AT THE OUTSET of 2025, the chances of anyone spending much of their time thinking about Boyzone for basically any reason were pretty slim.

This being Ireland, we all have some idea of what the four surviving members of Ireland’s first boyband are up to these days. Those who spend a lot of time listening to the radio will know that Keith Duffy has made a real success out of selling tyres. Those who spend a lot of time on Instagram might know that Shane Lynch still loves his cars and posts regularly about his hardcore Christian faith. Ronan Keating recently helped to reclaim St Stephen’s Day in the name of Rockshore. Nobody knows much about Mikey Graham, but then nobody ever really did. 

Does it come as a surprise, then, that No Matter What- the three-part Sky documentary about the group – has been received with such interest and acclaim? Perhaps not.

The story of Boyzone is the tale of five men whose paths crossed by little more than chance – chosen for their singing voices or their bone structure – destined, all of a sudden, to be in each other’s lives forever. Really, it’s the same butterfly-effect logic that underpins almost every friendship any of us ever stumble upon. The group was, of course, rounded out by Stephen Gately, who died suddenly of an undiagnosed congenital heart defect in 2009 at the age of 33. While Gately is only heard here through archival interviews, it is his relationship with his bandmates and the absence left by his passing that is at the heart of the documentary. 

Regarding Gately, the documentary powerfully evokes the atmosphere of the 1990s during which toxic tabloid newspapers ran roughshod over the lives of young celebrities. It features an interview with Rav Singh, the journalist who wrote the Sun article through which Gately publicly announced his sexuality (after learning that the tabloids were going to out him anyway). 

The band all confirm that they were aware of........

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