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6/25/02

It's been awhile since our last news update...but, we've kept track of all the major Westlife headlines...so here goes =)

Side comment

On a journey today to the grand opening of a Wal-Mart in rural PA Amish country (USA), I found one copy of Westlife's debut US album from 2 years ago. Go figure. Someone thinks that album will still sell =)

More comments about Westlife stalkers

You've heard them in the past, and here's more quotes from the boys about their ever persistent stalkers.

Kian reveals: how one fan had gone too far - sending freaky letters to him and his family and hanging around outside his house.

Nicky adds: "The groupies check into the hotels we are in. You can be guaranteed 50 to 100 fans have checked into the hotel at every gig. We'll often go for a drink at the hotel after a show. We find a corner of our own and sit there, uncomfortable, as 25 people just stare at us."

Bryan launching own rock band?

Being this is an article from The Sun...

It is reported that Bryan is launching his own rock band. He will manage, produce and write for the band. He says he's decided to branch out because he doesn't just want to be a singer in a boy band. Bryan said, "I'm not just a boy band robot. The new band is secret at the moment as it is early days but I am really excited about them."

Westlife top billing in celebration concert for Ireland's World Cup team

100,000 fans gathered in Dublin's Phoenix Park for a celebratory concert in honor of Ireland's World Cup squad. The team returned from a penalty shoot-out defeat to Spain. Westlife wore white jackets with green and orange arms in the Irish national colors and sang their past UK #1 hit "World Of Our Own".

Backstage with Westlife

Rajesh Mirchandani went backstage with Kian and Shane at their Newcastle concert and had a few words which you can read below.

Rajesh: This time last year I was right here at the Telewest stadium in Newcastle - a year on a lot has changed. Two or three of you are shacked up, at least one baby, and now you are co-writing your songs as well.
Kian, Shane: Ah well, a lot has changed since last year. It was mainly that we felt that the second album was rushed and we didn't get a chance to write which we really wanted to do. This time we just told the record company that we were going to take four months to do this album - not two weeks. The thing with the co-writing was that we came up with the ideas and the producers helped us out with the music side of things - it was more a case of getting someone very musical in and helping us out with the backing tracks and stuff like that, putting cord structures in and stuff like that. Whereas as far as everything else was concerned we did it ourselves.

Rajesh: Another challenge that you'll be facing this year is you'll be going to the states?
Kian, Shane: It's just a golden goose - we have our foot in the door in every country in the world bar America and Canada and that's two countries that we really wanna break.

Rajesh: Do you think we'll being seeing less of you over here then?.
Kian, Shane: That's one thing we're afraid of happening if we go to America then we'll lose what we have here. And we don't want to lose what we have here as it's too big. So we're going to do it in stages over time.

Rajesh: After 10 number 1's - 11 probably after the next single - a huge tour, almost three years at the top of your game, do you ever sit down and think 'I want to do something completely different'?
Kian, Shane: No - we love what we do. We love being on stage every night and hearing 10-15,000 people screaming their heads off at you - you can't ask for any more. Well actually we are asking for a little bit more - we are asking for the American market. So just about 10 million more people! What I mean really is that we set our goals, reach them, and set them higher!

Rajesh: Right, we can hear the crowd outside - let's lift up the blind and see what happens.
(cue much screaming)

Rajesh: Who's the most popular member?
Kian, Shane: I dunno - everyone seems to get a good response.

Rajesh: Are you nervous before the gig?
Kian, Shane: It's not really nerves - we just sort of shake each other before we go, especially me and Shane!!

The hoopla over Westlife's Scotland appearance...

The controversy over Westlife's Worldcup game vs. Scotland's Live+Loud festival turned out to be blah, as the Live+Loud festival was cancelled due to soggy conditions. But what an uproar it caused indeed during that week. Here are the media articles in no apparent order.

Club invites band into the Parkhead boardroom for Irish World Cup TV game

Westlife staged an amazing U-turn by agreeing to play Sunday's Irn-Bru Live+Loud festival after all. It came after a last-minute deal involving the Premier League trophy and a £10,000 travel bill. Sponsors have agreed to fly the band "and a lot of their pals" over to Scotland to make them feel at home.

Organisers Scottish Radio Holdings and the band's label, BMG Records, were involved in frantic phone calls yesterday as attempts were made to woo the headliners back to Bellahouston Park. The group had refused to come because they wanted to watch the World Cup match between Ireland and Spain at home with pals.

