{"id":673547,"date":"2026-09-05T07:31:16","date_gmt":"2026-09-05T07:31:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/673547\/"},"modified":"2026-09-05T07:31:16","modified_gmt":"2026-09-05T07:31:16","slug":"five-wicklow-women-living-in-a-westlife-world-of-their-own-its-a-coming-of-age-thing-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/673547\/","title":{"rendered":"Five Wicklow women living in a Westlife world of their own: \u2018It\u2019s a coming of age thing\u2019 \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s not every morning you get to see five women in their late 30s regress to their teenage years as they discuss Westlife<\/a>. We\u2019re in speech therapist Gemma Grennan\u2019s kitchen in Newtownmountkennedy<\/a>, in Co Wicklow. Her mother is here collecting her five-year-old, Tom. There are some very tasty buns made by Gemma\u2019s husband Marc on the counter. All five women have jobs to go to, but there\u2019s a stack of photos, ticket stubs and cassettes on the table brought by civil servant and \u201choarder\u201d Rachael Myles and they are talking enthusiastically, warmly and a little rabidly about their love for Westlife, who they will be seeing together for the umpteenth time this month for the band\u2019s \u201chomecoming residency\u201d at Dublin\u2019s 3Arena. <\/p>\n

They have been friends for around 25 years. They\u2019re all from Bray<\/a>, but also \u201cpriced out of Bray\u201d, and all have very young children. \u201cWe\u2019re in the trenches<\/a>,\u201d says Catherine Egan, an accountant.<\/p>\n

They have agreed to talk to me about their friendship in parallel with their Westlife fandom which has prompted 24 hours of WhatsApp reminiscing among themselves. The night before, teacher Sarah Keane\u2019s fiance texted Gemma\u2019s husband to say: \u201cHave you been hearing as much about Westlife as I have?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe WhatsApp was on fire,\u201d says Gemma. \u201cWe were wondering if we could get a group deal on Botox.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGirls, we said in the chat we need to come across like we\u2019re cool, and not weird,\u201d says Sarah Keane.<\/p>\n

They were convinced I would be bringing a member of Westlife along. \u201cI said to Marc, if you see I\u2019ve taken off my wedding ring you\u2019ll know what happened,\u201d says Gemma.<\/p>\n

I hate to disappoint them, but I just brought Nick, the Irish Times photographer, who ordered them around and repeatedly told them to \u201cbehave\u201d.<\/p>\n

They first booked Westlife tickets in 2001 by queuing overnight at Golden Discs in Bray with Sarah Keane\u2019s dad sleeping across the road in his car (he also bought all their tickets for years with his credit card). Booking tickets last October, things were very different. \u201cI was in the queue to have a C-section,\u201d says Gemma.<\/p>\n

\"WestlifeWestlife fans: Catherine Egan, Sarah Keane, Sarah Kehoe, Rachael Myles and Gemma Grennan in earlier gig-going days. ‘I don\u2019t feel we are our age,’ says Grennan <\/p>\n

\u201cI had a small baby,\u201d says Sarah Keane. \u201cCat was two months from giving birth.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy baby was a week old,\u201d says Rachael.<\/p>\n

The fifth friend, Sarah Kehoe, a nurse, also has small kids. When one of the others says, \u201cSarah, that\u2019s not a Westlife shirt!\u201d of her Rolling Stones T-shirt, she raises her hands up and says, in her defence: \u201cThree kids!\u201d<\/p>\n

Like most good friends, they like to tease each other. When, at different points, Sarah Keane and Gemma point out they are, at 38, a year younger than the other three, the others say: \u201cHere we go\u201d or \u201cYou already said that!\u201d <\/p>\n

The first time they ever saw Westlife was when the band were supporting Boyzone back when they were still called Westside. \u201cI used to go to Boyzone concerts because my second-slash-third cousin is Mikey Graham,\u201d says Gemma, and they all tease her for the name-dropping. <\/p>\n

\"Westlife:Westlife: Shane Filan, Nicky Byrne and Kian Egan performing with the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra at London’s Royal Albert Hall last October. Photograph: Nicky J Sims\/Getty <\/p>\n

\u201cI went to Boyzone for my first communion, but the whole road went together,\u201d says Rachael. \u201cAnd we went to see Five, but our dads sat three rows behinds us. With Westlife we went by ourselves. So it was a coming-of-age thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were just the right age,\u201d says Catherine.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut still not old enough to pay for the tickets,\u201d says Gemma. \u201cSarah [Keane]\u2019s mam and dad used to give their credit card.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Me and Sarah [Kehoe] wrote to Shane\u2019s mam in her coffee shop in Sligo. We were basically stalking<\/p>\n

