Westlife
Sunday Magazine – Q & A -
November 2006
FACTFILE
-
Signed in 1998 as a five-piece.
-Brian
McFadden left to go solo in 2004.
-
First band to enter the charts at No1 with their first seven singles.
When
Brian McFadden left Westlife, many people predicted the end for the Irish boy
band.
But
three years later, Kian Egan, Mark Feehily, Shane Filan and Nicky Byrne are
about to release their eighth album.
When
Sunday asked you for you questions for the band, they came from all over the
world...
£50
STAR QUESTION
If
Brian asked to return, would you let him? - Aline
Shane:
"Probably not. We've been without him for three years and we've done an awful
lot that we're very proud of. We had a great time with Brian, but we've got so
used to him not being in it, it would be weird if he rejoined. I'd never rule
out performing with him again, but as for him joining the band again, that won't
happen."
Mark:
"We could never have replaced him either. We'd have bullied a new person or
treated them like an outsider because after eight years we have such a strong
bond."
When
Brian left, people thought you'd split - but you're bigger than ever. Why? -
Gareth Hulance,
Shane:
"Brian leaving was the kick up the bum we needed. We wanted to be even more
successful."
My
wife has a Westlife poster opposite our bed and I've caught her looking at it
while we're "being intimate". Could you tell her this is inappropriate? - Mr.
Jones, Spalding
Kian:
"Mrs. Jones, that's inappropriate! Take it down."
Nicky:
"Nah, keep the poster up, it's not doing any harm."
Mark:
"Take it down and we'll come round and watch instead."
What
happens to all the teddy bears and chocolated your
fans send you? - Annie, Bedfordshire
Mark:
"Every couple of months we'll give them away to kids' hospitals or charity."
Shane:
"The really cute ones I'll give to my daughter Nicole as she loves them. We can
only eat food or sweets if they're fully wrapped so you know they haven't been
tampered with. Most of our fans are normal, but some of them are psycho, so you
don't know what they could have done with it!"
Mark,
how has life changed now people know you're gay? - Natalie Hewison, Leicester
Mark:
"My life has got umpteen times better. My sexuality doesn't define me as a
person, but it's a huge part of anyone to be open about it. It's changed my life
totally as I feel so much happier and at ease. It's the best thing I've ever
done."
Your
new album, The Love Album, has already been nicknamed "The Shag Album". Which is
the best track to make love to? - Jacqui Mortimer,
Shane:
"I'd recommend Easy. It has a saucy backing track to it, and you could imagine
lounging on your bed listening to it and getting it on."
Are
there any of your songs you don't like singing? - Nikhil Parker,
Shane:
"Tunnel of Love was the worst song we ever recorded. Lyrics like, 'Yes, I'm
ready to go through the tunnel of love' are like macaroni and cheese with dounle extra cheese!"
Kian:
"I Have A Dream wasn't very us - it was corny, cheesy
and cheap."
Mark:
"Uptown Girl doesn't take much singing - it's not very vocally challenging."
Was
it right for Kerry Katona to have a go at Brian in public? - Stuart Goodman,
Bucks
Shane:
"She still has a lot of pain and probably wants to let people know. And Brian
might be the same. They're both in a bad situation at the moment."
Nicky:
"She's hurting badly but we'll never know the ins and outs of their
relationship. We feel bad for both of them."
Mark:
"They were two people who were in our lives every single day, they were like
family, we can't take sides. We're there to be friends
with both of them."
What
is the weirdest thing a fan has done to get your attention at a gig? - Lissy Brydon,
Shane:
"A girl in the fourth row sent up an envelope while we were on stage - she'd
taped her pubic hair inside. We made a show of her by putting her face up on the
big screen!"
Mark:
"People are always pretending to faint to get into the first-aid section by the
stage. Once the doctors start looking at them, they leg it up on stage. Now
first aid is outside."
What
about the future? - Sarael Marvelous,
Shane:
"We have this album to promote, a tour next year, a greatest hits part two in
2007 to celebrate out 10th anniversary, then we'll reassess after that."
After
you eventually split up, will you go solo or will you become house husbands and
play golf all day? -
Shane:
"That's exactly what we plan to do! Being home all the time with my family would
be perfect. I don't think I'd go solo. Westlife is as big as any band could be -
doing it on my own would be lonely and rubbish."
Nicky:
"Look at the Spice Girls. Individually, they only had minor success. Unless one
of us became Robbie, we wouldn't sell half the number of records of our own."
Do
your wives, girlfriends and boyfriend get on well with each other? - John
Wallace, Co. Louth,
Nicky:
"They do, which is great. If they didn't, it would be awkward. We were trying to
come up with a name for them like the WAGS, except ours would be the Wagababs - Wives and Girlfriends and Boyfriend and Babies -
which is not quite as catchy."
Mark:
"It's a luxury that we can afford to fly them to where we are. It makes touring
easier. If it got to the point where it was a choice between our career or our
families and partners, then we'd be on the first plane home."
What
did you say to The Pope? - Pamela Marks,
Shane: I was so nervous in The
Vatican, I was white as a sheet, and had sweat running down me. I said it was an
honour to meet him and shook his hand. The translator whispered into his ear
what I said and he replied, 'Bless you my child' in Latin. It was something to
tell the great-grandchildren."
Is
there anything about your fans that annoys you? -
Shane: "When we're in hotels some
pull the fire alarms so everyone is evacuated. In
Credit/Source:
Sunday
Magazine
/ Angela
/
Joanne