But a last-ditch call to Celtic chief Ian McLeod clinched a deal to open Celtic Park, where Westlife will now watch the game in the boardroom.

Last night, band member Mark Feehily said: "Sorry to all the fans. The Record have played it fair by showing us that it's important to be at Live+Loud. We'll be there."

Bandmate Bryan McFadden added: "It's great because we won't be letting the fans down and we'll get to be with people we want to be with. It's Ireland v Spain and it's a big thing."

Pop Idol runner-up Gareth Gates has also confirmed he'll perform at the concert. Thrown into the Westlife deal is the chance to meet past and present Celtic stars including Lisbon Lions legend Jimmy "Jinky" Johnstone and Neil Lennon.

And the icing on the cake for Westlife will be when they get their hands on the Bank Of Scotland SPL trophy after a tour of the stadium. Afterwards, they'll be whisked to Live+Loud before being flown back to Dublin for a night concert.

The move follows the Record's exclusive yesterday in which we revealed they had pulled out. Westlife fan Lyndsay Irvine, 26, of Paisley, whooped with joy when she heard they had changed their minds.

She said: "The fans were going ballistic all day when they heard Westlife had cancelled to watch the football."

The official Westlife website, Westlife Platinum, was inundated with furious messages yesterday, including some from Ireland. Lyndsay said: "Westlife management will have seen what was going on.

"They were left in no doubt that it would hit them in their pockets if they pulled out of the Bellahouston gig. We can understand they want to watch Ireland. But they were going to leave a lot of fans disappointed."

It's also a turnaround which helps to boost the festival's credibility after chart-toppers A1 cancelled their appearance to promote their music in the US. A source said: "They are gutted they can't be in Scotland, but this could be the American break that makes them superstars."

Last night, Clyde FM managing director Paul Cooney and BMG vice president Nigel Sweeney praised the Record for helping Westlife realise they could and should play the show. Cooney said: "We couldn't have the Scottish fans let down in this way. Thanks to the Record, who highlighted that we had a problem, we made some calls and pulled out all the stops. Westlife have told us they are now coming. The deal is they are going to fly over on Sunday morning with friends and family and will be whisked straight away to the home of their football heroes.

"We want to thank Celtic for immediately agreeing to our request. Ian McLeod, chief executive of Celtic, was in the States, but called back five minutes later to say, 'Yes'. Now they can have the best of both worlds. They can watch the game at the home of one of the great football clubs. It's a unique way of seeing the game - at the home of the Scottish champions. They changed their mind when they realised so many fans would be disappointed - and they've always had a great relationship with the Scottish fans."

BMG vice president Nigel Sweeney added: "The band saw The Record and realised they had a problem. They will now do Live+Loud, watch the game and do a gig at The Point in Dublin that night. They are chuffed that they can bring a lot of friends and family and are very sorry for the anguish they've caused fans. They have said they look forward to seeing everyone who's coming on Sunday."

Weather forces cancellation of Westlife concert

Thirty thousand pop fans have been left disappointed after organisers cancelled a major concert due to bad weather. The joint organisers of Irn-Bru Live + Loud decided not to go ahead with the gig because the venue has become waterlogged.

The event, which was due to go ahead at Bellahouston Park in Glasgow on Sunday afternoon, could now be rescheduled. Westlife were due to headline at the event, with other top acts such as A1, Blue, the Sugababes, Lulu, Samantha Mumba and H and Claire included in the all-star line up.

A spokeswoman for Strathclyde Police said: "All the organisers involved have decided that conditions are just too wet for the concert to go ahead. For safety reasons they have agreed to cancel the event. The weather forecast is not good for the coming few days and they did not think the grounds would be dry on time for such an event."

12 Hour talks save the concert

Westlife will be playing in Scotland this Sunday after all Yesterday we revealed the Irish heart-throbs had decided to pull out of Glasgow's Irn-Bru Live and Loud festival so they could watch the Ireland v Spain World Cup game on TV.

But after 12 hours of frantic talks the gig was saved - thanks to Celtic's offer to let them see the match at Parkhead.

Westlife goes ahead with match-day concert

Westlife have decided not to pull out of a major concert which clashed with the Republic of Ireland's next World Cup match.

They say they will watch the game before the gig at the home of Celtic football club. There was speculation that the band had pulled out of the concert.

