"Girl power" back as Spice Girls reunite for tour

By Mike Collett-White

LONDON (Reuters) - "Girl Power" is back with the announcement that the Spice Girls, who topped charts in the late 1990s, are reuniting for a tour and greatest hits album.

Ginger, Sporty, Posh, Scary and a heavily pregnant Baby Spice told a press conference in London on Thursday that the tour would take place in December and January and would be accompanied by a television documentary about the band.

The 11-city tour starts in Los Angeles on December 7 and ends on January 24 next year in Buenos Aires.

"Girl power is back, we're going on the road, we're touring the world," Emma "Baby Spice" Bunton said in a promotional video shown to the press before the five girls appeared on stage at London's O2 arena.

When asked why she dropped her previous resistance to a reunion, Melanie "Sporty Spice" Chisholm replied: "A girl's allowed to change her mind. This is something that we've only seriously started discussing this year."

Geri "Ginger Spice" Halliwell added: "For me it's about celebrating the past, enjoying each other, it's about our fans. It felt the right time -- it's kind of now or never."

The five-member band is the latest in a long line of pop acts to bury past differences and reform, and they will be hoping for success where many others have failed.

The Spice Girls boasted album sales of 55 million during their meteoric career, and hits including "Wannabe" and "Say You'll Be There" topped charts across the globe.