More than three decades after Boyzone began, the band are set to open up about the highs and lows of stardom — and their journey as a band.
The three-part documentary begins tomorrow night at 9pm on Sky Documentaries and NOW.
It sees Ronan Keating, Keith Duffy, Shane Lynch and Michael ‘Mikey’ Graham tell the inside story of the band and their meteoric rise.
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The group opened up about the truth of what really happened, from the extraordinary highs of their meteoric rise to fame to the huge costs that being in a boyband had on each of them.
Boyzone : No Matter What also includes contributions from Michelle, the sister of the late Stephen Gately, as well as his former partner, pop star Eloy De Jong.
Louis Walsh, their estranged manager, also appears in the programme, which includes never-before-seen footage of the band.
The first part of the documentary follows the band’s early days, as five working class lads from Dublin who are given the chance of a lifetime: to be a part of what would become one of the world’s most successful and iconic boy bands.
And while there was a bit of a rocky start, their popularity began to quickly grow — and the band was soon travelling the world, in pursuit of fame and fortune.
Boyzone: No Matter What sees the group open up about how they grappled with the true cost of global fame.
As they try to help close a chapter in their lives, they confront the strained relationships and tragic events that have had a lasting impact on all their lives, families and friendships.
The trailer for the documentary was released in January, and begins with Keating looking back on the start of the band.
Alongside clips of their Late Late Show performance, he said, “We were a bunch of kids put together. We weren’t perfect, we weren’t polished.”
The band were formed in 1993, and went on to have six number one singles; five number one albums and sell more than 25 million records across the globe.
Walsh was said to have wanted to try and form an Irish version of Take That with the band — and in the trailer, he said, “I prefer ordinary people, because they work harder. And they do whatever you want at the start.”
Lynch told how the ex-X Factor judge had promised them the “sun, moon and stars”, before the footage cut to Walsh saying, “They believed their own publicity — they forgot I wrote it.”
In the trailer, Walsh claimed that Gately — who came out as gay publicly in 1999 — was “living the dream” but “had a big secret”.
Duffy said, “It was absolutely scandalous, what the newspaper did to Stephen.”
Graham said that he “just wanted out” and “to get away from that toxic environment”, as Duffy told how “there were things that happened that were cruel”.
Lynch added, “Standing on stage in front of 100,000 people, it was a lonely time.”
The docuseries also looks to see the group talk about the sudden death of Stephen Gately in 2009.
He died from a pulmonary oedema due to an undiagnosed heart condition at the age of 33.
The band said at the time that they were “completely devastated by the loss of our friend and brother, Stephen”.
According to The Guardian, they said in a statement, “We have shared such wonderful times together over the years and were all looking forward to sharing many more.
“Stephen was a beautiful person in both body and spirit. He lit up our lives and those of the many friends he had all over the world.
“Our love and sympathy go out to Andrew and Stephen's family. We love you and will miss you forever, ‘Steo’.”
In the preview, a tearful Keating can be heard recalling how he “called the guys and give them the news” of Gately’s passing — before footage of the bandmates at his funeral is shown.
Duffy told how he thought “no, no, no, not our Stephen” when he heard the news.
The trailer ends with Keating saying that he has “made choices that I’m not proud of”, adding, “After 30 years, I think now is the time to talk about it.”
Rumours that the band had something in the works began in February last year.
In May, the band put out a statement on their Instagram account where they asked fans if they had “any video or photos that you took at any of our early gigs in the ‘90s” — and told how they’re “working on an exciting new Boyzone project”.
But it wasn’t until August that the docuseries, which is a Curious Films production for Sky Documentaries, was first announced.
JD Buckley, CEO at Sky Ireland, said at the time, “One of the most globally beloved boy bands of the 1990s, Boyzone’s music has been cherished by Irish fans for over thirty years now.
“A story that began with just five young men from Dublin, they remain trailblazers for Irish artists today.
