'He made us all camp as Christmas' - Keith Duffy pays tribute to Stephen Gately and reveals he had nicknames for Boyzone pals

Boyzone's 25th anniversary celebratory album is finished

DUBLIN, IRELAND - NOVEMBER 23: Boyzone members (L-R) Shane Lynch, Mikey Graham, Stephen Gately, Ronan Keating and Keith Duffy attend RTE's The Late Late Show at RTE Studios on November 23, 2007 in Dublin, Ireland. (Photo by ShowBizIreland/Getty Images)

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Keith Duffy and Brian McFadden paid a touching tribute to Stephen Gately during their BoyzLife London concert on Tuesday.

Keith explained that during every gig he tries to take a moment to remember his friend and Boyzone bandmate "Steo", who passed away suddenly from a pulmonary oedema in 2009 and he opened up about Stephen's quirky sense of humour.

He told the crowd at London's Clapham Grand: "Steve was the only gay guy in Boyzone and the rest of us were all alpha males so you would think he'd be super butch but that wasn't the case. He made us all camp as Christmas.

"He had nicknames for us all, I was Kitty, Shane was Shanice, Mikey was Mikeala and Ronan was Rosaleen.

Keith Duffy (left) and Brian McFadden teamed up for Boyzlife (Ian West/PA)

Keith Duffy and Brian McFadden in 2016

"We remember his talent, his humour and we keep his memory alive. He's looking down on us right now."

Former Westlife member Brian added some levity to the moment when he quipped: "And he's probably wondering what us two f**king idiots are doing to his songs on stage."

Boyzone members Stephen Gately, Keith Duffy, Ronan Keating, Mikey Graham and Shane Lynch attend RTE's The Late Late Show at RTE Studios on November 23, 2007 in Dublin, Ireland. (Photo by ShowBizIreland/Getty Images)

DUBLIN, IRELAND - NOVEMBER 23: Boyzone members (L-R) Shane Lynch, Mikey Graham, Stephen Gately, Ronan Keating and Keith Duffy attend RTE's The Late Late Show at RTE Studios on November 23, 2007 in Dublin, Ireland. (Photo by ShowBizIreland/Getty Images)

The pair then sang 'Queen Of My Heart' as a tribute to Stephen.

Keith also revealed that Boyzone have finished their new album to celebrate their 25th anniversary and they are planning a huge tour, with a very special guest.

Demonstrating their 'macho' dance poses: Keith Duffy, Mikey Graham, Ronan Keating, Stephen Gately and Shane Lynch on stage at the RDS

He said: "We've just finished the studio album to celebrate 25 years, it's f**king brilliant. We are going to tour next year and we're taking Brian with us."

Brian and Keith sang a number of Westlife and Boyzone's greatest hits during the gig and poked fun at each other throughout.

Speaking about Westlife following in Boyzone's footsteps, Keith joked: "If it wasn't for Boyzone, Brian wouldn't have a f***ing career. When he was a teenager, he was at home dreaming of being Keith Duffy."

Brian fired back: "If it wasn't for Boyzlife, Keith wouldn't have a career now."

Highlights of the set included performances of 'Love Me For A Reason', Words', 'Flying Without Wings', 'Swear It Again' and an encore of both groups' Comic Relief Singles, 'When The Going Gets Tough' and 'Uptown Girl'.

The BoyzLife Xmas tour continues tonight in Exeter and has upcoming dates in Norwich, Leamington and Glasgow before finishing in Nottingham on December 19th.

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