But the Irish heart-throbs have decided to jet into Glasgow earlier than planned to view the match against Spain at the Parkhead ground with Celtic players. They say they will still headline the Iru-Bru Live and Loud concert in Bellahouston Park, Glasgow, in front of 30,000 fans.

The band, all huge football fans, were worried they would miss the match and asked their management team to change their schedule for the day. Now the band are to fly into Glasgow a couple of hours earlier than planned and head straight to Parkhead to enjoy the Irish game against Spain with the Scottish champions.

They will headline the gig before flying to Dublin for another concert later that night A spokesman for the band said: "The lads have decided to play the concert after all, after a bit of juggling about with timetables. They really wanted to appear at the concert and are delighted that things have worked out well for everyone."

Westlife snub fans for TV game

Westlife last night snubbed their Scots fans by pulling out of Sunday's Irn-Bru Live+Loud festival. The boy band said they were staying at home to watch Ireland face Spain in the second round of the World Cup, and insisted "You Scots would do the same".

But their excuses rang hollow for Westlife fan Carol Main, from Edinburgh, who said: "I can't believe Westlife have done this. I've supported them since the beginning and bought tickets for the festival when I heard they were playing. I don't see why they can't watch the game in Glasgow."

Linda Hamilton, from East Kilbride, also complained: "This sucks. Whatever happened to the show must go on? Westlife are behaving like spoilt brats."

The boy band's cancellation has caused a massive headache for organisers Scottish Radio Holdings and the band's record label BMG, who even offered to set up a giant TV screen behind the stage to show the match.

But the boys were unanimous in their decision to cancel. Last night McFadden said: "Sorry we're not playing Live+Loud but we want to be at home with our families and friends when Ireland play in the World Cup. It's not our fault, it's our record label BMG who have f***** up. We told them from the beginning we would play Live+Loud on one condition and that condition was that Ireland weren't through to the next stage. Now that's happened and they've ignored us and tried to force us to do something we said all along we wouldn't. We're sorry for the fans. See you next time."

The game will be beamed live around the world when it kicks off at 12.30pm on Sunday. Westlife weren't expected to take the stage at Glasgow's Bellahouston Park until four hours later. Yesterday the group spent five hours trying to evade questions despite a pre-arranged interview with the Record.

Later their manager, Louis Walsh, attempted to gag the Record from asking any questions about the Live+Loud festival. But McFadden, wearing an Ireland football hat and kicking a ball backstage at Dublin's The Point venue, eventually admitted Westlife would not be playing in Glasgow.

He denied the cancellation was a blatant snub to the 35,000 Scots fans expected to attend the festival. Mcfadden told the Record exclusively: "Look, I want to watch the game at home with my friends and family."It's hard but you're Scottish so you know what it means to us. You Scots would do the same if you were in the same position. Hopefully it wont be too long before we're back."

Nicky Byrne added: "We'd hoped to play Live+Loud but it's true we'll be watching the match at home. We can't get too drunk during the day because we've got a concert to play at The Point again on Sunday night."

The Live+Loud festival will see performances by Samantha Mumba, H & Claire, Sugababes, Toploader, Liberty X and many other top chart acts. It's the second year running a headliner has cancelled at short notice. Last year, Atomic Kitten pulled out due to illness.

A Live+Loud insider said: "This has come as a bolt out of the blue. We have just heard that Westlife have cancelled. We are now trying to find a suitable replacement."

Westlife in Durham? Fans' scepticism leaves theatre in crisis

The Pop group Westlife are more accustomed to wowing packed houses at Earl's Court than starring on a soggy winter's night in Durham. But when asked to be the debut act at a new £14m lottery-funded theatre there in January they cheerfully obliged.

If only the locals had believed the billing. Instead, they considered the prospect of the Irish boy band materialising to be so far fetched that they stayed away in droves, concluding that an imitation band must be on offer.

It was a catastrophic piece of scepticism. The gig, for which giant screens and a marquee were laid on, flopped and saddled the theatre's management with debts of £70,000. Just two weeks after the Queen opened the Gala Theatre, the firm went into receivership, in what must be the fastest financial calamity to beset a lottery-funded venue.

Durham City Council has now taken over from Entertainment Team, the London firm into whose hands it placed the running of the theatre, and at a creditors meeting the council's chief executive, Colin Shearsmith, voiced his shock over the Westlife flop. "The only suggestion I can see is that people did not believe Westlife were actually appearing on a Sunday night in Durham," he said. "Their management were absolutely stunned. The majority of people just didn't believe it – they thought we had a tribute band. We were shocked too. I've never ever experienced anything like the lack of interest in that event."

