Latest Westlife News

note: thanks to the following websites for providing some of the news items found on this site - Worldpop | MTVasia | dotMusic | The Sun | BBC | WENN | Agnes =)

If you want to share your positive concert experiences, feel free to send it to us at westlife@previewstock.com and we will post it on this site and share it with other Westlife fans. Please include the date/concert venue that you attended. Also send any Westlife news we might have missed to that address above!

The Westlife news archives can be found at the bottom of the page

Westlife in Sao Paulo, Brazil
Westlife in Mexico!

4/03/02

Attention fans =)

Now that Westlife are embarking on a new European tour, we want to hear your about your experience on the 2002 tour. Send us your exciting tale via e-mail, and you can even include pics. We will post what we receive on a special page.

Westlife to the United States!!!

Simon Cowell has told Music Week that Westlife are indeed hitting the states later this year. They will be releasing the greatest hits album at the same time. Simon organized a change in Westlife's American music label from Arista Records to RCA.

He said, "We have a major commitment to RCA to break them in the States. We had to make the decision to do the US at a later date and I think we made the right decision."

The album will be released in the rest of the world, and will include a number of new tracks. In their first attempt at the US, Westlife sold an impressive 750,000 copies of "Swear It Again" in 2000.

If this all pans out, Westlife will be following in the footsteps of Take That. Take That attempted to break the US market in 1996 by releasing a greatest hits album as their first album. They succeeded in scoring a #1 smash hit with "Back For Good". Unfortunately, the group broke up soon thereafter. Here's hoping that Westlife gets a smash hit, without the breakup.

A stuntman for Mark

I ran across this blurb on the internet. Actor and stuntman Buster Reeves (who appears in stunts on the movie Blade II) said the following, "I've just completed a film clip for Comic Relief, in which I play a double of Westlife singer Mark Feehily in a stunt."

3/29/02

Help make Westlife big in Canada

Vote for the WOOO video on YTV thru this link. S Club (soon to be 6) is currently #1 with Have You Ever on YTV.

Bop Bop Baby Video - May 20, 2002

Westlife's Bop Bop Baby Video has been filmed, and as you can see from the pics, Westlife have undergone an a historical costume change for the film...into 5 musketeers. The lads sport black leather trousers for their latest adventures as 17th century style swordsmen. In the video, they battle a villain (Vinnie Jones) to save the imprisoned heroine (Leah Wood). You see lots of action and fighting, and even a horseback ride, all to stop the villain. As fans will notice, Mark now sports a goatee. He said, "It’s a real swashbuckling adventure. We all wanted to be heroes but we didn’t want just one guy to get the girl in the end so we all go after her. We love the dressing up but to be honest we just wanted to get swords to play with.” Shane wore Dick Whittington-style boots as he strode about the set. Vinne Jones (a soccer star turned actor, who had a starring role in Snatch), defied anyone to poke fun at his wig with ringlets, and joked, I’m having a laugh but as usual I get to play the baddie — what a surprise.” Leah, the daughter of Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood, was a last minute replacement for Naomi Campbell, who withdrew from the video. Naomi cancelled saying she changed her mind and cited a scheduling conflict (great timing and excuse there). This change of plan cost Westlife £15,000 pounds as they missed a whole day of shooting trying to find a replacement. The video cost £500,000 to make and was filmed in the chapel on the campus of the US International University in Bushey, Hertforshire (England). The gothic building is now used mainly for television filming, and had the old world look the boys wanted. Bop Bop Baby is being released May 20th, and it will no doubt be Westlife's 11th UK #1.

Contest to meed Westlife at Earl Court on May 31!

CBBC Newsround is sponsoring this great contest. One lucky winner will get the chance to meet Westlife backstage before one of their concerts. You will win 2 tickets and you can don your Press Pack cap and write a review of the concert, at London's Earl's Court.

What do you have to do to win? Come up with a movie idea starring the group, and describe it in 100 words or less. Here's an example:

"Westlife go into space and land on a far-off planet. They meet aliens who start off being enemies, but by performing their songs Westlife win them round. Then the aliens (who are played by Westlife in disguise) go off to their own planet and start up an alien boyband called Zoglife."

Entries must be received by noon April 22. All the details can be found here.

Westlife week at The Box (UK)

Starting today, there will be 10 Westlife videos to select from .

Swear It Again - No. 301
If I Let You - No. 302
Flying Without Wings - No. 303
I Have A Dream - No. 304
Fool Again - No. 305
Against All Odds No. 306
My Love - No. 307
Uptown Girl - No. 308
Queen Of My Heart - No. 309
World Of Our Own - No. 310

Recent Charity Auction

Westlife recently auctioned off signed T-shirts which you see in the picture above. The charity event was to help promote and raise funds for RNID's Imagine a world without music campaign.

RNID's imagine campaign, based on one of the world's most famous songs, asks members of the public to try an imagine what it is like to be deaf and the impact it has on day to day life. RNID is the largest organisation working on behalf of the 8.7 million deaf and hard of hearing people in the UK.

The auction ended on 3/27 on QXL.com

Now That's What I Call Music 52

Seems the UK just keeps on cranking those sets out. We're only on #9 here in the US...which just happens to sit at #1 on The Billboard charts. This double-cd compilation features a Westlife tune, as well as from Shakira, Jennifer Lopez, Pink and Nickelback...as well as Will Young, whose video is on the CD.

Yet Another Compilation: History of Pop

Louis Walsh has just launched the first volume of his History of Pop Album in Dublin's Four Seasons Hotel with the help of SIX (Irish Popstars). The set contains a mix of hits from the 70's and 80's coupled with contemporary music from today. Who did he pick to be included? Westlife, Samantha Mumba, Boyzone and Ronan Keating. It does include songs for which he has no direct association including Fergal Sharkey and D:Ream.

Speaking about his plethora of hits, Louis said: "I had my first with Johnny Logan, eight with Boyzone, two with Ronan and ten with Westlife".

Kerry Katona to Elimidate Cilla Black

Kerry is about to host her own dating show, following in the footsteps of Blind Date's Cilla Black. She has begun recording Elimidate in exotic locations worldwide, including the Bahamas and Kenya. The show will be aired on ITV1. Contestants will undergo a series of tasks in order to win. It differs from Blind Date in that it will be a lot raunchier - it is set to be aired later in the evening, so that viewers can see more of the contestants wild antics.

Kerry said,"I'm really excited about this show. It's going to be full of outrageous fun."

Nicky is scared of elevators

He said to TOTP mag, "I just can't stand being in a box that's hanging from a piece of cable. I'm really claustrophobic as such, but I can't stand lifts. It's the fear of being trapped that I hate. It's a horrible thought: being stuck alone in a box for ages. I'd just freak out if I got trapped inside."

note: That's happened to me once recently. Luckily it lasted all of 10 minutes, and I was the only one on. Not the most pleasant of experiences, I can tell ya.

Westlife cancelled Venezuela visit

Westlife's planned trip to Venezuela on March 15 was cancelled because Shane was suffering from a viral infection which occured 4 days prior. He was advised to rest and is not allowed to fly. The group commented, "We would like to send a huge apology to our fans for not being able to attend the festival in Caracus. This comes as a big disappointment to us as we'd never been to Venezuela before and we're looking forward to meeting our amazing fans in South America."

Westlife monthly news archives