Westlife stormed the stage at London’s Royal Albert Hall to mark their 25th anniversary on Monday evening.
The iconic group, comprising Shane Filan, Kian Egan and Nicky Byrne, celebrated their landmark with shows on Monday and Tuesday without Mark Feehily, who has taken a step back amid health woes, however remains ‘very much part of the band’.
At the show, in which the trio played alongside the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, Shane paid tribute to their beloved bandmate, who is not joining them on tour but does appear on their new music.
During their rendition of 1999’s Flying Without Wings, the group opted to use The Voice and Clean Bandit star Kirsten Joy as a stand-in to sing Mark’s lines – which are often deemed the finest work in the group’s rich history.
Speaking to the crowd, lead singer Shane said: ‘I want to take a minute to talk about Mark, who unfortunately is not with us tonight. But we love him, we miss him, and we cannot wait to have him back on this stage with us…
Westlife stormed the stage at London’s Royal Albert Hall to mark their 25th anniversary on Monday evening
The iconic group, comprising Shane Filan, Kian Egan and Nicky Byrne, celebrated their landmark with shows on Monday and Tuesday without Mark Feehily (pictured), who has taken a step back amid health woes, however remains ‘very much part of the band’
Speaking to the crowd, lead singer Shane said: ‘I want to take a minute to talk about Mark, who unfortunately is not with us tonight. But we love him, we miss him, and we cannot wait to have him back on this stage with us’
‘The good news is he’s obviously on the new music, which you’ve heard already, Chariot, And, the next album as well, we have a new album coming out in February.
‘So this next song, I want to dedicate it to Mark because it’s Mark’s favorite song. That might give you a hint. It’s a beautiful song. So tonight we’d like to dedicate it to him and I’d like to invite Kirsten Joy down to sing it with us.
‘This song is probably the song that changed our whole career.’
It was confirmed earlier this year that Mark would not be joining his bandmates due to ongoing health woes.
Despite the vocal powerhouse’s absence, last week Shane detailed the ‘importance’ of his appearance on the music and lauded his ‘great’ vocals on the track – one of which, Chariot, was released on Friday.
In an interview with Irish outlet RTE News, Shane delighted fans by giving an update on Mark, saying: ‘He’s unable to join the tour unfortunately as he’s mentioned already but being on the new song is very important…
‘He’s still a member of this band obviously and he’s soundiing great on the new songs. We’ve got four new songs and an album coming out after Christmas…
During their rendition of 1999’s Flying Without Wings, the group opted to use The Voice and Clean Bandit collaborator Kirsten Joy (pictured) as a stand-in to sing Mark’s lines – which are often deemed the finest work in the group’s rich history
Shane and the band belted out their biggest hits as a trio
‘A greatest hits compilation with four new songs but the new song that’s out next friday is a really upbeat tune and it’s great to have him on there.’
One delighted fan shared the video of the RTE interview, writing: ‘Shane reiterates that Mark is still a Westlife member and is sounding great on the new songs…
‘He also confirms that there are four new songs (the first of which is dropping on Friday) on the new album which is a greatest hits compilation album. It will be out after Christmas’.
Following on from the sell-out duo of London gigs, the world tour announcement has sent fans wild with a new teaser hitting Instagram on Thursday.
The teaser featured an airport departures board, typically used to show departures times, locations and boarding gates. The airport is a nod to the video for their 2000 single My Love, in which the group are stranded in an airport.
The band are seen in their original formation in 2000 prior to Brian McFadden (L-R Kian Egan, Mark Feehily, Shane Filan, Brian McFadden, Nicky Byrne)
There is also a nod to their second studio album Coast To Coast, as the bottom of the shutterboard reads ‘Coast To Coast Airlines’. In the teaser the tour dates flicker.
In a statement, Westlife said: ‘This year marks 25 years since we started this incredible journey together and it still feels like only the beginning…
‘The support from our fans has been unbelievable, and to celebrate with this world tour, new music, and a brand-new album feels truly special. We can’t wait to see you all on the road and share this next chapter together…
‘New music, world tour, and that classic Westlife charm we all love it’s such an exciting time, can’t wait to see everything that’s coming!’
The band uncovered the stunning cover art for their greatest hits record, with a collage of images showing various moments in their career, including a still of the group spreading their arms while dressed in all white on the set of the video for Flying Without Wings
