Superstars Westlife to play at Field Mill

MANSFIELD music fans must be blessed with the luck of the Irish - as Chad can today exclusively reveal that global superstars Westlife will be playing a concert in the town this summer.
The boy band, considered the most successful pop group to have come out of Ireland, will hit the stage at Field Mill for a spectacular outdoor summer show on Saturday 21st August.Nicky Byrne, Kian Egan, Mark Feehily and Shane Filan have sold more than 43m records globally and in the UK alone have scored nine multi-platinum albums and a record-breaking 14 Number One hits.They are the second world class act to announce a date at Mansfield Town Football Club, following in the footsteps of the X Factor Live tour, after club bosses signed a deal with concert management firm the Liz Hobbs Group.The aim of the deal was to attract big names to Field Mill and compete with big cities like Nottingham and Sheffield.Club chairman Andrew Perry said: "We are expecting a big demand for tickets so I would encourage everyone to book their tickets early so they don't miss out."People will be able to look back on this day and say 'I was there' when Westlife played at Field Mill Stadium."Mansfield has never seen anything like this before. It's fantastic to be able to entice an act of Westlife's stature to the town."Mr Perry also hopes the concert will provide a boost to the local economy."The pubs, food outlets and town centre will be a hive of activity," he said. "It will be a day to remember for the town of Mansfield."And Mansfield mayor Tony Egginton said: "This is fantastic news for the town. It will be as good for Mansfield as when Rebecca Adlington brought home two Olympic gold medals."I launched the idea of an arena in Mansfield and recommended that Field Mill should be the stage to host such events. Hopefully the people of Mansfield will get behind it."Westlife saw their latest album 'Where We Are' reach number two in the UK albums chart and have had a string of hits since the 1990s, including Flying Without Wings, Mandy and You Raise Me Up.

Westlife wow fans at the LG Arena

They may have been going strong for 12 years, but Irish pop sensations Westlife can still effortlessly whip a crowd into a frenzy.
At Birmingham’s LG Arena last night, the lads showed other boy bands just how it’s done – and what has brought them such longevity in the music industry.
From the start, the adoring sell-out crowd was on its feet singing and dancing to some if the group’s best known hits and a few surprise songs too. To ear-piercing screams and impressive lighting effects, the boys burst on to the stage with a bang to the title track of the tour, Where We Are. Fans were transported back to the beginning of the group’s career with a performance of their first hit Swear it All Over Again, as well as other older favourites such as Uptown Girl. The lads at one point took the tempo down a notch for a quieter set, which included Barry Manilow hit Mandy and If I Let You Go, where the four piece- made up of Shane Filan, Nicky Byrne, Kian Egan and Mark Feehily – got the chance to show off their full vocal range. Best known these days for being perched on stools and belting our ballads, the band showed off a different side when they performed an up-tempo mash up of pop hits.
This kind of medley has become a popular staple of most recent Westlife shows, and last night was no exception. Fans were moved when the boys returned for their encore, dressed in smart suits, to perform their smash hit ballad Flying Without Wings. You Raise Me Up – a song which has been covered more than 125 times – brought the curtain down on the evening along with deafening applause.
Westlife have grown up but it looks like this is one boy band that will be around for a good few years yet.

Westlife Tickets are available online on GigSport.

Westlife concert for Lissadell

Westlife IS to play a concert at Lissadell House in Co Sligo on July 30th.
The concert takes place a day before Leonard Cohen plays to nights at the stately home where WB Yeats visited Countess Constance Markievicz.
Kian Egan, one of three Sligo-born singers in Westlife, recalled they had previously played in the town’s Markievicz Park. “We’ve been itching to get back home ever since.”
Lissadell is closed to the public while a dispute over rights-of-way on the estate is heard in the High Court between owners Edward Walsh and Constance Cassidy, and Sligo County Council.
The couple’s principal address is Morristown, Lattin, Naas, Co Kildare, but they use Lissadell as a second home. They bought the estate for almost €4 million in 2003. They have spent some €9.5 million restoring it and claim they cannot operate it as a tourist amenity if public rights of way exist.
Up to 10,000 people will be seated outdoors during each of the three nights of the Leonard Cohen and Westlife shows.
Sligo County Council has given planning permission and detailed talks have taken place with gardaí, who have been given assurances on security.
Most concert-goers are expected to have left the venue well before midnight, with many staying in accommodation in Sligo and Bundoran, Co Donegal.