Spice debut album: 23 million copies sold
The Spice Girls' first album sold 23 million copies, making it the highest-selling album by a girl band of all time.
Snapshot · The Louis Theroux Podcast
S8 EP5: Melanie C on Spiceworld, comparing muscles with Arnold Schwarzenegger and why she’ll always be a Spice Girl
Explore episode
Jul 6, 2026
Where this was said
The Backlash: Tom Yorke, Shirley Manson and Liam Gallagher
At 32:43 · chapter starts 30:00
In a delightfully curated segment, Louis reels off the names of credible artists who felt it necessary to attack the Spice Girls in public. Tom Yorke of Radiohead: the Antichrist. Shirley Manson of Garbage: she wished for their complete and utter destruction (Melanie notes Manson has since acknowledged this was an overreaction). Liam Gallagher: he'd chin them. The '90s, Louis observes with glee, 'you've got to love them.' Melanie C is almost philosophical: the Spice Girls were probably everything these artists hated — the most commercial band ever, shiny, sponsored, unavoidable. Their success becoming something that needed fighting back against. She mentions the debut album's 23 million sales — a figure Louis confirms makes it the highest-selling girl band debut of all time.
The Backlash: Radiohead, Garbage and Liam Gallagher vs. The Spice Girls
Tom Yorke called the Spice Girls the Antichrist. Shirley Manson of Garbage wished for their 'complete and utter destruction'. Liam Gallagher said he'd chin them. The fury was proportionate to their dominance: they were the most commercial band ever and completely inescapable — which made them everything the indie and rock establishment despised.
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