The 1990s boyband have been through an awful lot – and all in the spotlight

Earlier this week, it was reported that Boyzone star Keith Duffy and his wife of over 25 years, Lisa, had split.

The pair have two grown-up children and are said to be trying to “keep the divorce civil” for the sake of their kids.

However, it’s not the first marriage split – or tragedy – to have hit the 1990s boy band. The five-piece band – comprised Ronan Keating, Keith Duffy, Mikey Graham, Shane Lynch and the late Stephen Gately – has been hit by endless heartache over the years, including a number of heartbreaking deaths…

Shane Lynch, Ronan Keating, Mikey Graham and Keith Duffy – the four remaining members of Boyzone (Credit: Splash News)

Boyzone star Keith Duffy ‘splits from wife’

Keith married Lisa in 1998. The pair share two children together – Jay, 27, and Mia, 23.

However, it’s reported that the pair have decided to go their separate ways, with Keith allegedly moving out of the £1.15 million family home in Dublin just before Christmas.

A source claimed to The Sun: “There is no one else involved. It is serious, but Keith is hopeful that they can sort this thing out. They care deeply for one another and their children.”

However, Keith’s not the only one to have faced similar marriage troubles.

Ronan Keating was divorced by his first wife Yvonne Connolly in 2015 after she discovered he’d been having an affair. Shane Lynch, too, divorced his first wife Esther Bennett, before briefly splitting with second wife Sheena during lockdown.

Happily the couple, who’ve been married for two decades, patched things up. Shane said: “It’s not easy being married, it’s not easy raising children. We go through our tough times, but it’s really important to show we can come through the other side.”

Stephen Gately’s death

The band was rocked by huge tragedy in 2009 when Stephen Gately died suddenly aged 33.

The beloved Boyzone star died in his husband’s arms after a night out in Majorca on October 10, 2009. Fresh off the back of a Boyzone tour, Stephen and husband Andrew Cowles had enjoyed dinner at their favourite restaurant, followed by drinks at a bar, where they met Bulgarian model and student, Georgi Dochev.

The trio partied in Palma before heading back to their apartment at around 5.30am, where Georgi claimed they kissed. Soon after, Stephen fell asleep on the sofa with Andrew’s arm wrapped around him. Not realising he had died, Andrew cuddled him for three hours before going to sleep in their own bed, allegedly with Georgi.

When he came to leave the next morning, Georgi found Stephen unresponsive, and woke Andrew.

It was later revealed that Stephen had died after an undiagnosed heart condition called atheromatosis – a thickening of the arteries – caused his lungs to suddenly fill with fluid.

“We know from the pathologist’s report that Stephen died sleeping with me on the sofa,” Andrew said at the time. “I know that my boy fell asleep under my arm, his heart stopped, he didn’t feel any pain.”

Stephen Gately died suddenly, causing huge heartbreak for his bandmates (Credit: Splash News)

Huge affect Stephen’s death had on Ronan Keating, Keith Duffy and the rest of Boyzone

Speaking to The Guardian a month after Stephen’s death, Ronan shared the physical impact it had on him: “It’s been horrible, you can’t breathe, you feel like your chest is collapsing, the walls are coming in on top of you. Anxiety I think is what they call it. I haven’t been sleeping at all lately. It’s been horrible. We’ve all been feeling the same way since Stephen passed. Mentally I’m absolutely exhausted.”

He also spoke at Stephen’s funeral. “We have lost a brother and I have lost my wingman. He will live on in our songs and whenever us four are together, his spirit is alive. But it will never be the same without him. A beautiful man who is now the perfect angel. Forever young and never forgotten.

“A man, a friend, a brother, a son, a husband and a hero. I’m going to really miss you brother, I love you, we always will. But we know you’ve found peace. Perfect peace.”

At the funeral, the four remaining Boyzone members carried Stephen’s coffin. At the request of the late singer’s mother, they also spent one final night with him at the church where his coffin was kept.

“I suffered a lot with Stephen dying. I went to a dark place,” Keith said. “And myself and Shane kind of lost our way a little bit when we went on tour in 2011. It was just too soon from having five on stage for so many years and then four.”

Death of Ronan’s brother

Last year, Ronan’s brother Ciaran died in a car accident.

At the time, the 57 year old was on the way to watch his son play football. He was pronounced dead at the scene of the collision.

“It’s been a tough few months dealing with it because it was so quick, so immediate, so fast, unexpected,” he said on Loose Women.

Ronan explained that he and his family “are still figuring it all out” but have one another to lean on. “That’s really really important,” he added.

“Having someone who is going through something that feels the same that you feel they understand what I’m going through and that’s a big part of it. It’s been a very tough few months but having each other as siblings has been really important.”

Lost parents

At the height of his fame, in 1998, Ronan lost his beloved mother Marie to breast cancer. She was aged 51.

Ronan, along with his dad and four siblings, established the Marie Keating Foundation to honour her memory.

Formed in 2001, the foundation aims to help raise cancer awareness and prevention and provide support to those who are battling or have battled cancer.

Speaking on the anniversary of her death, Ronan said: “She was our best friend, she was a legend, she was as cool as they come. The best mum. Cancer is such a horrible disease. I miss you and I love you.”
Keith Duffy loses his dad

January 2022 saw Keith share the news that he’d lost his dad.

At the funeral, Keith explained dad Séan died “very peacefully” surrounded by his wife Pat and sons John, Derek and himself.

In his eulogy, Keith said that his dad beat cancer four times but was “overpowered with pneumonia, fibrosis and Covid”.