They were accused of trying to breathe life into a dead phenomenon, and critics predicted their pulling power had long since expired, but masters of publicity the Spice Girls are having the last laugh.

Today the reuniting girl band announced they are adding yet more UK dates to their winter world tour, as demand for their distinctive brand of girl power continues to spiral skywards.

As well as treating London to their Nineties pop hits, the band will now play Manchester MEN Arena on January 23 and 24.

When a primped and preened Victoria Beckham, Emma Bunton, Melanie Chisholm, Melanie Brown and Geri Halliwell held a press conference in June to announce they were reforming for an 11-date world tour, they planned to play just one UK concert at London’s 02 Arena. After the concert sold out in 38 seconds, the band added three further dates, but demand only increased. Four months on, the Spice Girls are now committed to playing 17 shows at London’s O2 Arena.

It’s a coup for a group that has long been mocked as musically limited and whose demise, almost a decade ago, began in a blaze of publicity over in-fighting. Their renewed popularity can not be explained as loyal Britons nostalgically supporting the country’s quintessential Nineties pop band. Demand in the US and China has seen the group add extra shows in both countries.

The tour, beginning in Vancouver, Canada, on December 2, will follow the release of a Spice Girls greatest hits album in November. Earlier this week it was revealed the group had struck a deal, reportedly worth £5 million, with US lingerie company Victoria’s Secret, giving the retailer the exclusive American rights to stock the CD for the first two months following its release.

It is not the only lucrative deal sparked by the group’s reunion. An endorsement agreement with supermarket giant Tesco is said to be in the pipeline.

With or without the supermarket giant, all five Spice Girls will no doubt continue to prosper financially. Since the group split in 2001, each of the women, except Beckham, have taken the number one position on the music singles chart for their solo efforts. Any royalties Beckham has missed out on by failing to conquer the charts have well been made up for by her marriage to the world’s most famous footballer. David Beckham is worth an estimated £112 million.

Tickets for the Manchester Spice Girls concerts go on sale on Friday October 26. www.thespicegirls.com

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