Boyzone have confirmed that their upcoming London stadium concerts will mark the definitive end of the group, insisting they will not reunite again after next week’s performances.
The band, made up of Ronan Keating, Keith Duffy, Shane Lynch and Mikey Graham, will perform two nights at Emirates Stadium in what will be their first concerts since the Thank You and Goodnight tour concluded in 2019.
Speaking ahead of the shows, Shane Lynch said the concerts represent the closing chapter for the band.
“This is the final chapter and I think it has to be.”
“You can’t follow up what we’ve just done. We weren’t meant to be here sharing a stage together again.”
“It is a pleasure to be doing this but look, whatever the future holds, we go away and we come back together in friendships and stuff and our paths do cross.”
“But we are not going to be a band again. We are very much separate individuals.”
Boyzone to honour Stephen Gately during final shows
The concerts will also include a tribute to late Boyzone member Stephen Gately, who died in October 2009 from an undisclosed heart condition.
Ronan Keating admitted the performances will be emotionally difficult without Gately present.
“I am finding this especially hard because I know Stephen would have been in his element next week.”
“It is going to be very heavy on my heart next week. I will be carrying that. But there is a moment for him in the show. It’s a special moment, it’s Steo’s moment. It is going to be visually something.”
“Steo would have lapped this all up, more than anything we had ever done as a band. It’s going to be hard.”
Unreleased Boyzone songs will remain unheard
Despite fan interest in previously unreleased material, Ronan suggested that hidden Boyzone recordings are unlikely to ever be released.
“There are a lot of songs we wrote and recorded that have never seen the light of day, and rightly so, because they are s****.”
The group also reflected on the emotional challenges they faced when returning to touring after Gately’s death.
Keith Duffy said the band initially returned to the stage too soon following the loss.
“We came back together in 2008 and we were flying. We were on the crest of a wave until we lost Steo.”
“We toured again in 2011 but it was too soon after Steo passed.”
“That tour was a disaster, not on a working level or on a business level but on an emotional level.”
Keith added that later reunion performances for the band’s 20th anniversary felt more manageable emotionally.
“We decided for the 20th anniversary in 2013.”
“That was a nicer feeling than the one in 2011 because we had become more understanding of Stephen’s loss. Time is a great healer.”
Boyzone’s legacy remains one of the biggest in UK and Irish pop
Formed in the 1990s, Boyzone became one of the defining British and Irish pop groups of their era, scoring multiple UK No. 1 singles and albums with hits including No Matter What, Love Me For A Reason and Picture Of You.
Their final London shows are expected to serve as both a celebration of the band’s catalogue and a tribute to Stephen Gately’s enduring place in the group’s history.
