Snowdrop

Hmm, it seems what they are showing now is a live feed, so not from last night. You probably had to tune in early to catch a repeat from last night!

I think it deserves its own thread! This was an unexpected bonus for a Sunday morning - off to watch the video now.

A very lovely friend! Fantastic news - I'm sure you will have a wonderful time.

There have been a few nice tweets from today's rehearsals ryanamstad Ryan Amstad Wow! @Gareth_Gates is sounding amazing in rehearsals for @CoEdenUK 6 hours ago ChloeSJHart Chloe Hart Sat in a room full of incredible talent... @AntonStephans @Gareth_Gates @LouiseDearman @oliverrthornton etc etc etc 3 hours ago And more down to earth from Chloe! ChloeSJHart Chloe Hart @Gareth_Gates about time you turned up! 2 hours ago I also spotted a nice tweet with a photo of Gareth from today's rehearsal, but the person has since deleted the tweet and photo. I couldn't post it at the time (looking on phone when I was supposed to be at work, lol), and it's too late now. But Gareth was sitting cross-legged with his back against a piano, and it looked like he was watching someone else do their thing.

Sounds good!

The eagle-eyed amongst you will have noticed that we've got rid of the link to our back-up boards. In fact, we've deleted the whole back-up forums as we decided we didn't need them any more. We also have a Facebook page, which we will use if there are any problems on here. We will also use it from time to time to announce news about Gareth, or what's happening on here, so please "Like" us, if you want to find us easily, and stay up to date. GPG Facebook Please also follow us on @GPGnet

Yes, Louise was the fairy godmother when Gareth did Cinderella, and more recently she's been one of the leads in Wicked. The new addition from Eastenders, Aaron, used to play Stephen Beale. To be honest, I thought his name was already announced, but perhaps I read it on one of the musicals forums. It should be a brilliant night.

Another vote for Rosalind. She seemed to embody what Eponine is about far better in both her vocals and acting. Samantha is a great singer, but just a bit too pretty and polished in her singing and her look. A bit of shoe-polish dotted on her face couldn't hide the Liz Hurley manicured eye-brows. But I still think she was/is very good and so much better than Lucie was as Cosette. That's a really good clip. Thanks for drawing our attention to it Floz.

Just one thing - they said Gareth was 18. He was 17 - and only just!

I could put it on YouTube, but so long as it is on the ITV Player, I'd rather people watched it on there. It's better for Gareth if the show, especially the bit featuring him, gets lots of views. Unfortunately the ITV player isn't working at the minute, but hopefully later.

A lot of people said how nice Gareth came across, and that, as well as the reminders of him on the show first time around, got people reminiscing and thinking about how much they like him. Even the people who were worked up about Simon backing Gareth had to concede (most of them) that Gareth was nice. Going back to the trending topics thing - one not so good side effect is that the various spam-bots on twitter tap into the phrases in the trending topics and include them in their spam tweets. Watch out what links you click on in tweets where Gareth gets a mention! Most of them are easy to spot, because they are automated and don't make much sense, lol.

Gareth definitely provoked a reaction! Loads of people remembering just how much they loved him, and still do! The top trending is the bit on the main twitter page to the right hand side that tells you what people are talking about. It's generally the hot topics of the day, or linked to what's on tv etc. You can set it for different countries, but Gareth made it onto the worldwide list. I didn't check until someone said he was trending, but when I was keeping track, he was up to number four in the world. Here's the evidence! It was a good show, and inevitably, what Simon said was much less controvertial in context than the bit leaked quite knowingly to the papers to provoke a reaction - and column inches. It also helped that Gareth was there to talk about the show and things from his point of view, as the best advert for Gareth is Gareth.

It's good to see Gareth (or his manager) letting people know he is doing this tomorrow. Perhaps that moaning does pay off! Hopefully Gareth will get the chance to speak about his experiences on the show, and not just dwell on the rivalries. The experience Gareth and Will went through ten years ago was quite different to what it's like now. There wasn't the same expectation of instant fame, and so it was all much more of an honest experience.

I love that they are doing all these photos and little clips and other bits of promotion for the concert. It's making me really, really want to go. Which I suppose is the point!

About time too! Thanks.

It's good to see they've updated the Children of Eden website. They're putting a lot of effort into the concert. I hope someone we know goes.

Thanks Khelda. I saw Russell saying he was excited about doing something with Gareth in the West End in January - to be revealed, and talked about it involving some dancers and stuff, so I didn't expect it to be this! Obviously I've been proven wrong! Should be fun.

As the UK set was going to Spain, I wouldn't be surprised if some of the costumes went too. I remember the documentary about Les Mis over Christmas last year that mainly followed Matt Lucas as he prepared to play Thenardier and he was was given a whole load of different former Thenardier clothes to try, including all of the old hats. They definitely keep them somewhere!

If you missed it live, or on the iPlayer - here it is again. Aled Jones December 2011.mp3

I agree! The blue colour suited him better, but also the fit and everything worked better. Probably because the jacket was actually made to fit him, whereas the black one from Queen's will have come from a cupboard and he'd have been given the one that fitted him best. I thought the same about his barricade outfit too - the waistcoat was a bit shabby at Queen's.

I love it. It's good to see Zoe getting the chance to watch again too.

Brilliant - thanks for the tip off. I see she's also uploaded a clip of Anyone of Us too. And Heaven. And hopefully some more to come too.

That's a great report Val. Very detailed, and in particular well done on remembering all of the songs. I don't blame you for wanting to concetrate on the performance, but I would like to get a full version of Sweet Child of Mine, the way he sang it at Maidstone with the piano sometime. I'm not fussed about an actual video, more the audio - so if anyone manages to catch it, I'll be very grateful. I am a little bit surprised Gareth didn't do any Christmas tunes, but perhaps he's not had time to rehearse any with this band. I think it would have been a nice addition, and something a bit seasonal.