When Boyzone broke up eight years ago, there were reports that the Irish boy band's harmony had been overtaken by acrimony.

It was Ronan Keating's idea that they should take a breather after years of touring, six No.1 hits and sales of 11 million records.

He embarked on a solo career and didn't come back. Ever since then the band's legacy has primarily been one of feuds as the rest of the group floundered in limbo, uncertain whether they would ever reform.

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The boyz are back in town: After their dramatic break up Boyzone are back on tour (L-R) Shane Lynch, Mikey Graham, Gary Barlow, Stephen Gately, and Keith Duffy

But now the boyz are back. They have settled their differences, and under the guidance of Louis Walsh, their manager, they have reunited for a 24-date, sell-out tour which reaches London's 02 Arena tonight and tomorrow.

'It's as if we have never been apart,' says Ronan. 'The egos have gone, we've grown up and everything is in perspective  -  we've got our own lives and our own families.'

Walsh says it wasn't his idea for them to make a comeback. 'They did it themselves. Of course, I was hoping it would happen. After all, they had been fantastically successful and it was a shame it had all come to an end.

'But they hated the travelling and just wanted to go home, enjoy the money they'd made and relax with their families. In every band, as they get older, they get egotistical and people keep telling them that they could have solo careers. In Boyzone, Ronan was the obvious choice.'

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Full Monty: Boyzone strip off during their comeback tour

Ronan threw himself into his solo career with Walsh as his manager. He had solo hits with Life Is A Rollercoaster and Tomorrow Never Comes, but had a spectacular falling out with Walsh over the direction his career should take and sacked him.

The other four members of the band  -  Stephen Gately, Keith Duffy, Mikey Graham and Shane Lynch  -  meanwhile, were wondering just how long their own lives would have to be on hold until Ronan came back to Boyzone.

Their resentment festered, and things came to a head when, in 2003, Ronan said publicly that he could not see himself getting back with the band. It was not so much a split as a disintegration.

'It hadn't been easy when Boyzone first formed,' remembers Gately. 'We had no money, and we'd be staying in a hotel in a strange town and I'd sit on the bed and just cry. I was lonely and I missed my family, and I was worried because I had all these girl fans who didn't know I was gay.

'But the others were tremendously supportive. We'd all have a group hug and promise to take care of each other, which we did.'

Happier times: the boys when the first started as a group before their breakdown

After the break-up, Gately had three hit singles, but admits to feeling lost when the phone stopped ringing with offers of work, and he spiralled into depression.

'I was dropped by my record company and I felt as if I was in a deep dark hole.' But soon after he was cast in Joseph And The Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat in London's West End.

Keith Duffy, who admits he was not confident about his singing ability, took up acting and played barman Ciaran McCarthy in Coronation Street for three years. Mikey Graham had a hit single, and set up his own recording studio as a producer and songwriter. He also became an actor, but suffered a mental and emotional breakdown.

Shane Lynch says that when he was in the group before he used to start drinking at noon and go on drinking until seven or eight at night. ('I depended on alcohol to forget about life.') Shane went on to win TV's The Games in 2004, starred on Celebrity Love Island and became a professional race car driver.

X manager: before X Factor, Louis Walsh was the brain behind the Irish boyband

Ronan himself remembers with fondness the early days, crisscrossing Ireland in their white Transit van. 'The memories are magical. The best times ever, and greatest of all was not having any idea of what lay around the corner. 'I could have stayed with Boyzone but it came to a natural end. Everyone knew I was going to go solo, but after I did we no longer spoke to each other.'

Life for all of them is very different from the heady early days of 1993, when Louis chose them from 150 hopefuls auditioning in a Dublin community centre, with the aim of creating an Irish Take That.

'They had rough edges, but they worked well together and pretty soon it was clear to me they were going to be big,' recalls Walsh.

For Louis too, Boyzone were the entrance into the big time after a successful career as an agent and manager of Irish Eurovision acts. 'It was against all odds, we did it all ourselves. People in the business in Ireland were falling over laughing at me.

'They didn't know who I was in England. I couldn't get Simon Cowell to take my calls. I later met him at a TV show in Dublin.

