S Club Jo: The Truth Hurts

Jo sets the records staright in this Daily Star interview, covering her non-pregnancy, weight gain and the bands future.

JO O'meara will be hiding her belly for a while - beacause she's turing into a fatty - The curvy S Clubber, 23, called me to set the record straight about her three month break from performing and to reveal details of her back problems...
...And explain her rapidly expanding tum Earlier this month, Jo went on TV to say she'd be taking a backseat for a while. Rumours started flying that she was pregnant and that the band was splitting - after all, it was just after Paul Cattermole had left to go solo.
She was also at great pains to keep her belly covered and having sung solo for the soundtrack to hit movie The Guru, the rumours appeared true.
But i can reveal the truth.
If Jo hadn't stepped out of the spotlight, she could have damaged her body terribly.
She told me "The discs in my spine are dehydrated and dont work very well. There hitting my sciatic nerve and sometimes my legs go in to spasms, which is agony. "I have to follow a back plan everyday which involves lots of stretches, sit-ups and flexibility exercises. I also have physiotherapy three times a week."
And Jo was quick to put an end to the pregnancy rumours once and for all.
"If im going to drop a sprog then its the first i've heard of it." She laughed. "I'll be more suprised than anyone.
"The reason im getting a bit bigger and a bit of a belly is quite simple - I've been stuffing my face with everything i can get my hands on." And Jo joked that, far from quitting, she's more likely to be kicked out for being too fat.
"I'm so bored just sitting around at home all day that i've turned into a human dustbin" She groaned. "I'm not quitting, but i'll probably come back in a couple of months and get booted out for being a fatty.
"I'm not a big girl, but im not exaclty tiny either. "I've never believed in being like a stick insect, even though when i joined the band i was a skinny little cow."
Tomorrow, when S club's new single Alive hits shops and the rest of the band are performing for fans, Jo will be at home twiddleing her thumbs. But she does have someone new to keep her company - Her puppy pippa.
Jo said: "She's a lovely little Labrador: She keeps me company and is a real comfort to cuddle when my backs hurting."
Jo will join the rest of the band on promotional duties when the new album, Seeing Double, is released at the end of the month.