It was the record-breaking theatrical concert tour that left audiences spellbound first in 2009 and once again this summer. But Take That’s The Circus Live has been performed for its last time, Gary Barlow told fans on Sunday (5 July).Since May, the “Greatest Day” band (consisting of Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen) have been on the road with the rebooted version of their 2009 stadium tour. Corresponding with the band’s 2008 album of the same name, The Circus Live was the fastest-selling tour in UK history at the time, after selling out its original dates in five hours.The 2026 tour replicated the lavish production – albeit without former band member Jason Orange, who left the group in 2014. The show included a floating hot air balloon, circus performers, a 30-foot-tall mechanical elephant and a 260-person ensemble.Barlow shared the update with fans after the final show of The Circus Live (Getty)The final show took place in Dublin on Saturday (4 July), with Barlow, 55, reflecting on the tour’s success and whether it would return again the following day.“And another tour comes to a close,” he wrote on Instagram. “Somehow, this one feels a little different. With the other tours, it’s always comforting to know there will almost definitely be a next time. But I’m pretty sure this tour won’t return.From L-R: Donald, Owen and Barlow on stage at the London Stadium (Getty)“I was 38 when we originally did this show, and I have to say it’s been a whole other challenge doing it as a 55-year-old. I just can’t see a way I could physically do this show again.”With multiple stages and sets designed by legendary stage designer Es Devlin, and costume changes that at one point saw Barlow, Donald and Owen dressed as clowns and painting their own faces on stage, The Circus Live was a feast for the senses.The stadium run began at Southampton’s St Mary’s Stadium in May and continued across the UK before ending in Dublin; during the show at the London Stadium in June, Donald joked on stage that he was “bloody knackered” by the performance.Attendees joked that the show was the 'most overstimulating two hours' of their lives (Getty)Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon MusicSign up now for a 30-day free trial. Terms apply.Try for freeADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon MusicSign up now for a 30-day free trial. Terms apply.Try for freeADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.Once the theatrical tour kicked off, TikTok was flooded with montages of the band alongside their dancers, puppets and circus performers (including hair hangers, cyr wheel dancers, tightrope performers, fire breathers and aerial acrobatic artists), with the video makers often joking that the show was “the most overstimulating two hours” of their lives.One specific element of the show that frequently went viral featured the giant puppet elephant, which walked across the stage while Take That stood and sang in a basket atop it.Not only were the elephant’s ears and movements controlled by dancers attached to the mechanical creature, but the elephant’s tail was actually a woman hanging upside down from her feet, with her braids acting as the end of the tail.Take That atop the mechanical elephant (Getty)“Where do I apply to be the elephant’s tail on Take That’s tour?” one viral video asked, while another clip was captioned: “Imagine someone asking ‘what is your job?’ and your answer being ‘Oh, I’m the tail of the elephant for Take That.”The gravity-defying performer in question is dancer Briony Albert, who has worked with Take That for 17 years.On her performance going viral, Albert told BBC Radio Manchester: “People have said 'Why do we need to have someone dangling off the back of the elephant? We could have just stuck a piece of plastic off the back.’“But it just makes it interesting. It's something to talk about. And I'm engaging with it because why not?”