Stage is set for Westlife finale









Laura Butler at Croke Park



Thursday June 21 2012

WESTLIFE fans can expect all their favourite hits during a three-hour spectacular at Croke Park this weekend.

The boys will perform their final two concerts as a group and are determined to put on a blinding show.

There will be a second stage added to their already enormous set to make sure they can mingle with crowd.

Hundreds of staff have been working all hours this week to make sure the hotly anticipated shows hit the spot.

A production insider revealed that the stars requested additional staging for Croke Park, the last leg of their farewell tour, as they wanted it to look different to the rest of the gigs.

"The boys are adding their own stage to the existing structure with lots of effects in it. It's going to be extra special."

While it's due to be a wet and windy affair, nothing will deter the 160,000 revellers set to descend upon the stadium for the quartet's finale.


Anoraks

After ruling out the admittance of umbrellas into Croker's grounds, staff are recommending anoraks and wellies for the festivities, as showers are forecast for the next few days.

Of course, it's going to be all about the music, with Nicky Byrne, Shane Filan, Kian Egan and Mark Feehily belting out some of their biggest hits after taking to the stage at 8pm.

The lads are planning to kick off the emotional shows with What About Now, followed by classic tunes Uptown Girl, My Love and Ain't That A Kick In The Head, with Home, Flying Without Wings and their debut single Swear It Again in the second half.

The set list also includes a medley of favourite and well-known pop songs and the famous foursome will provide their renditions of Sex On Fire, Don't Cha, Let Me Entertain You and Bohemian Rhapsody.

In an interview on 2FM yesterday, member Kian Egan admitted that he never dreamt of playing to such a huge crowd at Croker: "It's been quite a surreal moment and quite an emotional big moment for us all."

Sligo man Shane added: "Saturday is going to be really difficult."

Concert goers will be allowed to queue outside Croke Park from 4pm, with gates opening at 4.30pm for the hordes to secure their spot on the transformed pitch.

Roads in the area will be closed off before the events kick off and gardai are recommending the use of public transport as much as possible.

While no extra security measures have been put in place for the two nights, 700 stewards and 100 gardai will be on hand to make sure no one's enjoyment is spoiled.

The band's wives, children and relatives will be watching from their own private boxes for the special occasion.

labutler@herald.ie

The sun came out last night over Croke Park as 85,000 fans came out to wish a fond farewell to Westlife after 14 years in the music business. Suzanne Byrne reports
1 of 1 Westlife Westlife kicked off that they called "the biggest weekend of our lives" last night with the first of two farewell shows in Croke Park in spectacular fashion.

Four effigies of band members, Shane Filan, Nicky Byrne, Kian Egan and Mark Feehily, appeared on stage and suddenly burst into flames before the real Westlife ascended the stage to sing their opening number What About Love.



Dressed in leather jackets and casual trousers the foursome were in fine voice as was every single fan in the audience - male, female, young or old, they could all be seen singing along.

An overwhelmed Shane Filan choked back the tears after their second song, What Makes A Man. The 32-year-old Sligo native could clearly be seen taking in what a momentous occasion it was for the four lads who have 14 number one singles under their belt as well as racking up 45 million album sales during their 14-year career.

Up next was Coast to Coast which led to the first of many arm-swaying moments of the night.

Kian Egan then welcomed the crowd and said "This is the weekend we have been waiting for. Ireland you have made us feel very special. Tonight we want to give you the best memories of Westlife ever. We don't want anyone to walk out sad. 14 years is more than anyone expected."

With that, the crowd joined them in rousing rendition of Safe from the 2010 album Gravity.

Hundreds of flags - including some from Germany, Czech Republic and Spain - and banners were held aloft throughout the crowd. As Nicky spent some time reading them he said: "I will miss reading the banners at the concerts. You know, they got dirtier and filthier the older our fans become."

After a quick change of clothes the boys took the stage in fetching blue jackets for a rocked-up version of Uptown Girl and gave us a glimpse at some of those infamous Westlife moves. Ok so they're wasn't many of them during their 14 years - they seemed to prefer the safety of a stool until the obligatory stand-up at the key change moment - but they are masters of microphone dipping and toe crossovers which they showed off in abundance last night.

As we waited for Westlife to be joined by their family on stage Nicky quipped: "So what are all the men going to buy for their girlfriends and wives at Christmas now that there will be no more Westlife gigs. Tickets to One Direction!"

With everyone in place, Shane, Nicky, Kian and Mark, dedicated Queen of my Heart, to their families both present and those who have passed during their careers. Both Kian and Nicky lost their dads during their success and Nicky said: "Even though our dads may not be with us tonight, we know they are here in spirit and are proudly looking down on us".



Then, in possibly the cutest moment of the night, Kian's 6-month-old son Koa decided he could do a better job than daddy and took the mic from him.











They finished this section with a nod to their 2004 swing album, Allow Us To Be Frank, with Ain't That A Kick In The Head.

Another costume changes saw the lads don some pretty interesting shirts with tight fitting jeans. Bounding back onto the stage the crowd went wild as they belted out the Black Eyed Peas number Tonight's Gonna Be A Good Night. Cue fireworks a whole lot of dodgy-daddy-dancing and as the music changed to the LMFAO's Party Rock Anthem there was some interesting attempts at shuffling.

