6 days Ago
Nik Parsons might not be a household name but loves performing in front of east London audiences while paying tribute to one of the UK's most recognisable bands. He is one part of The Take That Experience, who are playing at the Queen's Theatre in Hornchurch as part of their 2025 Greatest Hits Tour. Nik impersonates Mark Owen in the band and spoke to the Recorder about what people can expect from the upcoming tour.
MORE NEWS: Shopping centre calls for 'dream list' donations towards Christmas appeal “I do my best in resembling Mark Owen. I’m quite tall and Mark is shorter than me but we do a little gag about that in the show. "We do our best to resemble Take That despite physical limitations.
We have our hair cut the same way and wear the same outfits.” Nik studied performing arts at college before starting a role as a Robbie Williams tribute act. “Performing arts is in my family really.
My dad is a costume designer, he did the costumes for Grease in the West End in the 90s. "My mum was a costume and wardrobe supervisor, my brothers and sisters all went to drama school as well," he said. “I sort of fell into tribute work, really enjoyed it and have done it ever since.
The Take That Experience have been performing together for more than ten years (Image: Red Entertainment) “Now 24 years later I’m still doing it." The Take That Experience have been together for more than a decade and are Take That's "most popular and recognised tribute act", according to The Entertainment Shed. “We named the band after what we try to do.
We try to give everybody a Take That experience", said Nik. "We cover all different variations of Take That, the three piece, the five piece, we have a Robbie solo section as well." The Robbie Williams solo section includes hits such as Rock DJ, Candy and Angels.
Nik (right) says the band wants to 'give everybody the Take That experience' (Image: Red Entertainment) Nik said: “We try to cover as many of the songs that people want to hear as a Take That fan." Songs that will feature on the tour include Pray, Relight My Fire, Patience, Shine, These Days and Rule The World. “It’s a good, fun night out where people can let their hair down and sing and dance and get involved.
It’s great. “We take our job seriously but we’re also aware that we’re tribute acts so it’s all done with a little pinch of salt.” The band's first performance of 2025 is at Queen's Theatre on January 22.
“We’ve performed at Queen’s in Hornchurch three times before but we haven’t been there since around 2019," said Nik. “It’s a really nice theatre with a good-sized stage and the crowds in that neck of the woods are always really up for it. Queen's Theatre, Hornchurch will host the band's opening show in 2025 (Image: Google) “Originally I’m from Watford so I’m not a million miles away, and the guy who plays Robbie actually lives in Hornchurch, so he’s really excited for this one on his home ground.
” Despite performing together for more than a decade already, the tribute band have to keep an eye on the real Take That and adapt their performances when necessary. "These days we don’t need to do that many rehearsals because we’ve been doing it for so long. “When they were the four piece band and then five piece, it was quite straight forward for us and I think they have been a three piece now longer than they were ever a four or a five so you have to adapt to that – which we did.
We now open on the three piece", explained Nik. He said the fact that Take That completed their This Life tour of the UK and Ireland this year was a help. “We can copy costumes and setlists to a degree.
“Whenever they come out with new material or a new tour, it's exciting for us as we get to refresh the show a little bit. “It’s just a really fun night out for a Take That fan. If they’re not touring or if a fan has missed out on tickets, it’s a great alternative.
" For tickets, go to queens-theatre.co.uk/whatson/the-take-that-experience/ .
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