Mel B sparks fears after missing Spice Girls rehearsal amid Geri Horner drama

Mel B made the most of the Los Angeles sunshine as she posed in a leopard print bikini and heels on Instagram, after missing the first Spice Girls tour rehearsal.

The singer (real name Melanie Brown) didn’t allude to her absence from rehearsals for the girl group’s upcoming stadium dates in her post, which she captioned: “Today’s look Leopard print everything #nofilter #getready #whynot.”

Her no-show comes after she brought the band back into the headlines last month when she claimed to have slept with bandmate Geri Horner during the group’s Nineties heyday in an interview with Piers Morgan.

The singer nodded and smiled when the presenter asked if she and Horner (neé Halliwell) had ever shared a bed “like that” during an interview on his Life Stories series, which is set to air in full later this year.

Brown later said that the media furore had taken her remark to “new levels,” while Horner branded the claims “very hurtful” and “disappointing” in a statement.

Though fans praised the star’s latest photo as “fantastic” and noted Brown’s nod to her classic Spice Girls ensembles, some followers said they were “nervous” about her non-attendance at yesterday’s rehearsal, which took place at a studio in north London.

“Why didn’t you go to the rehearsals? It seemed you were the most interested in the reunion,” one Instagram user wrote.

“Soooooo are we going to rehearsals or not? What is going on? I’m getting nervous!!!” another weighed in.

“Should I be worried? She’s the one who always pushed about the tour and now not rehearsing. Hmm… I’m nervous for the opening night in Dublin,” a third worried fan said.

“Shouldn’t you be rehearsing Mel not sunning it up?” another asked.

Brown’s bandmates Horner, Melanie Chisholm and Emma Bunton were all present at yesterday’s rehearsal, with the latter marking the occasion by sharing a behind-the-scenes snap of her and her backing dancers.

Last week, Bunton insisted that the Spice Girls tour would be going ahead despite the drama in an appearance on the Jonathan Ross Show.

“Of course it’s happening, we are starting rehearsals on Monday!” she told the host.

“It’s all fine. We have all chatted about it. Listen, we had fun back in the day. I didn’t know anything else but you know, we are all good, we’re starting Monday, we can’t wait, we’ve all been chatting, it’s all good.”

The tour kicks off in Dublin on May 24.