Westlife called their show in Newcastle to a brief halt on Saturday night, to allow a fan to share his moving story about surviving Covid and how one of the group's song played a part in his health battle.
For the second night in succession, Westlife played the Utilita Arena as a trio, with Mark Feehily still missing in action after he was struck down by a fever on Friday and put 'under doctor's orders' not to perform. While fans were gutted that Mark wasn't able to join bandmates Shane Filan, Nicky Byrne and Kian Egan on stage, the lads still fired on all cylinders to delight a packed crowd with hits like My Love, When You're Looking Like That and Swear It Again.
Later on in the night, Westlife performed a medley of some of their biggest hits including What Makes A Man, Unbreakable and I'm Already There and it was the latter song that held a special memory for ticket holder Steve, who returned to the front row after being in the same seat a night earlier for the first gig.
READ MORE : Mark Feehily absent from Westlife gigs in Newcastle 'under doctor's orders'
It was Nicky who put the spotlight on Steve, along he was initially greeted by some playful boos from some of the crowd, after the very mention of the city's name moments earlier got the same response, as Steve, having been handed a microphone, joked: "It's not a good start is it?" He then shared his emotional story, explaining: "I was in hospital for two months last year with Covid. I lost my brother a month before and everything. So here I am, I'm still here."
Talking about what I'm Already There meant to him, Steve added: "I'm Already There...I didn't see me kids for two months who were six and four at the time. I hadn't seen them for two months and I listened to I'm Already There and I cried my eyes out. And here I am," before punching his fist in the air with delight as the whole arena started cheering.
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