'We take the music seriously, but not ourselves': McFly on 20 years together

McFly flew right to the top from the get-go, ITV News' Rishi Davda reports

Sat opposite Danny, Dougie, Harry and Tom, it is pretty obvious to see why they've had long, successful careers.

Firstly, you can feel their genuine love of music in every answer they give. Secondly, they are just nice guys - funny, friendly, and endearingly self-deprecating.

McFly first found fame in their teens as their single, 5 Colours in her Hair, went straight to No 1 back in 2004.

They become the youngest band to have a UK No 1 album, taking the crown off a little-known foursome called The Beatles.

Though Tom Fletcher says the memories have always been more important than the accolades.

"You dream about having No 1's and winning awards and selling out tours and stuff like that and it's obviously amazing to be in that position.

"When it starts to happen, you realise that you don't care as much about that stuff and it's more about the journey and having fun with you mates."

With 20 years under their belt now, McFly are preparing to release their seventh album, called Power to Play.

Drummer Harry Judd admits: "I think our early successes are why we still have a career now and that's amazing. It can be a bit of a hindrance because people think of McFly and they think of the early pop hits, which we're proud of.

"But sometimes it makes it harder to continue with new music as a band now."

On the flip side, because making music is something they adore, it has allowed the group to "strip away all the pressure and the expectation."

The boys have bought their own recording studio. An unassuming industrial unit, kitted out with all the latest technology to help album creation feel like a glorified jam session.

'McFly HQ' is a mini-museum too, memorabilia from two decades displayed on every wall.

Danny Jones believes that "this is the most fun we've had making an album, having this space and being able to just play as a band has been fun."

Danny Jones shows ITV News Entertainment Report Rishi Davda the McFly HQ loos

Things were non-stop in the 00s and the group only really took time later on to reflect on their wellbeing and how it had been impacted by being thrust into the spotlight.

This week, Lewis Capaldi has hit pause once again on his performance schedule to better take care of his physical and mental health.

Dougie Poynter sees it as beneficial that "social media wasn't a thing when we first broke."

"Whereas with Lewis, there's Twitter and Instagram and you can see people's responses to things you've literally just done."

Speaking about Lewis's break, Danny thinks "it's great that you can do that now".

"We've had our moments, but with the band you feel this protection, you get through it."

As with any new album release, there follows a tour and McFly are heading back on the road once again.

To the naked eye they are musicians, but Danny sees the band more as athletes when they're on stage.

"We look at ourselves more like sportsmen, there's a physio, we've got sports drinks going on, you've got to go for it.

"You know, it's like going out on the footy pitch."

Harry remembers how he used to "drink before I went up on stage, then you'd be hungover and wouldn't enjoy it as much."

That's not the case anymore - it's all about "getting to bed, getting up, staying fit and eating well."

Danny gives Rishi a sneak peek at the new album from the studio

As with an interview, it's nice to finish on something light-hearted. So, I ask McFly who would play them in a movie.

After six or seven minutes of back-and-forth, they eventually picked for each other. 

Here you go: Tom Fletcher would be played by Harry Potter star Tom Felton while Harry Judd would be played by Hollywood heartthrob Zac Efron. 

Dougie Poynter would be embodied by a young Leonardo DiCaprio, and Danny Jones was awarded Elvis leading man, Austin Butler. 

I think that's a movie that most people would want to watch. 

Power to Play is out June 9 and the tour begins in October.

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