Celebrity Diary: Shane Lynch

29th December 2009

I've spent the past week in the studio in London with the Boyzone lads working on our next album, our first one without Stephen.

We have been locked in 24-7 for most of the past few weeks and it is hard on your head as you become so immersed in the process. We have done most of it and the end is now in sight, thank God.

None of us wrote the songs ourselves because as this is our comeback album, we shopped it out to all of the best writers to make it as good as we possibly could, so I think it's going to be amazing.

I would describe it as having a live band sound, kind of like Coldplay meets U2.

Obviously we all had to adjust to going back into a studio without Steo (Stephen Gately) as his voice lent a particular sound to Boyzone and we have missed him so much.
We don't want to change our style too much but in one respect, we have no choice because he's gone.

I wouldn't say it's weird recording it without him but when you have different harmonies in a song and he's not here anymore to do them, you miss him for that reason and we have all had to get used to that.

Nostalgic

This is our first Christmas without him and although we never spent it all together, as we're always with our own families, it is a time when you do reflect on those who you have lost. It's a nostalgic time of year and there's no getting around that.

We hope to have all the vocals laid down by next Wednesday and expect the first single to go to radio in January, with the follow-up album in March.

We do have a particular deadline but I haven't really felt under pressure with it. Things have been going very well in the studio, it has all come together.

For a couple of months, everything went a little bit slow because we didn't know what to do with Steo's passing. Ronan dedicated his solo album to him but as a band, we know he would have wanted us to keep going and finish our album without him so that's what we're doing.

I managed to escape for a while on Wednesday night and went up to Manchester to see Keith (Duffy) performing in Corrie. He's getting on brilliantly and it was a great break for me.

He took me out with a couple of the cast and crew members and introduced me to everyone down the local pub.

I used to watch it when he was on the programme years ago and it's like he has never left, he knows them all so well at this stage.

It was a nice social occasion and it's important to get stuck in and support each other at times like this.

This Sunday, it's going to be the screening of the Dublin auditions for The All-Ireland Talent Show, where viewers will see me trying to pick my final eight acts to send through.

Daithi O Se is definitely the man to beat again this year. I'm absolutely loving being on the programme, it's going very well. There's no pressure on me at all -- the contestants have all the hard work.

I can't speak for the rest of the judges but Dublin people really came out in force and did a great job.

This year, I can reveal that I have a couple of singers, a couple of comedians and a drag act, who is absolutely hilarious.

It does mean though that we'll all be spending New Year's Eve in Ardmore Studios in Bray.

That's our first live show so we're filming at 6.30pm and then coming back at 11.35pm when the first act in the semi-final will be revealed so we will be ringing in 2010 on set. I'm having a blast doing the programme and I feel it has really hit the ground running and seems to be going down really well with all the fans.

Before then, I have the daunting task of cooking Christmas dinner for all my family.

Cooking

Some of my sisters and brothers and in-laws are coming over to England and spending the day with us. It's my little girl Billy Rae's second Christmas this year.

She's nearly 14 months old now and she's doing great. She started walking when she was 10 months old so she's absolutely thriving, she never stops going.

I'm really looking forward to getting a few days off for Christmas and just chilling out with all my family and friends.

Having said that, I have been given the task of cooking for them all. I don't mind at all -- a glass of wine in your hand and you can't go wrong.

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