OK! Magazine Interview - November 2006

 

© Thanx Joanne for typing it up

 

Issue: 546 – Date: 14 November 2006

 

Once upon a time, Mark Feehily was the shy, cute one from Westlife, who kept himself to himself in interviews.  But now, having bagged himself a foxy boyfriend, he seems to be full of life and is only too happy to speak his mind in a way we have never seen before. "I think its absolutely ludicrous that people are trying to force that image on to young people that you’re unacceptable unless you’re skinny", he rages when we touch briefly on the subject of skinny celebrities. "Its like walking around handing drugs to people. People get addicted to the way they look. It's a mental health issue to some people, Its just wrong.

 

Coming out seems to have done mark the world of good. So when we join the lads a week after the glamorous photoshoot at their record company office in West London, we are somewhat tickled when Mark starts filming us on his camera phone as we fire questions at the band. Camera shy, we shoot the full-lipped rascal a steely glance to which he flashes us a big smile and Joshes "I’m going to stick this on YOUTUBE!"

 

But Mark isn’t the only one who’s keeping us amused. Bandmates Shane Filan an Kian Egan and Nicky Byrne are also on top form, cracking jokes and picking fun at each other.

 

But as soon as we get to the serious subjects like the current trend for rock stars such as Pete Doherty and Keane’s Tom Chaplins very public stints in rehab, Mark is once again spurting off...

 

SO guys, what do you think if the current spate of rock stars checking into rehab?

M: Its f***ing sad that in today’s society people become cooler to a certain demographic by spending time in somewhere like the Priory.

K: Tellingly, all I seem to know is Pete Doherty for is taking drugs and excessive alcohol abuse, etc. I don’t know his music at all. The fact that papers keep writing about him so much worries me as people are seeing him as this really cool person, but sometimes with a drink and drugs addiction its definitely not cool.

N: Pete quite obviously needs help. I think it’s really sad that he is perceived as this cool person. It’s sick, in fact. The chap is not well. Look at his eyes and the scabs on his face.

 

Do you think it’s to make him look like a tortured hero to his fans?

M: Well, what I’d really like to know is if he’s using that whole image to better his profile, or in fact it’s the papers who are hounding him. He’s no fool. He’s an intelligent guy. I saw him being interviewed on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross and he is a very talented young man with a good voice. If I was in a position like Pete Doherty I think it would seem bit weird to go somewhere like The Priory as it must be like walking into the offices of OK, because its so well known.

N: But the Priory is a place to help people with a drink or a drugs problem which I’m assuming is a confidential place to go...

M: Yes it is, but there are always leaks about who goes therein the press.

S: Probably because the people who go there tell the press themselves.

N: Well I know that if I had an alcohol problem I would go to a place where no one would know I was there.

 

Your mate Kerry Katona has been talking about her troubled past recently. Were you surprised by the revelations?

S: We’ve known her for a very long time and knew she’s had a very hard time going form one foster family to another. She obviously feels it’s the right time to talk about it now. She’s a lovely girl and feels now is the time to talk about it.

M: When she split form Brian McFadden and went back to Warrington, we didn’t see her much so don’t know that much about her later life, but nothing in the book has shocked us to be honest.

 

You’ve worked with Brian’s new girlfriend on your album, were you worried Kerry would thump you?

N: In everything we’ve red Kerry has only been complimentary about Delta so we didn’t worry about asking her to join us on the record.

M: Between us, noone wants to take sides. We called Brian first and told him we wanted to work with delta and he was fine about that. Were mature adults and that’s how we deal with all our relationships.

 

You’ve all grown up and settled down - but are you still being chased by groupies?

K: Our fans don’t throw themselves at us.  Even in the early days we never had girls chucking themselves at us, even though people think it did happen to us like that.  That said, I did once have a saucy letter handed tome and this girl stood there and said read it now and when I opened it, it said "Willy you have sex with me"

I just looked at her and said sorry, love but no!

 

Shane, how are you coping being a dad?

When my daughter Nicole was born she slept like a log for eight hours straight. We were very lucky but now she’s teething, so she’s waking up in the middle of the nigh. Gillian and I would love a couple more but in a few years time…

 

Kian, there’s a lot of talk about you and your girlfriend Jodi getting spliced?

We will get married when the time is right for both of us. I don’t want to get married then have to rush of to a tour straight away. So when we do get married, it’ll be when I get a year off so we can travel he world without work getting in the way. But were not going to be rushed into something which I want to take time to make perfect…

 

Jodi told us she wants to be a young mum...

K: I think Jodi sees 30 as young. Children will come after marriage; First of all when we do get married, we’d like to have some time to ourselves, Shane and Gillian have a daughter but have been together since they were teenagers Whilst Jodi and I have only been together for a few years. Children will be a part of our lives one day but not just now…

 

Mark, we hear you’re desperate to get a ring on your boyfriend Kevin’s finger...

M: No, It’s all rubbish, We’re not getting married. Basically me and Kevin are really happy and enjoying what we have. Of course there’s a bit of interest form people as it’s a gay marriage. In Ireland especially, rumours about me getting married have been in the papers quite a lot because it's a political thing. I don't think about marriage yet, we're just taking each day as it comes.

 

Credit/Source: www.ok.co.uk / Joanne