Sarah Harding dies age 39 : Nadine Coyle ‘absolutely devastated’ by death of Girls Aloud bandmate and friend

Sarah Harding died aged just 39 on Sunday after a year-long battle with breast cancer.

The two pop stars had remained close since the chart-topping group disbanded in 2013.

Together, Nadine, Sarah and the other members of the girl group had conquered the music world and amassed a legion of fans across the globe over the previous decade.

In a post on her Instagram account featuring a picture of Sarah, Nadine wrote this evening: “I am absolutely devastated!!

“I can’t think of words that could possibly express how I feel about this girl and what she means to me!!

“I know so many of you will be feeling this way. For now I’m sending so much love to you!!!”

In a post on Instagram, Sarah’s mother Marie described her as a ‘bright shining star’.

She said: “It’s with deep heartbreak that today I’m sharing the news that my beautiful daughter Sarah has sadly passed away.

“Many of you will know of Sarah’s battle with cancer and that she fought so strongly from her diagnosis until her last day. She slipped away peacefully this morning.

“I’d like to thank everyone for their kind support over the past year. It meant the world to Sarah and it gave her great strength and comfort to know she was loved.

“I know she won’t want to be remembered for her fight against this terrible disease - she was a bright shining star and I hope that’s how she can be remembered instead. - Marie x”.

The much-loved Girls Aloud star was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2020.

The band had previously been in discussions for a reunion tour in 2022, 20 years after they topped the charts with ‘Sound of the Underground’ in December 2002, before Sarah was diagnosed with cancer.

Celebrities and fans across the world have been paying tribute to the talented Berkshire singer, who has passed away just two months before she would have turned 40.