Star-studded turnout at tribute night for Stephen
Stephen Gately Photo: Getty Images
Monday November 30 2009
AN evening of music and tributes was held in London's West End in memory of Boyzone star Stephen Gately.
Celebrities from the world of showbusiness, including his bandmates, turned out for the memorial concert last night.
Fans gathered in the rain for the event, organised by Gately's civil partner Andrew Cowles.
The Dubliner's bandmates Ronan Keating, Mikey Graham, Keith Duffy and Shane Lynch looked solemn and did not stop to speak to waiting press as they went into the Palace Theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue.
Among the celebrities on the red carpet were Duncan James and Lee Ryan from Blue, Chesney Hawkes, actor Leslie Phillips, Strictly Come Dancing judge Bruno Tonioli and Cherie Blair, the wife of former British prime minister Tony.
Gately's family and partner also attended.
The 33-year-old died of natural causes due to a pulmonary oedema on October 10 at his holiday home on the island of Majorca.
Hawkes said he was still in a "daze" after Gately's death.
He said: "I spent a lot of time with him over the summer, got to know him quite well. We worked together quite a lot writing songs. He has become a friend.
"I am just still walking around in a daze really -- such a shock, so young, so vibrant, such a lovely guy. It's just so sad."
Tonioli said he had become friends with Gately through the showbusiness industry and paid tribute to what he managed to achieve in his short life.
"He was a very, very nice guy. He was the kindest, sweetest, most generous kid," he said.
Among the audience was comedian Alan Carr, model and radio presenter Lisa Snowdon and ice skaters Christopher Dean and Jayne Torvill.
Shayne Ward, who won the second series of X Factor, sang To Where You Are, which he dedicated to Gately. Other performers included Liz McClarnon and Beverley Knight while a string of stars including Graham Norton and Ian McKellen said a few words in his memory.
hnews@herald.ie
- Paula Fentiman
