They were welcomed back with thousands of open arms last year ... and they’re en route once again. Sam Wonfor talks to Boyzone’s Keith Duffy.

“We’re putting in another load of different songs and we’re having to get back into shape,” he says before adding, “although Ronan is extremely fit already,” referring to his bandmate’s then-recent climb of Mount Kilimanjaro for Comic Relief.

Formed in 1993, Boyzone sold 15 million records and hit the number one spot six times. The back catalogue throws up song titles bound to get you humming: Love Me For A Reason, Father and Son, No Matter What and Words. Told you.

Apparently the boys didn’t need much convincing to tour again. “We really enjoyed ourselves. We had a great time and the five of us got on like a house on fire. We couldn’t believe we were getting away with it again,” says Keith. And it wasn’t just about the performances. “We really appreciated each other’s company too. We all know much more about each other than anyone else will ever know. It’s a special thing to have those kinds of friendships.

“After we broke up communication broke down and there was bad some feeling. We needed to have that time away, be with our families and grow into the people we were going to be.

“We were together for around six years, and then we had eight years off,” laughs the 34-year-old.

Not that Keith was sitting around waiting for the reunion hotline to ring. Since his role in the Street, he has enjoyed a steady stream of roles in Irish shows, including six seasons of medical drama The Clinic.

There were a few raised eyebrows when he joined the Corrie cast in 2003 – but he soon silenced any doubters. Playing barman Ciaran McCarthy, he ended up staying until 2005. He would have stayed longer, but the commute became a problem. “It was difficult and I was missing out on so much at home. So many milestones with the kids.”