. “I was young and impressionable, and I found it hard to read about myself.

“There were lots of lies printed about me. I’d read that I was ‘gobby’ and masculine. There were questions about my sexuality.

“The tabloids were cruel about my appearance, and nothing can prepare you for that. You just have to fight your way through it.”

Now raising daughter Scarlet, two, with partner Tom Starr, she is in a much happier place but insisted that despite her previous struggles, she is ‘proud’ of her past.

“Seeing so many great British female singers makes me proud to have been a Spice Girl,” she said.

“When we arrived, we faced lots of opposition. We were told that girl bands didn’t sell records or magazines. But that only made us more determined.”