Born
Stephen Patrick David Gately on March 17th. (St. Patrick's
Day) 1976 in Dublin he began modelling and acting at 16yrs. of
age and had small parts in two films: "In The Name Of The
Father", and, "The Commitments". Stephen's vocal talents came
to light after he was well received at a Butlin's karaoke
event. Later, when he heard rumours that an Irish Boy Band had
a vacancy for a singer and he didn't know how or where to
approach them, he telephoned an Irish newspaper, "The Star",
for help and luckily spoke to a journalist who was able to
assist him.
Stephen joined "Boyzone" in 1993, after four auditions. As
well as performing with the band, he has recorded "Shooting
Star" for Disney's "Hercules", and "No Matter What" for Andrew
Lloyd Webber. He has a love of all things "Disney" and can
often be found involved in various programmes on the "Disney"
Channel.
In
1999, Stephen publicly declared that he was gay. His
boyfriend, with whom he lives, in Amsterdam, is Eloy de Jong,
himself the former member of the Dutch Boy Band, "Caught In
The Act". They have known each other for over four years, and,
it is rumoured, they are planning to adopt a child.
Update Jan '02: Stephen admits that his relationship
with Eloy is over and he has returned to Dublin. No one
else is believed to be involved in the break up and they
remain good friends. "It just fizzled out," Gately
stated. After spending Xmas with his family, he is now
considering offers to go into musicals.
Update Feb '03: After proving himself and getting rave
reviews for his performances as Joseph in Joseph and the
Technicolour Dreamcoat in Liverpool last year, the show moves
to the New London Theatre, Drury Lane, London for 203
performances. Link below to Julia's really great website
site for all the details and links to tickets.
Update Aug '03: Stephen, now an established West End star, has
exchanged vows in a commitment ceremony with his new partner,
Andy Cowles, a businessman he has been dating for four months.
The couple were holidaying in Las Vegas when they decided on
the spur-of-the-moment to show their commitment to each other.
Since then Stephen as starred in a production of Joseph And
The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Citty Chitty Bang Bang
in the West End. He now lives with Andy who has an Internet
business in Soho.
Stephen married boyfriend Andy Cowles on March 19th 2006, two
days after his 30th birthday, in a civil ceremony at the
Goring Hotel, an Edwardian building next to the garden wall of
Buckingham Palace.
