POP group Hear'Say have denied their debut UK tour is in danger of being a massive flop.

Despite only three of the group's 19 remaining concerts being sold out, the band's label, Polydor, said the Hear'say "Popstars" National Arena tour was proving to be a "huge success."

The three sold-out dates are in Manchester at the city's 16,000-capacity MEN Arena where the group is playing four gigs. According to Arena bosses, there are a "small number" of single seats available for the concert on September 22.

Those for the two performances on September 23 and the one-night gig on September 29 are sold out, however.

But critics have been quick to jump on the revelation that, overall, 15 per cent of tickets for their 19 remaining gigs remain unsold -- a figure which would mean many arenas rattling with hundreds of empty seats.

Some music experts have accused the band of rolling out an arena tour too soon.

The group has had two number one singles and a best-selling album, but arena tours are normally reserved for bands which much more experience.

The band announced their arena tour after their first single, the big selling "Pure and Simple". The record-breaking band, which includes Bury's Suzanne Shaw, rocketed to fame after being plucked from obscurity on ITV1's Popstars.

A spokesman said: "Hear'Say quickly added extra dates after the initial eight sold out in two hours. The result has been a 36-date tour, double the size of some of their peers."

Currently 85 per cent of the tickets have been sold with four weeks of sales left. That translates to a figure of 265,000 tickets sold.

The spokesman said: "The tour organisers are confident the targeted 90 per cent sell out will be achieved." Rumours of a potential disaster surfaced on the Internet and came just days after a sell-out gig in Cardiff on August 25. The group is playing at cities across Britain, including Newcastle, Sheffield and London.