Mark asesora a Gary en la compra de sombreros

TAKE That star Gary Barlow was kicking himself that he didn't bump into director Guy Ritchie while they were both staying at the swanky Lowry Hotel last week -for it turns out that Guy is Gary's style icon.

Gary tells The Diary that it was Guy's English gent look that inspired him to buy a hat for the first time when he was out shopping with bandmate Mark Owen in LA recently.

He says: "I've never bought a hat before but Mark took me out shopping and said to me `you need the Guy Ritchie look'. So I put this cap on and I thought, `this is it, I've arrived!' It's the only ever hat I've bought in my life, so Guy Ritchie, I'm following him now."

Gary told The Diary that the Take That camp had been most excited to hear Guy, famed for wearing flat caps, was at the hotel while filming his new movie Sherlock Holmes in the city - while they stayed last week to air their new album, The Circus, to family and friends for the first time.

And Gary laughed: "We heard Guy Ritchie was there and I think my mum was more excited that he was staying there than us.