Stephen's sad farewell

THOUSANDS of people lined Dublin's streets today to say farewell to Boyzone star Stephen Gately. Crowds assembled from first light at St Laurence O'Toole's Church in the north inner city for the singer's funeral mass.

The church at Seville Place, close to Stephen's boyhood home, was packed to capacity for the ceremony, which began at noon. The 33-year-old was cremated in a private ceremony in Glasnevin this afternoon, with family and friends attending a gathering at the Four Seasons Hotel afterwards.

Family friend and local priest Fr Declan Blake told the Herald: “Stephen was a celebrity and a star. Today we are remembering him for who he was.

“We are celebrating Stephen's life today and remembering him in a special way.”

Boyzone's four other members left the church at 6.30am today, having spent a vigil overnight with the body in the church where Stephen had made his Holy Communion. The band promised Stephen's mother Margaret that they would stay with their “brother” overnight, because he had always been afraid of the dark.

The group met and spoke briefly with fans who had spent the night outside the church.

Mourners today were led by Stephen’s husband Andrew Cowles, mother Margaret, dad Martin and brothers Mark, Alan and Tony.

Elton John’s partner David Furnish – who introduced Stephen to Andrew – and Andrew Llloyd Webber were expected to attend.

Fr Blake said friends and fellow bandmembers had been central in organising the service, and that readings and hymns were specially selected for the occasion.

The mass was conducted by Fr Blake, who told the Herald today: “The whole community has rallied around to do their best. We have a great community spirit here despite the negative publicity which the area sometimes receives.”

Roads around Seville Place were sealed off between 8am and 2pm. While the service was restricted to family and close friends, a large crowd of spectators began to line the surrounding streets long before the midday mass began.

Last night, the coffin was brought from Jennings Funeral Home on Amiens Street to the church at around 8.15pm. Inside the hearse were three wreaths of red and white roses that spelled out “Our Brother”, “Our Steo” and “Our Son”.

Former Westlife singer Brian McFadden arrived at Dublin airport yesterday afternoon with his two daughters. The 29-year-old has told how he was heartbroken by the news.

A grief stricken Louis Walsh said: “Stephen loved his parents and his best friend in the world was his sister Michelle, but Boyzone was his family and to them he was a cuddly teddy bear.

“He was the person who kept the group together, he didn’t see anyone’s flaws, he never saw anything to complain about. “They’ve asked me to speak at the funeral but there’s no way I could do anything like that ... I wouldn’t even be able to say a word.”

Loudspeakers were erected outside the church to enable the onlookers follow the proceedings, with Boyzone singing “In My Life”. Veteran singer Tony Kenny was also set to perfom a song called “My Son” at the request of Stephen’s mum.

Louis Walsh said Stephen was very proud of his roots and his family. Some locals had even spent most of the night to get a good vantage point for the funeral mass, one of the biggest that the capital has ever seen.

One fan of Stephen’s even travelled from Taiwan to attend today. Wendy Lee (26) spent €1,100 on a 24-hour long flight. She said Stephen meant everything to her. “He was so lovely.” Fans were joined in their grief by the four remaining members of Boyzone who carried Stephen’s coffin into the Dublin church last night.

The band members have had tatoos done to mark the death.

Ronan Keating’s tribute to his former bandmate was visible as he appeared at Majorca’s Palma Airport yesterday, before accompanying Stephen’s

coffin home to Dublin. The numbers 76 and 09 were apparent beneath his T-shirt and they correspond to the years of Stephen’s birth and death. The loss of Stephen is also keenly felt by those who watched him grow up.

Old friends and neighbours have spent several days cleaning the nearby church. Gerry Fay, chairman of the North Wall Residents’ Association said that everyone in the area had wanted to get involved in giving Stephen a send-off.

The funeral mass today was followed by cremation at Glasnevin Crematorium.

Meanwhile some 450 invited guests were gathering at the Four Seasons Hotel in Ballsbridge this evening for a postfuneral function.

Courtesy of the Evening Herald

Watched this on sky news today knot and have to say very moving. Well done to the people of the area for their support to Stephen and his family. Stephen RIP

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Originally Posted by anto1969

Watched this on sky news today knot and have to say very moving. Well done to the people of the area for their support to Stephen and his family. Stephen RIP

Have to agree with you Anto, they even painted the church fences and gates and cleaned up the surrounding area of litter - that really was a lovely touch.

The local residents of Sheriff Street brought out tea, coffee, soup & sandwitches for the fans who braved the cold & slept outside St Laurences church last night.

Real, Decent, People

It's hard to beat a genuine true Dub Noely

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Heart Wrenching Day.RIP Stephen