'He was with Robson and Jerome and I had Boyzone. I said: "You never answered my calls. You could have had Boyzone." And he said: "We'll work together darling, someday." He is very camp, very funny, very English.

'But I'm glad we did it our own way because it was fun and it was real. We were gigging round Ireland getting a few hundred quid a night. I used to pay the boys £60 a night each.

Girls were screaming and it was fun. They did village halls, marquees and festivals and the strangest gigs in the world. Eventually they made the big time, as I knew they would. 'They are a better band now than they were and they are grateful for the second chance.

They are much more disciplined this time around and taking it seriously.' Says Stephen: 'The opening night in Belfast last week was phenomenal. I couldn't believe being up on that stage.

I got quite emotional and teary-eyed. 'I was just so happy to be up there, to be doing this again. The fans and the reaction they gave us, how nice they were and how supportive, it was unbelievable. 'We all have done a lot of training and we've lost weight. I've had a trainer and been on a diet for about three months.'

Ronan admits he was the cause of their break-up. 'At first we all wanted a break, but I was definitely the problem. I was the reason why what was meant to be a break led to a break-up.' He was upset at the things that were said about him by his colleagues after the split.

Ronan Keating pictured with his wife, Yvonne at The Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin went solo after Boyzone split

'A lot of things were said and done that offended me and that gave me more reason not to go back. I thought: "What's the point?"' He changed his mind after seeing Take That in Dublin two-and-a-half years ago.

'It absolutely blew my mind. I couldn't believe how good it was, at how excited the crowds were and the possibility that this could happen for Boyzone. 'We set up a meeting in Dublin and invited Louis along. We all agreed that we felt it was the right time.' There was also the old issue between him and Louis which led to their parting.

Ronan did not take kindly to Louis' public suggestion that he could be a new Cliff Richard.

When Louis compared him to Irish performer Daniel O'Donnell  -  a favourite among grandmothers in the Emerald Isle  -  Ronan, who craved credibility, was furious and, in 2004, sacked Louis, who he said had no interest in his career.

Today Louis, who is looking happier and more relaxed than I have ever seen him in the ten years I've known him, says: 'I think I have grown up a lot more and I realise the most important thing in life is being happy and enjoying yourself. ' But he admits to the characteristic which has made him so invaluable as a judge on The X Factor  -  that he can be, at times, brutally honest. 'I have the habit of opening my mouth and not thinking and it comes out.

Sometimes I do think: "Oh God why did I say that?" But then at the time it sounded funny,' he says, twinkling away.

Ronan says they have sorted everything out and called a truce. 'We raised the white flag. Louis was like a father to me.' Louis is still committed to Westlife, the band he formed after Boyzone and which went on to eclipse even their success, and to his X Factor 2005 winner Shayne Ward, who he believes is vastly underestimated.

('He has the potential to be a global artist.') Louis, who returns to The X Factor in August, never expected when he first formed Boyzone that he would become a celebrity. He bristles at the thought.

'I do not want to be a celebrity. I am on a big show called The X Factor for which everybody knows me but you don't see me on red carpets. I am a band manager  -  that is my occupation. 'I love working with Sharon and Simon. They are great fun. And I have become very friendly with Sharon as a result.

'I admire her greatly, a self-made woman and Simon Cowell's another self-made woman.' Whoops, he's been good up to now. 'I mean, I admire them in different ways.' And what about Dannii Minogue, the fourth judge who arrived for the last series of The X Factor?

'Well it wasn't great last time, it can only get better this year. Look, being on that show is tough and I like to be honest and if somebody can't sing I like to say it.' He's referring to Dannii's singing abilities I think, not the contestants'.

And just when you'd think he'd had his fill of boy bands he says he's thinking about starting a new one. 'There hasn't been a new boy band for ages. I definitely intend to do another one. For me, it's fun putting it together. What fun is life without a challenge?'

The Boyzone Back Again ... No Matter What tour continues until June 26. They will then appear at ten outdoor events from July 5 to August 23. For tickets, go to www.boyzonetour.com.