Mel C admits she's 'relieved' she and Victoria Beckham are not joining the Spice Girls reunion... after revealing she was 'bullied' in the band

• e-mail

She recently claimed that she was 'bullied' during her time in the Spice Girls.

And now Mel C - full name Melanie Chisholm - has revealed she is 'relieved' that she and Victoria Beckham will not be taking part in the impending girlband reunion.

The former Sporty Spice, 42, admitted she struggled to come to a decision when fellow band mates Melanie Brown, Emma Bunton and Geri Horner attempted to regroup the Wannabe hitmakers.

Scroll down for video 

'I felt relieved': Mel C, 42, revealed that she is 'relieved' that she and Victoria Beckham will not be taking part in the impending Spice Girls reunion

But the singer is now glad she turned down the offer, telling the Sunday Post newspaper: 'It was a really hard decision to make. But once it was made I felt very relieved and that proved to me that my instinct was right.'

Mel also admitted that although the ladies shared an amazing and life-changing experience together, they often go for months without speaking.

'There's always an ebb and flow to how much we stay in touch. We have spells of seeing each other and then not speaking for months.

'Family life and career takes over. I'd love to see the girls more and when we do have periods of being in each other's lives, it's lovely,' she explained.  

The news comes after Mel revealed she was picked on during her time in the iconic British band, but refused to 'name any names'.    

Victim: The singer recently revealed she was 'bullied' during her time in the Spice Girls

Girl power gone wrong? The singer refused to 'name any names', but explained her tormentor in the chart-topping girl band has since 'apologised' to her

Speaking about her new single Version Of Me to Attitude magazine, the musician admitted she wishes she had been 'a bit stronger' during her stint alongside her fellow bandmates.  

Mel said: 'Version of Me is about being bullied. About being in a situation as a young adult where I felt bullied and how that has affected me, and molded me in a way.' 

Asked if the bullying occurred during her time in the Spice Girls, she explained: 'Yes. I’m not going to name names. But yes. It’s been addressed, they were aware of what they’d done. They apologised.'

The mother-of-one admitted she let certain people in her life take advantage of her when she was starting out in the music industry.

She told Attitude: 'Now I'm older, I'm a lot more confident and I will not be s**t upon. But when I was younger I let people s**t on me. What's done is done but I’d have liked to have been a bit stronger.'

Singer-turned-designer: Victoria Beckham, aka Posh Spice, also bowed out of the impending reunion as she continues to focus on her successful fashion career 

Earlier this year, Mel turned down a reported £2million to rejoin the Spice Girls.

After months of speculation, former members Mel B, Geri - now known by her married name, Horner - and Emma announced this summer they'd be reuniting under the new name of GEM.  

With designer Victoria now concentrating on her growing fashion empire, it was hoped the four remaining champions of 'girl power' would come together to mark 20 years since the Wannabe singers first hit the charts. 

In April an insider confirmed: 'Mel C is out of the reunion for now. She has essentially left the band to focus on a more serious music career. 

'Being bullied can damage people': Speaking about her new single Version Of Me, the musician admitted she wishes she had been 'a bit stronger' during her stint

Stay on trend in Mel C's velvet Isabel Marant dress

£320

ISABEL MARANT ÉTOILE Lynna velvet dress

Buy from MATCHESFASHION.COM

Buy now

Seen on the catwalk at the likes of Valentino, Roksanda, Ellery, Rochas and Preen to name but a few, velvet is a huge trend for Autumn/Winter '16.

It's hardly a stranger to the winter season but this time around it's all about introducing your velvet into everyday outfits. Whereas once the luxe-looking material was only associated with plush eveningwear, now it's all about working it into your casual attire.

Mel C has got it bang on the money in this super wearable dress by Isabel Marant Etoile. It's relaxed enough to wear during the day as Mel has done by teaming it with Givenchy loafers, or you could rock it with tights and boots. Of course, if you did want to make it after-hours appropriate, it would look great with some stilettos too.

It's still available to buy from MATCHESFASHION.COM, so why not give style the soft touch this season and snap it up (click right). If you can't splash the cash, just get the look with our budget buys below!

* PRICES MAY NOT BE AS ADVERTISED

...NOW GET A DRESS LIKE MEL C'S FOR LESS

• £785

  

  GIVENCHY Stud-embellished leather loafers

  Buy now

• £85

  

  ASOS WHITE Velvet Bonded Mini Dress With Chiffon Pleat Underskirt

  Buy now

• £32

  

  River Island Sara Velvet T-Shirt Dress

  Buy now

• £45

  

  Motel Tie Neck Belia Tea Dress In Velvet

  Buy now

• £30

  

  Vila Velvet Bodycon Dress With Cut Out Back

  Buy now

Elaborating on the singer's spit from the group's plan, the source told The Sun: 'She loves the girls but it just didn’t feel right for her to reunite with them at the moment.

'She has other priorities and obviously it was a bit of a problem that Victoria made it clear she wasn’t going to be part of the reunion.'  

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Victoria told MailOnline at the time: 'Victoria has been very respectful about the fabulous time they had together in the past, however her focus is now very much her family and fashion business.' 

Mel explained her reasons for staying away in a recent essay for LOVE magazine: 'The hardest part for me was letting people down, the girls, the fans, civilisation?! 

'Unfortunately something didn’t feel quite right and I had to follow my gut.' 

Spice up your life:  The Spice Girls (L-R Victoria Beckham, Emma Bunton, Melanie Brown, Geri Horner and Melanie Chisholm) formed in 1994 and became one of the world's most popular British pop groups

Mel added that she was confused as to why so many pop stars were making a comeback after turning their backs on music as she reasoned some things are better left in the past. 

Mel pondered: 'Is it a new rule that bands have to reform? Why can’t we just be remembered for our incredible achievements in the nineties?' 

And despite previously admitting that she 'couldn't really look at herself in the mirror' during the height of the band's fame in the nineties, she revealed she loved reuniting to perform at the London Olympics closing ceremony in 2012.

Rounding off her LOVE Letter, she revealed: 'For me the absolute pinnacle of my Spice existence was being watched by a billion people around the globe belting out Spice up Your Life on top of a black cab at the 2012 London Olympics. 

Girl power! During their nineties heyday, the group managed to sell more than 80million records, making them the best-selling female group of all time

'Anything less than the full line-up just didn’t feel like we’d be doing justice to the band or the fans.' 

The Spice Girls formed in 1994 and became one of the world's most popular British pop groups since the Beatles after their debut single Wannabe hit the charts in 1996.

During their nineties heyday, the group managed to sell more than 80million records, making them the best-selling female group of all time.

After a seven year hiatus, they reunited in 2007 and embarked on a global tour and their Greatest Hits album peaked at No.2 on the UK Album Chart.

The girls last performed together at the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics, where they arrived in the stadium in a gem encrusted black cab, singing hits such as Wannabe and Spice Up Your Life. 

'The absolute pinnacle': The girls last performed together at the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics, where they arrived in the stadium in a gem encrusted black cab