19 February 2024 , 12:39
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Robbie Williams has made former bandmate Gary Barlow the subject of his latest artist creation.
The singer, 50, also issued a telling statement regarding his time in Take That as he shared the colourful sketch of Gary on social media - admitting he was a "highly sensitive person" during his boyband era and would "take slights and grievances inwardly to the nth degree and then turn them into napalm".
Robbie and Gary have endured a rocky friendship ever since they both became household names in the 1990s thanks to the success of Take That. Robbie was just 16-years-old when he joined Gary Mark Owen, Jason Orange and Howard Donald in what would become one of the biggest bands of all time.
Robbie Williams and Gary Barlow often clashed during their time together in Take That (Getty Images)
But these days Robbie is looking back on just why he and Gary didn't always get along (@robbiewilliams/Instagram)The Angels singer left the group in 1996, and branded Gary a "clueless w**ker" and said the group, "had all the creativity of mentally unstable morons." "I hated our music and in the end I also hated myself," he once raged. Robbie and Gary eventually managed to patch things up - with Robbie now even drawing his old foe.
Taking to Instagram on Monday morning, Robbie posted a colourful pop art inspired etching of his Take That bandmate, with writing surrounding cartoon Gary's head. The text reads: "The animosity between me and Gary Barlow got really bad. But on Christmas Day we would play football and show each other photos of our families."
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Robbie's quote about the state of his relationship with Gary is seemingly a tongue-in-cheek nod to Christmas truce, the first unofficial ceasefire along the Western Front of the First World War around Christmas 1914. The festrive truce saw French, German and British soldiers cross trenches to exchange seasonal greetings, chat and even play a game of football.
In the caption for his latest piece of art, Robbie reflected further on his ups and downs with Gary, telling his followers: "Gary Barlow. Bless Gaz, he had no clue *as neither did I. That he was in a band with a highly sensitive person who would take slights and grievances inwardly to the nth degree and then turn them into napalm. ‘HSP’ Google Highly sensitive person. It makes total sense to me. That’s what I am."
Robbie and Gary's feud during their time in Take That was one of the most talked-about fallouts in the nineties music scene. Robbie, who left the band at the age of 21, often clashed with Gary over the band's style and song choices. The final straw came when Robbie went on a wild drinking spree with the Gallagher brothers at Glastonbury.
His bandmates, disappointed with his behaviour, decided to part ways with him. Even after Take That split up, the feud between Robbie and Gary continued as they both pursued solo careers. Their rivalry led to self-destruction, with Robbie admitting that his behaviour and alcoholism got out of hand, while Gary confessed he struggled with fame and resorted to overeating to "kill off the popstar".
Gary and Robbie exchanged verbal insults in the years that followed Robbie's exit from the band and it looked like no love was lost between the pair. Then, in 2006, things changed when Take That got back together and were praised by critics while Robbie's successful solo career had lost momentum. It would be four years before he would rejoin the group for their Progress album and tour and finally put their past behind them.