Boyzone stars Ronan Keating, Keith Duffy, and Shane Lynch have paid tribute to their late bandmate Stephen Gately ahead of their upcoming tour. The boyband, who launched their career in 1993 and achieved worldwide fame three years later, appeared on This Morning on Tuesday to discuss what fans can expect from their final farewell gig next month.
The conversation soon turned to their late bandmate Stephen, who passed away at the age of 33 in 2009 from a fluid build-up on the lungs caused by an undiagnosed heart condition while holidaying in Mallorca, Spain. Keith, 51, Ronan and Shane, both 49, were devastated by the loss, alongside bandmate Mikey Graham, 53, who stepped back from live performances with Boyzone in 2019 but will return for the reunion shows.
Reflecting on the loss a week ahead of the One For The Road: Live At Emirates Stadium performances, the group admitted they keep Stephen at the forefront of their minds during their gigs. Shane said: 'We always celebrate Stephen within our shows, and have done for the amount of years that he's not been with us. It's a special time for us to do that because I think outside this bubble called Boyzone, to remember Stephen and his ways, and the love of Stephen. It's a particular memory of an individual but when we get together, he's very much alive. It's a whole different scenario. We celebrate him to our fullest.'
Ronan chimed in: 'It's funny, when we're together, it feels like he's just getting ready in the dressing room or something next door. He's here, he's alive and he will be alive with us on stage next week at the Emirates.'
Last year, Ronan paid a heartfelt tribute to Stephen, marking 16 years since his tragic passing. On the anniversary of his death in October, Ronan took to Instagram to remember his close friend and 'wingman', sharing a touching throwback photo of the pair together. In a heartfelt caption, he wrote: 'Years are passing fast. Miss you my friend, my brother, my wingman. I'm sure you are laughing at the fact we have decided to approach this next chapter. Kills me to do it alone. But I know you are there.'
Fans flocked to the comment section to share their love and honour his memory, writing: 'My god he was so beautiful. Miss him.' Keith also marked the anniversary with his own tribute, posting a montage of pictures of Stephen from the band's early days and writing: '16 years an Angel Remembering our brother Steo today, forever in our hearts, voices, and every song we sing. 1976–2009.'
Stephen's death in October 2009 sent shockwaves through the music world, and his fellow bandmates have continued to honour his memory through their music and live performances. The pop group, who rose to fame in the 1990s with hits such as No Matter What and Love Me for a Reason, reunited after Stephen's death to release their farewell album Thank You & Goodnight in 2018.
The four remaining members are preparing to take to the stage again for a special UK stadium show, One For The Road: Live at Emirates Stadium, on June 5 and 6, with a tribute to Stephen promised as part of the performance. Speaking to Magic FM, Keith bravely opened up: '[Stephen] was a huge part of Boyzone. We show him a great deal of respect, we always have done since his passing. We've always tried our best to try to respect him in a way that was right and just. It wouldn't be right and just to do this show without remembering Stephen. We hope that will be a part of a show everybody will join in and celebrate with us. We don't quite know exactly what that is yet, but every show that we've ever done without Stephen, we've always had a moment and we put a lot of thought and effort into make sure it's enough and we usually get great feedback from the fans telling us that they loved that moment in the show, that it touched them, that it was perfect.'
He added: 'Getting that right is going to be very important to us, but we wouldn't be able to do a show without bringing him in and as Ronan said earlier on when we are together as a group and the four of us are together, we feel that Stephen is in the room, we genuinely do. We reminisce about times when we travelling, when we were tired, when we'd all kick off, when we'd argue and some of the things that Stephen used to do were hilarious.'
The announcement follows the success of their Sky documentary Boyzone: No Matter What, which offered fans a candid look back at the band's journey. In a joint statement, Boyzone said: 'We've been truly blown away and humbled by the response to the documentary this year. The love we've felt from fans all over the world has inspired us to create the ultimate experience together, headlining our own stadium show. The four of us can't wait to stand together again and enjoy One For The Road.'
This Morning airs weekdays from 10am on ITV1 and ITVX.
