Take That: Lineup, Richest Member, Biggest Hit, Who Left

Formed: 1989 in Manchester · Original members: 5 · Current members: 3 · UK No. 1 singles: 12 · Oldest member: Howard Donald · Reported richest member: Robbie Williams

Seven facts, one pattern: every era of Take That is defined by who was in the room. The lineup counts and chart totals below are the ones fans keep asking about.

Who’s the oldest in Take That?

According to Wikipedia’s band biography, the original members’ birth dates line up like this:

• Howard Donald — born 28 April 1968; the oldest member of the original five and the current trio.
• Jason Orange — born 10 July 1970; left the band in 2014.
• Gary Barlow — born 20 January 1971; lead vocalist and principal songwriter.
• Mark Owen — born 27 January 1972.
• Robbie Williams — born 13 February 1974; the youngest original member.

The span from oldest to youngest is under six years, yet the question never gets boring. The short answer: Howard Donald, who was there at the start, stayed through every lineup change, and is still in the band in 2026.

Who is the richest Take That member?

The richest-member question gets the same answer every time: Robbie Williams, because his solo career became its own industry after 1995. The pattern: the age question is really a membership question — the oldest member has never been the most famous one, and the youngest original member left twice.

What is Take That’s biggest hit song?

• “Back for Good” (1995) is the song most often named as their biggest hit — the BBC’s retrospective says it reached No. 1 in 31 countries, premiered at the 1995 BRIT Awards, and came from the album “Nobody Else” (BBC, same retrospective as above).
• According to Wikipedia’s chart record, “Back for Good” was also the band’s only US Hot 100 entry, peaking at No. 7.

The striking part is the US detail: Take That conquered Britain and Europe, yet their only American chart entry is the ballad everyone still covers on talent shows. “Babe” and “Rule The World” keep showing up in related searches, which is why the “biggest hit” question never quite dies. Why this matters: “Back for Good” is the answer that survives every era — whether the fan found the band on vinyl, on CD, or in a streaming playlist, they name the same song.

What are Take That’s greatest-hit songs?

• “Pray” (1993) — their first UK No. 1.
• “Relight My Fire” (1993) — an early No. 1.
• “Back for Good” (1995) — the international breakthrough.
• “Patience” (2006) — the reunion-era No. 1 that proved the four-piece still had chart power.
• “Rule The World” — a recurring catalog favorite.

The pattern: the songs that still get revived are the crossovers, and “Back for Good” remains the one with the strongest international chart record.

Why is Robbie not in Take That?

• Robbie Williams first left in 1995; the band split a year later.
• He returned for the 2010 album “Progress”, restoring the five-piece.
• He left again after the Progress tour; his last group recording and touring activity ran through 2010-2011 (Smooth Radio, linked above).

The public reasons were consistent: his solo career pulled harder than group commitments. The 1995 exit happened at the peak of “Back for Good” mania; the second exit happened after a reunion that was never meant to be permanent.

Are Robbie and Mark still friends?

• Both have spoken warmly about each other in interviews over the years.
• Neither has published anything suggesting bad blood.
• There is no official joint statement on the friendship’s current state.

The friendship question keeps resurfacing because Mark stayed and Robbie didn’t. What’s on record is cooperation, not conflict — and no public falling-out has ever been documented. The trade-off: Robbie’s exits built his solo career and cost fans the five-piece. Take That survived because the remaining members treated his departure as a chapter, not an ending.

Why is Jason Orange no longer in Take That?

“I no longer had the passion needed to continue.”

— Jason Orange, on his exit, as reported by BBC News (linked above)

Orange made his exit official on 24 September 2014 (BBC News), saying he did not want to commit to recording and promoting a new album (Digital Spy, same profile linked above), and his bandmates called the departure “a huge loss”.

Did Jason Orange ever marry, and what about Lulu and Catherine Tate?

