Boyzone members slept on church floor by Stephen Gately's coffin to allay mum's fear
Boyzone members slept on church floor by Stephen Gately's coffin to allay mum's fear
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Boyzone star Stephen Gately was just 33-years-old when he was tragically found dead at his Spanish holiday home in October 2009. Stephen was discovered lying on the sofa in his pyjamas, having died from an 'acute' pulmonary oedema - or fluid on the lungs - caused by an undiagnosed heart condition. The pathology report confirmed his death was not related to drink or drugs, and he'd been on good form in the days before, with his widower telling The Mirror, "I do get some comfort from knowing how happy he was that day. The night he died, we’d had such a good time, a lovely evening in our favourite restaurant. He was the most happy and confident he’d been in his life.".
His heartbroken bandmates Ronan Keating, Keith Duffy, Shane Lynch and Mikey Graham flew out to Spain right away to bring back his body. They issued a statement that read, "We are completely devastated by the loss of our friend and brother, Stephen. We have shared such wonderful times together over the years and were all looking forward to sharing many more. Stephen was a beautiful person in both body and spirit. He lit up our lives and those of the many friends he had all over the world. Our love and sympathy go out to Andrew and Stephen's family. We love you and will miss you forever, 'Steo'.".
When his devastated mum admitted her fear that her son didn't "like to be alone", his bandmates decided he didn't have to be. Ronan, Keith, Shane and Mikey held an overnight vigil at St Laurence O'Toole Roman Catholic church in Dublin, spending the night sleeping on the floor next to their beloved bandmate's coffin. "We cried and we laughed and we could hear him telling us jokes, and we could hear him answering back..." Ronan told Sky News.