More than 160 creditors have still to be paid, including the council itself, which is owed £209,000.

6/11/02

Westlife to attend London's Mardi Gras.

Westlife will be joining all allSTARS, a1, Atomic Kitten, H & Claire, Hear'Say, Abs from Five and Belinda Carlisle at Hackney Marshes on July 6th at London's Mardi Gras. The event is an annual Gay and Lesbian fun fest. Pop Idol contestants Jessica Garlick and Korben will also be there.

Bryan wants more kids too

Taking time out from concerts in Dublin, Bryan had a few words to say to Showbiz Ireland: "I want more kids now. All together I would like three or four kids but that's just me. I haven't discussed numbers with Kerry yet but we are trying for more kids at the moment and we would love to give little Molly a brother or sister sooner rather then later. As for everything else as soon as we finished the tour I'm going to take Kerry and Molly away on an exotic holiday to get what has happened over the past few months out of our hair. Kerry is still working on her TV career so we will have make time for the break, which we will as soon as the tour ends. To be honest I can't wait because I'm knackered at this stage."

visit showbiz ireland for 6 real high quality concert pics.

This piece from the rumor mill..

is old I know, but for those who haven't read it elsewhere yet: Kian was seen taking a "mystery blond" to Cartier, an exclusive jewelry store. He was pictured at the pricey London store, where they spent hours browsing the expensive adornments on display. The happy pair were reportedly paying particular interest to Cartier's rings - prompting speculation Egan may be in a serious relationship after all.

Disappointed Westlife fans

This piece comes from a Birmingham newspaper about 2 disappointed fans who were among the 500 lucky winners at a Virgin Megastore promotion. Sadly, the 2 fans did not get what they had hoped for. But in reality, their high expectations did not congeal with reality. As you will see in a minute, had Westlife actually met all 500 winners and spent just 10 seconds with each winner, that would have meant an 1 1/2 hours of meet and greet time in addition to the autographing.

Kerry Murphy, aged 13, and 15-year-old pal Katie Burchell say they were manhandled by over-zealous security guards and whisked past the band with an autographed single thrust into their hands at the end.

The pair were among 500 devotees who were offered the chance to meet the chart-topping Irish band at Birmingham's Virgin Megastore following a phone-in competition on BRMB.

Kerry, from Sutton Coldfield, said: "We bought a single each, waited hours in the rain for them and we were just pushed past as they signed it. We didn't even have the chance to say hello to them. They seemed moody anyway, as if they didn't want to be there, they just wanted us to buy their single and go - we were both crying at the end."

She said that other fans were prevented from shaking-hands, having pictures taken and even trying to pass presents to their favourites, including Bryan's wife, former Atomic Kitten star Kerry Katona. Organisers of the signing session said that out of the hundreds of fans who showed up the girls were the only two to complain.

Westlife spokeswoman Charlotte Brant said: "The boys had to sign 500 autographs in an hour and stayed a lot longer to make sure everyone got their autographs. The competition was to have the single signed in person by each band member and every winner got that. They collected boxes full of presents and are grateful for all them. I am sad these girls did not get what they wanted."

BRMB spokesman Tim Rudnam said: "We ran the competition but did not organise the event itself. It concerns us that some our listeners are unhappy and will pass on their complaint."

6/02/02

New feature

As Westlife.org enters it's third year on the web (the 2 year anniversary is next Sunday), we've added 2 interactive features on the site. The first is a news board where fans like yourself can enter Westlife news from your respective country. This can include TV appearances or other Westlife related items.

6/2/02

New feature

As Westlife.org enters it's third year on the web (the 2 year anniversary is next Sunday), we've added 2 interactive features on the site. The first is a news board where fans like yourself can enter Westlife news from your respective country. This can include TV appearances or other Westlife related items.

The second feature is an interactive story, that is fairly simple in design. Users can add chapters to the story, and watch the story grow.

Eminem: Westlife - Who's that?

A piece of news from last week. During an interview with Eminem, Eminem was asked about Westlife. His response? "Who the f*** are Westlife? Some boyband bulls***. I've never even heard of them. You tell me they're a pop band. Well, each to their own."

And later on: "Boybands are just pussies. Singing about love and s***. Who cares! My last album Marshall Mathers sold nearly two million copies in a week, which was crazy."

Westlife monthly news archives