They went from boy band to man band - and enjoyed one of the most successful reunions in British music history.

Take That managed relight their fire to achieve three number one albums since their comeback in 2006 - the only major British band to have done so.

Other bands, including The Who, New Order and Guns n Roses have tried to find the old magic with comeback albums - but none have enjoyed the same success as Gary Barlow and the rest of the Manchester boys.

Click below to see which acts tried to come back with a bang - and see which ones let out more of a whimper

 

These ten bands had at least one UK number one studio album in their first outing, and went on to release another album after reforming - but how well did they fare?

  1. New Order - New Order achieved two number one albums, Technique and Republic, before splitting up in 1993. After reuniting in 1998, they released their comeback album, Get Ready , in 2001 - it charted at number six. Waiting For The Sirens Call   went one better and charted at number five - but their third post-reunion album, Lost Sirens , in 2013, only reached number 23.
  2. Black Sabbath - Ozzy and co released a whopping 19 albums before splitting up, after numerous line up changes. The original lineup of Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, Ozzy Osbourne, and Bill Ward reunited in 2011, and their comeback album, 13 , went straight to number one in the UK charts.
  3. Dire Straits - The Dire Straits achieved two number one albums before they split in 1988 - Love Over Gold and Brothers in Arms. The band reformed in 1991 and enjoyed another chart-topping success with On Every Street, before the group disbanded once more in 1996.
  4. Take That - The Manchester boys are the most successful British comeback ever, with all three of their post-reunion albums reaching number one. The boy band - or should that be man band? - combined this success with sell out tours and three number one singles. Oddly enough, the band only had two number one albums in their heyday - meaning their comeback efforts outshone their original successes.
  5. The Verve - Britpop made a small comeback in 2008 when The Verve topped the album charts with Forth. Prior to that, their biggest album was the classic Urban Hymns, still their most popular album to date. Sadly, the two singles released from Forth, Love Is Noise and Rather Be, didn't top the charts, reaching positions four and 56 respectively.
  6. Suede - Suede didn't enjoy the same chart-topping success as The Verve when they launched a comeback in 2013, with new album Bloodsports only reaching number 10. Prior to their break up ten years earlier, the band had enjoyed three number one albums: Suede, Coming Up and Head Music.
  7. Deep Purple - Heavy metal pioneers Deep Purple released seven albums before their split, with two reaching number one - and went on to release six more albums after reforming in 1984. Sadly their comeback wasn't as successful, with five being the highest album chart position reached.
  8. The Who - Considered one of the best-selling bands of all time, with more than 100 million record sales under their belts, The Who topped the album charts with Who's Next in 1971, one of their 10 pre-split albums. In 2005 the band announced a new album was in progress, and Endless Wire was released the following year. It reached number nine in the album charts. The band are due to embark on their final tour in 2015.
  9. Guns N Roses - Guns N Roses released five albums in their first outing, including one chart-topper - Use Your Illusion II - and staged a comeback in 2008 with Chinese Democracy. The band almost topped the charts, reaching number two.
  10. Wet Wet Wet - Marti Pellow and co saw three of their six albums reach the number one spot before calling it an day in 1998. They reunited to make a new album in 2004, and Timeless was released in 2007. Sadly, it charted at number 41 - but the band did manage a sell-out tour.

Which of these band provided your favourite comeback?

Are there acts you wish would reunite but have yet to do so?

Let us know in the comments below.