“With privileged access to Ronan, Shane, Keith and Mikey, we are thrilled to be bringing this exclusive new series to our Sky and NOW customers, which promises to tell their phenomenal story as viewers have never seen before.”
Hayley Reynolds, Acting Director of Documentaries and Factual at Sky, said at the time “Boyzone's music has touched millions over the last 30 years, and Sky is thrilled to be bringing this exclusive new series to our customers in the UK and Ireland.
"Curious Films' pedigree for sophisticated and intelligent storytelling, as well as deep, privileged access to both the band and Louis Walsh, promises to get under the skin of their extraordinary story with an unrivalled level of insight."
Dov Freedman, Executive Producer and CEO of Curious Films, added, “We couldn't be prouder that Ronan, Keith, Shane, and Mikey have allowed us to definitively tell their story after almost 30 years in Curious's debut commission for Sky.
“I think the candid interviews from all the key players in the Boyzone story really sets this series apart as something very special.”
Swipe across below to see the full gallery of images for yourself
Everything you need to know about Boyzone
- Throughout their career, Boyzone released seven studio albums, nine compilation albums, and sold more than 25 million records worldwide.
- Ahead of the release of Boyzone: No Matter What, we’re taking a look back at the band’s journey…
- Boyzone first began in the early 1990s, after an ad looking for people to audition to be a part of a new Irish boy band appeared in the newspaper.
- And while hundreds of hopefuls turned up for the auditions, it was later narrowed down to the original lineup of Ronan Keating, Stephen Gately, Keith Duffy, Richard Rock, Shane Lynch and Mark Walton.
- They appeared on The Late Late Show in 1993, where they performed Clubhouse's Light My Fire. Rock and Walton ended up parting ways with the band, with Mikey Graham brought into the band afterwards.
- The group released a cover of Working My Way Back To You in 1994, and released their debut album — which included their cover of Love Me For A Reason — the following year.
- That was followed up by 1996’s A Different Beat and 1998’s Where We Belong. The group released By Request, a compilation of their greatest hits, in 1999.
- The same year, Boyzone decided to go on hiatus — which began the following year — and the break later turned into a split. At the time of the break, the band had sold more than 20 million records.
- During the break, the bandmates each pursued solo projects — both on the stage and the screen — and, after seven years, they announced they were reuniting and set to head on the road.
- Their Back Again…No Matter What tour took place from May 2008 until August 2008, and their Better tour was the following year.
- Stephen Gately passed away suddenly from a pulmonary edema resulting from an undiagnosed heart condition at his home in Majorca in October 2009.
- The band released Brother, Bozyone’s fourth studio album, as a tribute to him in March 2010. The following year, they went on tour in support of the album.
- Over the next few years, they released two albums — BZ20, a celebration of their 20th anniversary, and Dublin to Detroit, which featured Motown hits — and went on tour for their 20th anniversary.
- In 2018, Boyzone announced that after 25 years together, they would be releasing one last studio album together — and would be heading out for a farewell tour.
- They wrote on Instagram, “When we started out as five young Dublin Northsiders, eager to face the world, we never imagined that we’d still have an army of fans some twenty-five years later...
- “If you’d seen our famous first TV appearance on The Late Late Show, you’d probably be surprised too! But what followed was the stuff of dreams.”
- The album, Thank You & Goodnight, included a tribute to Gately with the song, Dream. It was released in November that year.
- According to the BBC, the band explained in the statement, “We came across a demo that he originally recorded for his solo album in 2002 and we’ve had the opportunity to re-work the song and add our harmonies alongside his lead vocal. It was a bittersweet experience to hear all our voices together again. It’s the closest the five of us will ever get to being in a room together again making music.”
- The Thank You & Goodnight: The Farewell Tour ran from August 2018 until October 2019.
Boyzone: No Matter What begins at 9pm on Sunday, February 2 on Sky Documentaries and NOW.
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