TT Book Discovery and a Mark Mini Pic Spam

[przed]

A few weeks ago, I finally broke down and got a used copy of Take That In Private on the Amazon UK marketplace. I've had it for a few weeks, but I only just noticed today that it came with a bit of a bonus tucked into the back cover:



Yep, that would be an actual 45 RPM single of Babe, Mark's first lead song with the band back in the day. Also, if you squint, you can see that at the top of the back flyleaf the previous owner has recorded when TT split up. I feel like I'm the keeper of a little piece of someone else's history.

In celebration of this little discovery, I thought I'd put up a quote from the book, with a few illustrating Markie pics. Because one can never have too many pics of Mark Owen. Srsly!

First, the quote, wherein the writer describes Mark taking a bath. (Really. I could not make this stuff up.):

"He's thin – all of Take That worry that he's too thin. His ribs are showing as he stretches across to reach the soap, but his legs belong to a footballer."

First of all, awww for the other boys worrying about Mark. But now let's investigate the rest of that quote.

Here's Mark, in a bath – though not taking a bath, darn it – and yep, looking a bit on the skinny side.


The wilderness years, and he's still almost alarmingly skinny, though with nicely buff arms I definitely appreciate.


Then there's that last bit. Does he have legs that belong a footballer? Let's check:


Yes. Yes, he does. Is it hot in here?

Comments

[przed.livejournal.com]

I can't believe it took me two weeks to notice that single squashed in there. *g*

The writer is a gem.

I mean it's like she understood us (read: me).

And me! I seriously suspect she's a closet slasher. *g* And yes, Mark being all maternal where Rob and Gaz are concerned is pretty adorable. It all confirms my opinion that he's more competent/self-sufficient than he often appears in fic. (I'm working on a tough/protective Mark story, so I would say that.)

[przed.livejournal.com]

God, I love that pic of Mark & Howard. I intend to feature it prominently in an upcoming pic spam.

And wow, he's much skinnier in these pics. I somehow have never noticed how skinny he is in that pic where they're putting the Relight outfits on. I think I've always been distracted by Howard's bum. ;-)

[przed.livejournal.com]

Have I mentioned I have a fetish for arms? *g*

[halotolerant.livejournal.com]

How *awesome* is that book? All the semi-naked cuddling, stroking and gay banter (ahem) *g* And of course, even more awesome with a Babe single included! Lucky you! *g*

Mark induces such a strong cuddle!reflex in me, it's insane (although, to be fair, he evidently has this effect on all of Take That so I'm not that odd) - lovely pics! *g*

[przed.livejournal.com]

The book is seriously awesome.

All the semi-naked cuddling, stroking and gay banter (ahem) *g*

Yes! Absolutely! You pretty much don't need fanfic to get very, very slashy with these boys, god bless 'em.

I think Mark induces a strong cuddle!reflex in anyone with a pulse. *g*

[anniina85.livejournal.com]

Aaaawwww! The others were worried about Mark being too thin. Can't blame them though, thinking about the hectic shedule they must have had... I think I've seen some articles where the boys were worried that Mark was not eating properly. And looking at pics and vids from the 90's, it does look like there is nothing more than skin and bones and a bit of muscle here and there to him. Also, during the big brother/In your own time era he does look scarily skinny...

[przed.livejournal.com]

There are definite reasons why Mark ends up on the receiving end of the "h" in so much h/c fic. He does the vulnerable waif look rather well. And yes, in the big brother era especially he looks very definitely in need of fattening up. He looks much more healthy and happy these days (though he can still do the vulnerable waif. *g*)

[anniina85.livejournal.com]

Oh, he does the vulnerable waif look perfectly. There is that very intriguing combination of fragility and stubborness about him. And his physical appearance doesn't hurt that image either ;)

He does seem much healthier these days. Although, I'm not always so sure of the mental well being and happiness. But he must be slowly getting there :)

[przed.livejournal.com]

Fragility and stubbornness about sums him up, which is probably why I love him so much. You'd expect him to be the one most likely to crack (and he obviously did a bit last year) but mostly he's always gamely soldiered on.

I do hope he's happier, but you're right that it's not necessarily a foregone conclusion. (That Time Out interview continues to haunt me.)

