Thousands of fans queued up to see the Spice Girls movie as it hit British cinemas on Boxing Day.

The £16m film is the biggest project yet from the multi-millionaire all-girl band.

Despite some critics claiming the popularity of the Spice Girls is on the wane, they shot to Number One this week with their second Christmas chart topper, Too Much.

The band's cinematic efforts have already received some praise after they got the Royal seal of approval when Princes William and Harry and the Prince of Wales attended the world premiere of Spice World, The Movie in London just before Christmas.

Directed by Bob Spiers, who also directed the BBC's Absolutely Fabulous, the movie has received mixed reviews.

Richard E Grant plays their neurotic band manager while a host of celebrities make cameo appearances.

"We've always wanted to do different things. We've always said we're more than a band. We want to try everything," said Emma Bunton, better known as Baby Spice.

"We're going to show the world what we're like. Basically we'll be taking the mickey out of ourselves. It will be a celebration of London and the 90s ... Whether you like the Spice Girls or not, you'll see we operate on many levels as entertainers," she said.
 

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