The medley of covers continued with some fancy fire effects for the Kings of Leon's Sex on Fire which was followed by The Pussy Cats Doll's Don't Cha.tight jeans, big screens and plenty of hip thrusting sent the already excited fans into a frenzy.

A version of Robbie William's Let Me Entertain You brought on the chicken dance and then they finished this segment with Bohemian Rhapsody - during which Kian played the guitar.

After yet another outfit change - white and grey trousers, vests and jackets - the boys continued the party with When Your Looking Like That.

Shane, Nicky, Kian and Mark then made their way through the crowd - high fiving fans along the way - to a smaller second stage in the middle of the standing section and where they immediately started a Mexican Wave around the stadium.

Before they sang Mandy, Mark said: "I can't even explain what it feels like to be home tonight."

Next up was Swear It Again which Mark described as, "a very special song that started our careers." The track was Westlife's very first number one from their debut multi-million selling album Westlife.

As the sun went down on Croke Park each member of Westlife took their turn to say goodbye to their fans.

Kian said: "We haven't used the word farewell until this weekend. When we started in the band when we were 15 or 16 we never dreamed we would play Croke Park, then we met Louis Walsh and he is the man that made all our dreams come true. He brought us to Simon Cowell and they made Westlife a worldwide hit. And now we are here saying goodbye, and it's not easy, it's not easy at all."

Nicky followed with: "I want each and every one of you to know you have played a vital role in making Westlife what we are today. We will never forget you. You have given us a million memories".

A teary eyed Mark was up next: "This goodbye is too difficult to put into words. We've dreamt about this night. This is our heartfelt thank you to you. Not only supporting us in our music but in different parts of our lives. You are like friends."

Last to speak was Shane and he said: "We've come from playing infront of 240 people to 85,000, it's very hard to walk away from this. But everything has to come to an end."

And with that, the strains of You Raise Me Up could be heard, mobile phones lit up and were swayed in the air as the stadium sang in unison.

A bow and wave goodbye and the boys then left the stage, building anticipation for their final encore.

After five minutes of stomping, screaming and chants of 'we want more', Westlife appeared one last time dressed in jeans, shirts, bow-ties and suit jackets. The crowd roared appreciatively and jump up and down through World Of Our Own.

After an emotional version of Flying Without Wings it was time for the lads to take their final bow, and with one last look around the stadium in amazement they were gone.

For anyone going to tonight's gig, this is definitely a party for the fans - you will leave with a smile, no voice and sore hands from clapping. Enjoy!






Westlife Stage Final Concert In DublinMega-successful boyband say farewell to thousands of fans...
Sunday, 24 June 2012
Westlife have played their final concert together in front of a massive crowd at Croke Park in Dublin.

The four-man boyband played to an audience of around 80,000 people at the sports stadium in the Irish capital, belting out all their hits over the course of a set that lasted more than two hours.

According to Digital Spy, Kian Egan told the crowd: "As this is the very last Westlife concert, the whole idea was to be able to get out here and see our fans one last time and celebrate 14 years."

And Mark Feehily added: "For 14 years, Westlife fans have made our dreams come true. This show is dedicated to each and every one of you. Our fans mean so much. You have never stopped supporting us.

"Thanks so much. You're not just our fans, you are our friends and have been with us each step of the way."

The band announced their decision to split up last year, after 14 years together. As well as the huge crowd in Dublin, many more fans were watching the farewell show live in cinemas around the world.

The Sun newspaper quoted Shane Filan as saying: "Last night was loud but this is unbelievable. Tonight is the loudest, best crowd we have ever had.

"We will always be member[s] of Westlife but we won't be a band anymore. Thank you. I'll never forget this. These are times that will live in our lives forever."

And Nicky Byrne went on: "To all of you, you didn't just make the dreams of four lads come true. Much more - only for all of you none of this is possible."

The foursome were introduced by their former manager Louis Walsh, who said: "I have never known a band like this in all my time in the business.

"I didn't want them to break up yet - but they all wanted to go out on a high. And I'll definitely be managing Shane in his solo career








The massively popular Irish boyband Westlife thanked their legions of fans during their final concert at Croke Park in Dublin on Saturday night.

RTE reports that 85,000 fans flocked to the famous park in Ireland’s capital for the group’s final performance. During the two-hour set, members of the group took time to thank fans for their dedication and support.

Group member Kian Egan said to the crowd, "As this is the very last Westlife concert, the whole idea was to be able to get out here and see our fans one last time and celebrate 14 years."

Mark Feehily added that "For 14 years, Westlife fans have made our dreams come true. This show is dedicated to each and every one of you. Our fans mean so much. You have never stopped supporting us.”

“Thanks so much. You're not just our fans, you are our friends and have been with us each step of the way."

Shane Filan said during Saturday’s show, "Last night was loud but this is unbelievable. Tonight is the loudest, best crowd we have ever had.”

"We will always be member[s] of Westlife but we won't be a band anymore.

"Thank you. I'll never forget this. These are times that will live in our lives forever