\u2014 \u00a0Rachael Myles<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cWe had credit cards by our J1 but we still got Sarah\u2019s mam and dad to do it,\u201d says Rachael.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe saw them in O2 in the Park as well,\u201d says Gemma. \u201cWe used to write into the Sunday World. [Sarah]\u2019s dad used to drive us in at half six in the morning so we could get into the pit.\u201d (They want to give all their \u201chardworking and kind\u201d parents a nod.)<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember knowing I was obsessed when they did the Rose of Tralee and [the camera] passed by Westlife and Shane winked and I lost my tiny little mind,\u201d says Rachael. \u201cI made my mam record it the next day when it was repeated. Shane winking.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their teenage years were rife with obsessive Westlife fan behaviour. They\u2019d iron free transfers of the Westlife logo on to their T-shirts. When Westlife were featured in pop magazines like Smash Hits, they\u2019d rifle through the newsagents to make sure they got the edition with the pull-out poster of their favourite member.<\/p>\n

\"WestlifeWestlife fans: The friends from Bray at a previous concert \"WestlifeWestlife concert ticket stub belonging to ‘hoarder’ Rachael Myles. Photograph: Nick Bradshaw \"WestlifeWestlife tapes in Gemma Grennan\u2019s home in Newtownmountkennedy. Photograph: Nick Bradshaw <\/p>\n

\u201cI had a Westlife cut-out in my room,\u201d says Rachael.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne year, Vodaphone brought out a Westlife phone,\u201d says Sarah Keane. \u201cAnd I got it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rachael, who is generally considered to be the superfan of the group, was also once asked out by an early boyfriend who used the lyrics to the Westlife song Obvious to do so. <\/p>\n

He won\u2019t mind being brought into this? They all laugh. \u201cHe\u2019ll say \u2018why didn\u2019t you ask me along?\u2019\u201d says Gemma. He loved Westlife too.<\/p>\n

What did their peers think of their love for Westlife? They laugh. \u201cIn the youth club we went to we got trolled to hell about loving Westlife,\u201d says Rachael. \u201cYou\u2019d get one song of Westlife on the youth club stereo, next to Nirvana and Snoop.\u201d (They all love this Bray youth club, by the way, and wish kids today could have such fun offline experiences.)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had a bit of nerdiness maybe,\u201d says Catherine.<\/p>\n

[\u00a0Emer McLysaght: Westlife deserve the title of Ireland\u2019s greatest manbandOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think we\u2019ve ever been overly cool people,\u201d says Gemma.<\/p>\n

Have they ever met any members of the band? Sarah Keane says she once met early Westlife evacuee Brian McFadden at a bowling alley and got his autograph.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe and Sarah [Kehoe] wrote to Shane\u2019s mam in her coffee shop in Sligo,\u201d says Rachael.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were basically stalking,\u201d says Sarah Kehoe. She didn\u2019t respond.<\/p>\n

Would their younger selves be surprised to find they are still going to Westlife concerts in 2026? They laugh. \u201cSixteen-year-old me thought I\u2019d have five kids, be a GAA mom and a teacher,\u201d says Rachael. She did study to be a teacher, she says, \u201cbut I came right out of college in the crash … We\u2019re 80s babies. We were told, \u2018It can only get better.\u2019 But I couldn\u2019t get permanency. I hung on in college as long as I could. I was working at a job in the supermarket. One year I applied for 115 teaching jobs. Then my mam saw an ad for the Civil Service in the paper.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"WestlifeWestlife fans: ‘No matter how long it\u2019s been for us all to meet \u2013 and it\u2019s never usually that long anyway \u2013 it\u2019s just the same’ <\/p>\n

Sarah Kehoe finished her training just as there was an embargo on hiring in the HSE. \u201cThere were no nursing jobs,\u201d she says. \u201cA hospital came over from the UK and interviewed us all and gave us all jobs there. Thirty-two of us went over to this hospital … And then I went to Australia.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe surprised Sarah in London [with a visit],\u201d says Catherine. \u201cWell semi-surprised. Rachael accidentally told her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t understand group chat,\u201d says Rachael.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was in college and I did business management in DIT,\u201d says Sarah Keane who later retrained as a teacher, \u201cand I remember everyone being like, \u2018We\u2019re going to have to go away for jobs.\u2019 That was the given.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was a period there when we were at more emigration parties than 21sts,\u201d says Rachael. \u201cI was at a leaving do every third weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere we stayed on our J1 there was 30 Irish lads who\u2019d done commerce and they\u2019d tell us the exchange rate was good so we\u2019d all go take our money out before [the Euro] dipped again the next day,\u201d says Gemma.<\/p>\n

Why did Sarah Kehoe come back from Australia? \u201cRachael decided to get married,\u201d she says. \u201cWhen I came back for her wedding I realised I\u2019m meant to be here. So I\u2019m back thanks to Rachael.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their friendships have changed over the years but have stayed strong. \u201cWe used to go to holiday together, go on our J1s together, and nights out every weekend,\u201d says Gemma. \u201cNow a couple of us might be able to meet up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Going to the Westlife concert is lovely because we\u2019ve planned it a year in advance. We have dinner booked. We\u2019ll all get to sit and have a conversation without kids, without grannies having to come to take kids for walks, which is nice<\/p>\n

