Broke boy band Blue try to engineer cash by becoming the faces of Ideal Boilers
BROKE boyband Blue have turned up the heat on their career – by becoming the face of Ideal Boilers.
The four-piece, who have sold 16 million albums, have struggled in the charts in recent years, triggering a spate of reality show appearances.
But they received a handy income boost after being asked to front a new campaign by the Hull-based company, starting next month.
A source said: “It’s not the usual endorsement deal you’d expect from a boyband - but Blue aren’t your ordinary boyband.
“They expect to get some stick but see the funny side, as well as the cash incentive.
“The adverts will be pretty quirky.”
Blue - Lee Ryan, 35, Duncan James, 40, Anthony Costa, 37 and Simon Webbe, 40 - have 13 Top Ten hits, including three No1s.
They went bankrupt in 2015, with music insiders saying it was down to overspending during their music heyday.
But Duncan, 40, blamed the decision on a dispute with their record company.
He said: “We were sued by our management, who tried to screw us over big time, so we liquidated the company.
“They went after each one of us at a time.”
The group are currently working on their sixth studio album as a follow-up to 2015’s Colours which peaked at No13.
The members have appeared in several reality shows throughout the years including Strictly Come Dancing, I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! and Celebrity Big Brother.
They came 11th at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2011.
Duncan has also attempted to forge a career as an actor with roles in theatre and a stint in Hollyoaks.
Speaking last week, he said: “I wouldn’t want to do another soap. I didn’t personally enjoy it.”
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