Here’s Take That’s record of being LGBTQ+ allies – and when two weren’t

With Netflix’s Take That documentary now out, it’s got us thinking about the band’s history when it comes to the LGBTQ+ community.

Originally made up of Gary Barlow, Robbie Williams, Mark Owen, Jason Orange and Howard Donald, Take That debuted in the nineties and stormed the charts with songs like “Pray,” “Relight My Fire,” and “Babe.”

After Williams left in 1995 the others disbanded in 1996 before reforming without Williams in 2005. The “Rock DJ” singer then rejoined the band in 2010 before Williams and Orange left and the other three continued as a trio.

READ MORE: Robbie Williams jokes he ‘wants to be gay’

All that and more is explored in Take That on Netflix, including the band’s origins performing in gay bars. “They loved us,” says Owen in the documentary. Beyond that the band (for the most part) have been loyal LGBTQ+ allies.

Here are the times we’ve found when the band members were and (occasionally) weren’t LGBTQ+ allies.

Take That

Take That was confirmed for a surprising last-minute appearance at Manchester Pride in 2017. Then made up of Barlow, Owen, and Donald, the group appeared and introduced the stars of the Take That musical, The Band.

Gary Barlow

The frontman has shown his LGBTQ+ allyship by acting as a patron of the Elton John AIDS Foundation since 2014. Barlow has also hosted galas in support of the EJAF.

Barlow also played at the Woodside End of Summer Party which raised funds to support 50,000 pregnant women to help prevent them passing HIV to their babies.

Robbie Williams

Williams has never been shy about anything, and we guess that’s part of the appeal. And even when faced with speculation about his sexuality Williams has given unapologetic responses, as he did in 2024 to The Guardian.

Asked about a 2004 tabloid which purported to have spoken to the singer’s “secret gay lover” Williams, who successfully sued the paper, said he was never upset about being thought of as gay, it was the fabrication.

“I’ve done everything but suck a c***,” he told The Guardian. “Honestly, you’ve never met somebody that wants to be gay as much as me.” He added: “You want to be an ally while at the same time protecting your own authenticity and your own life.

“Besides, if I want to suck a c***, I’ll suck a c***. Who’s going to f****** stop me? My wife? The beard!”

Williams also spoke fondly while reflecting on the band’s start in gay bars, the lack of violence and the love in the room. “There was total acceptance and humour and gay abandon. And safety. That’s what I take with me to this day; it was an incredibly safe place for me to grow up,” he said.

Sadly, Williams performed at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, a country that notoriously hates LGBTQ+ people. When he faced similar criticism for performing at the 2022 Qatar World Cup, the singer defended himself arguing against the “hypocrisy” of it.

Williams was also criticised after asking a trans The X Factor contestant for their “birth name”.

Mark Owen

Owen has also addressed the band’s gay bar performances in the past. In an interview with NME in 1997, later reproduced in The Guardian, the “cute one” of Take That said being thought of as gay “didn’t bother” him.

Owen also said: “Because, well, we weren’t. None of us cared anyway, we started off in the gay clubs, we’ve got no problem there. We thought the mystery was good, that’s what got us in the papers.”

Howard Donald

Donald unfortunately let the side down when it came to LGBTQ+ allyship. In 2023, he was dropped by Groovebox’s Nottingham Pride Festival after it emerged he’d liked tweets he later recognised as being “derogatory towards the LGBTQIA+ community”.

Among the offending posts, Donald had liked were criticisms of a trans-inclusive period poverty campaign, posts calling for Disney to be “defunded” after holding a Pride event, and also posts from Andrew Tate.

In an Instagram statement Donald said: “I have made a huge error in my judgment liking social media posts that are derogatory towards the LGBTQIA+ community and for that I am deeply sorry and I know I have let everyone down. 

“I am really disappointed in myself and I am sorry for any hurt that I caused by my uneducated actions. I clearly have a lot to learn and it’s a priority for me that I do this.”

Jason Orange

Not much is known about the band’s fifth member. After announcing his decision to leave the band in 2014, saying at the time “there have been no fallings out”, Orange reportedly moved to the Cotswolds to enjoy the quiet life.

Take That is streaming on Netflix now.

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