\u2014 \u00a0Gemma Grennan<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cOr we have to bring our children,\u201d says Catherine. \u201cAnd you\u2019re shouting across each other to have a conversation. But no matter how long it\u2019s been for us all to meet \u2013 and it\u2019s never usually that long anyway \u2013 it\u2019s just the same. There\u2019s comfort in that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s always questions flying in the WhatsApp,\u201d says Sarah Keane. \u201cHow much Calpol can I give, based on my child\u2019s age?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat do you do for cradle cap?\u201d says Gemma.<\/p>\n

\u201cMam was saying the other day how nice it is that she remembers us getting ready for gigs,\u201d says Sarah Keane. \u201cI\u2019m getting emotional now. We\u2019re all mams now and we\u2019ll be buying those kids tickets on our credit cards in 15 years\u2019 time.\u201d<\/p>\n

They reminisce over different Westlife gigs they\u2019ve attended. There was always lots of screaming, says Sarah Keane. \u201cYou didn\u2019t even really hear them sing. Whoever\u2019s in front of you is getting you in their ear and it\u2019s chain reaction of that right to the front.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rachael maintains that at one gig they attended she waved at Shane Filan and he waved back. The others are sceptical. \u201cHow many people are in that stadium? Fifty thousand,\u201d says Sarah. \u201cHow many people waved at him?\u201d <\/p>\n

Is Rachael as big a fan now as she was then? She laughs. \u201cI had a row with my sister three years ago because she missed the stop in Sligo town for the Westlife mural,\u201d she says. \u201cI didn\u2019t talk to her until we hit the main road home after having a lovely weekend in Sligo.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c2012 was the farewell tour,\u201d says Gemma.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was really emotional,\u201d says Catherine.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd then there was a break until 2019,\u201d says Gemma. \u201cThat was Croker. And it was raining. I had a Mac on. Then there was the Aviva.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"WestlifeWestlife fans: ‘We used to go to holiday together, go on our J1s together, and nights out every weekend’ <\/p>\n

\u201cI won the tickets on East Coast FM,\u201d says Rachael.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s their biggest competition winner,\u201d says Gemma.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just in the car so much,\u201d says Rachael. \u201cAll my childcare is up in Bray with my mam and stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n

Do they try to get their children into Westlife? \u201cWhen I have Molly [her daughter] in the car and I play Westlife, she says: \u2018No Mama, Bruce,\u2019\u201d says Sarah Keane. \u201cShe loves Bruce Springsteen.\u201d<\/p>\n

They wonder where the time went. \u201cI don\u2019t feel we are our age,\u201d says Gemma. \u201cI feel 23 in my head. Sometimes we would go out every Thursday, Friday and Saturday … I couldn\u2019t tell you the last time we were in a nightclub together.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA hen maybe or a wedding,\u201d says Sarah Keane.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut our banter is still the same,\u201d says Gemma. \u201cThat\u2019s why going to the Westlife concert is lovely as well because we\u2019ve planned it a year in advance. We have dinner booked. We\u2019ll all get to sit and have a conversation without kids, without grannies having to come to take kids for walks, which is nice.\u201d<\/p>\n

They are, for the record, pretty sure they will cry at this gig. They begin speculating about what Westlife will play in their \u201cfast\u201d section. As purveyors primarily of ballads, this is always an interesting question for fans. They discuss their favourite songs in general. \u201cHey Whatever,\u201d says Gemma. \u201cThat\u2019s a banger.\u201d (There is some dissent on this.)<\/p>\n

\u201cIf Westlife read this, I think they should play I Lay My Love on You because it\u2019s such an underrated song,\u201d says Rachael.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe best part of the concert is when When You\u2019re Lookin\u2019 Like That comes in,\u201d says Gemma, and she dances for a moment.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were dancing like mams way before we became mams,\u201d says Sarah Kehoe.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t feel out of place when you go to a Westlife concert,\u201d says Sarah Keane. \u201cI\u2019d say half the grannies and aunties in the world are babysitting. Some concerts you go to and you think, \u2018Oh Lord, I\u2019m so old\u2019. But you go into a Westlife concert and you\u2019re like, \u2018Oh yeah, I belong here.\u2019\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s not every morning you get to see five women in their late 30s regress to their teenage…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":673548,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[264],"tags":[945,18,117,2215,19,17,361,337,147879,26553,946],"class_list":["post-673547","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-bray","tag-eire","tag-entertainment","tag-for-you","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-magazine","tag-music","tag-newtownmountkennedy","tag-westlife","tag-wicklow"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/117217271124325816","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/673547","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=673547"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/673547\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/673548"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=673547"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=673547"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=673547"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}