[anniina85.livejournal.com]

"Fragility and stubbornness about sums him up, which is probably why I love him so much." I second that! He's so very fascinating.
Things obviously have been hard for a really long time, but up until last year, he has managed to keep it together. But of course you could argue if trying to soldier on is doing him any good ;)

Time Out interview, is that the one they did in Ireland during the tour? The one where he nearly broke down. And was talking about the fear of being left behind, again. That interview really got me. And on top of everything Gary storms into the room and jokingly accuses Mark of trying to hogg all the limelight...talk about bad timing! ;)

[przed.livejournal.com]

I often wonder how/why the others didn't say anything about Mark's drinking at least, especially when they'd all seen that behaviour from Robbie before and all clearly bear some guilt about how they dealt with that.

That is indeed the interview. Mark's section was pretty awful, and then to have Gary break in and make a joke...I'm betting he felt horrible after he found out what had been going on.

[anniina85.livejournal.com]

I too often wonder if the others were worried about Mark's drinking or if they tried to make him stop. And it wasn't just the drinking, they must have noticed that something was wrong and Mark wasn't doing so well. Or, he just managed to hide it all *very* well. I can't imagine that the others didn't care... but it's hard to help someone who doesn't wanna be helped and hasn't admitted to themselves that they have a problem.

That inteview was both incredibly interesting and painfull to read. It was obvious that Mark was still feeling vulnerable about it all... and probably still is. I for sure would want to know what went through Gary's head when he found out how the interview had uppset Mark! I hope he offered Mark some comforting afterwards :)

[forthewistful.livejournal.com]

First, the quote, wherein the writer describes Mark taking a bath. (Really. I could not make this stuff up.):

"He's thin – all of Take That worry that he's too thin. His ribs are showing as he stretches across to reach the soap, but his legs belong to a footballer."

I'm reading In Private right now, but didn't get to this quote yet. I'm sure it would have attracted my attention anyway, but now that you have pointed it out, I will keep an extra eye out for it.

A quote that has definitely stuck to me though was the one with Mark forcing Jason to eat some chocolate before a show because all the guys feared that Jay totally lacked the energy to go on stage (due to his rather extreme eating habits back then). Awwww. (This calls for fiction.)

[przed.livejournal.com]

That quote does rather jump off the page. I'm sure you would have noticed it. *g*

As for Jason, I'm betting he still has rather extreme eating habits (which totally call for fiction *g*), though hopefully they're a bit more balanced now. But there's still not an ounce of fat on the man.

[forthewistful.livejournal.com]

Since I have some sort of kink for eating disorders and other food related stuff, I might very well come up with a story centering on Jason and Mark because Mark's rather protective streak when it comes to Jason and his eating habits triggers me. In a good way.

(Thanks for using that lovely icon. Those three = ♥)

[przed.livejournal.com]

That sounds like a very intriguing idea for a story. I'd definitely read something like that!

I might have started out as a Mark/Robbie gal, but increasingly I like throwing Mark with Howard or Jason or both.

[forthewistful.livejournal.com]

Okay, I'll see what I can come up with. Given what I have heard and read about Jason's eating so far, he might 'suffer' from something akin to Orthorexia Nervosa. This might indeed be an interesting topic.

(I like that a lot, I must admit. Mark, Jason and Howard make such a fascinating triangle.)

[przed.livejournal.com]

I have to say, that condition sounds frighteningly like a certain Mr Orange's behaviour. It would make a totally interesting topic, especially with Mark getting all protective of him.

Mark, Jason and Howard make the best triangle. In part because they'd mostly look out for each other. Add Rob or Gary into the mix and there's lots of jealousy and acrimony and negative emotions. Which can make interesting for stories, but sometimes you just want comfort fic.

[forthewistful.livejournal.com]

It does, doesn't it? I only hope his extreme ways are not what keep him from finding a partner for life. It just makes me rather sad to see thim run in and out of relationships again and again when he truly seemed to be one to want to settle down and have kids at some point. But then he's most likely not the easiest of guys to have a love relationship with, given all his quirks...
His talking about his sleeping problems on For the Record and that there's something inside him that's willing him to fail is rather heartbreaking. Considering.

The triangle is a harmonic one indeed, although even Howard sometimes seems a bit exasperated by Jason's pickiness. Or am I imagining things?