Louis Walsh and Boyzone feud explained as Sky documentary uncovers boyband's drama

Louis Walsh and Boyzone enjoyed huge success in the 1990s as the pop band sold millions of records.

Boyzone: No Matter What delves into the boyband's golden years, featuring both archival footage and fresh interviews with Keith Duffy, Stephen Gately, Mikey Graham, Ronan Keating, Shane Lynch, and their manager Louis Walsh.

During their heyday, the Irish boyband enjoyed enormous success in the UK, bagging 21 top 40 singles and 22 hits in the Irish charts, including six UK No. 1 singles and nine in Ireland.

The three-part documentary, which is released on Sky Documentaries and NOW on Sunday (February 2), revisits key moments in the band's history, including Stephen Gately's forced outing by the media, their breakup, and their relationship with Louis Walsh.

Louis Walsh assembled Boyzone back in 1993 to rival Take That and become one of the biggest acts in Ireland, UK and across the world.

However, the Sky documentary reveals how Louis Walsh managed the band and how his contentious methods impacted the band members. The band members have also criticised the former X Factor judge for his methods and even affecting their confidence.

What happened to Louis Walsh and Boyzone?

Louis Walsh was key to Boyzone's success in the 1990s, but his methods were controversial. Lynch admits that the former X Factor judge “promised us the sun, moon, and stars.”

Louis Walsh shared in the Sky documentary that he fed stories to the press in order to keep attention on the band and therefore, keep them in the public eye and sell records. One story

The band's manager maintained a working relationship with The Sun's show business reporter Rav Singh, who later outed Stephen Gately's homosexuality. Paul Martin of the Irish Mirror also spoke about how his publication was in competition with The Sun over their Boyzone scoops.

Ronan Keating said the stories written in the press about him and his band members in the 90s were “scarring”. He said: “He (Louis Walsh) believed any story was a good story. He would make up stories constantly about the band, about relationships with girlfriends that didn’t exist.

“It scarred us. It was hugely scarring what the media did to us all.” Despite this, the band manager said he has no remorse for feeding untrue stories to the press.

The group admits they went through some “cruel” times during their run in the group under Walsh’s leadership. Louis Walsh parted ways with Boyzone at their hiatus and managed Ronan Keating's music career.

The Irish popstar achieved several No. 1 singles including Life Is A Rollercoaster and When You Say Nothing At All. The pair split in 2009, but Louis Walsh lashed out at the popstar in 2012 and called him "talentless and spoiled".

Speaking about their feud, Ronan Keating told Magic Radio: "He was very important to me as a mentor and I'm grateful for the opportunities he gave me, because I wouldn't be here without them.

"But there’s only so much you can give back and be so grateful, and for that not to be appreciated or respected."

During his stint in the Celebrity Big Brother house he randomly targeted Ronan during a chat with Colson Smith. The Corrie star said at the time: "Ronan has been the most successful star from Boyzone..." before being cut off by their former manager, who said: "Then? Nothing."

"I met him in the Four Seasons. He said 'maaaaan' - he had done all American by that point, I think he met George Michael or something. He said 'maaaan, I don't want to be a karaoke artist anymore. I said 'that was you f****n are!" Do you release how much time I put into them?"

It followed Louis blasting Ronan for being "such a pr***". "Everybody thinks he’s a lovely guy, do you know what I mean?," Louis told his then-housemates. "He hasn’t had a hit record since I left. He sacked me.”

Keith Duffy revealed Louis' jibes "shattered his confidence" and claimed he was mocked for his position within the band by Louis.

Keith also explained that he felt he was ‘suppressed’ by his former manager, and he was left feeling like he couldn’t step forward to showcase his own singing skills within the group.