• Orange has never been publicly married.
• He has never confirmed a relationship with singer Lulu.
• His reported link to comedian Catherine Tate was never confirmed by Orange.

The reported relationships have followed him for years, but Orange has never addressed them publicly.

How much money has Jason Orange got?

• No verified net-worth figure exists for Jason Orange.
• Online estimates vary widely and are not official records.
• His absence from interviews and public projects since 2014 gives estimates nothing concrete to build on.

Any number attached to his name should be read as an estimate, not a documented figure.

What is happening with Jason Orange in 2026?

Digital Spy’s profile of Orange’s post-band life describes a member who stepped away completely and hasn’t been part of the band’s public life since. Why this matters: he’s the only member with no 2026 footprint, and every reunion headline gets checked against one question — would Jason show up?

How many people are left in Take That?

• Gary Barlow — lead vocalist and principal songwriter.
• Howard Donald — vocals.
• Mark Owen — vocals.

This trio has been the band since Jason Orange’s exit in 2014. Robbie Williams left again in 2012, which means the five-piece era ended twice — once in 1995 and once after the Progress tour.

What is the current Take That lineup?

Lead vocals: Gary Barlow · Vocals: Mark Owen · Vocals: Howard Donald

The trio’s most recent chapter is the “This Life” album era, and they’ve kept touring and recording as a unit. The implication: “Take That” in 2026 is a three-man operation — the five-member version now lives in catalogs, compilations and memories.

Five lineups, one pattern: no version of Take That has lasted more than a few years.

The table makes the pattern visible: the band has changed shape five times, and only the trio has stuck.

Take That timeline

The running order below matches the exits and returns documented in the sections above.

• 1989 — Take That formed in Manchester.
• 1993 — “Pray” became the band’s first UK No. 1 single.
• 1995 — Robbie Williams left; the band split in 1996.
• 2006 — The reunited four-piece returned to No. 1 with “Patience”.
• 2010 — Robbie Williams rejoined for the “Progress” album.
• 2012 — Robbie Williams left again after the Progress era.
• 2014 — Jason Orange left; the trio continued.
• 2026 — No confirmed Jason Orange project; official touring status to be verified.

The line to remember: every reunion has required someone to come back, and every stable era has required someone to leave.

What’s confirmed and what’s still unclear

Confirmed facts

• The current lineup is Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen (BBC).
• Robbie Williams left in 1995, returned for the 2010 album “Progress”, and left again after the Progress era (Smooth Radio).
• Jason Orange left in 2014 (BBC News).
• Take That have 12 UK No. 1 singles (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia)).

What’s unclear

• The exact formation year: this article uses 1989, while BBC News’s band profile gives 1990.
• Jason Orange’s exact net worth.
• Whether he dated Lulu.
• Whether he dated Catherine Tate.
• The current private friendship status of Robbie Williams and Mark Owen.
• Any 2026 project for Jason Orange.

The split between confirmed and unclear is the real band portrait: the facts are public, the feelings are private.

What they’ve said

Two statements capture the band’s strange, decades-long soap opera.

“I no longer had the passion needed to continue.”

— Jason Orange, on leaving Take That, via BBC News (linked above)

Robbie Williams has said the pull of his solo career, not bad blood with the band, drove his decision to step back after the Progress era.

— Robbie Williams’s position, as reported by Smooth Radio (linked above)

Read together, the two quotes map the band’s arc: an apologetic exit, and a career move.

Where Take That stands in 2026

Take That is no longer a band of five, and it hasn’t been for a while. It’s a trio with a deep catalog, two famous exits, and one member whose silence produces more questions than any reunion announcement. For fans who want to see Take That live in 2026, the choice is clear: you’ll be watching Barlow, Donald and Owen — or you’ll be waiting for a reunion that hasn’t been announced.

The consequence for fans is straightforward: the confirmed ticket is the trio, and any five-piece announcement would be new news.

Frequently asked questions

The short answers all point to the same bottom line: three active members, two documented exits, and no confirmed reunion.