Post by shayne on Oct 16, 2007 17:30:58 GMT 8
Shane Filan
living.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1648752007
• Shane Filan, 28 is a member of Westlife. He lives in Sligo with his wife, Gillian, and their two-year-old daughter, Nicole.
WHEN I was a teenager I wasn't very confident with girls at all. I used to get my mates to ask them out for me, because I was always terrified that they'd reject me. My first kiss, when I was about 11, was actually really nice, but the second was awful, a real washing machine effort. The third was good, and it's been all uphill from there.
I've been with my wife Gillian for ten years, since we were both teenagers. People say that the grass is greener on the other side, but I've never been curious to find out, because I think that when you know, you just know. We got together a year before I joined Westlife, but I didn't tell anyone about her for the first few years, because she wanted a bit of anonymity.
It was really weird at first when I was in Westlife and there were loads of girls screaming at us. I was quiet with girls as a teenager, then suddenly they were screaming their heads off at me! We all loved it, it was such a novelty. Now it's not quite so manic, but there's still a lot of screaming. Our fans are a bit older now, and there's often about 20 of them in the front row of a concert on a hen night, screaming and lifting their tops up at us. It's mad.
Gillian is just so cute. She's got the whole package, great personality, everything. I love her eyes, I especially love her arse... she's beautiful. I knew straight away that she was the woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.
I think that when you're in love, you just feel complete. When I see Gillian in the morning I smile, and when we fight I just want to make up. The making up is the best part, the hugging and kissing, and whatever else you want to do! We don't fight that often, but when we do it can be about absolutely anything. Women always have to be right, which drives me crazy, but I've noticed recently that we tend to fight mostly when I'm hungry. The way to my heart must be through my stomach.
At the same time, when you've been together for so long, you do need to work to keep the spark there. You can get lazy in a marriage, everyone's guilty of it, and you've just got to make the effort. Cooking her dinner, or putting a lot of thought into a cheap present works well. Even cleaning the kitchen can be romantic. It's important to show how much you care.
I think it's very difficult to know exactly what it is that women want, probably because they want so many things. They definitely want attention and plenty of it. But at the same time, sometimes they just want to be left alone, and in that situation you've got to tiptoe around them a bit.
Also, they definitely want handbags. To a certain extent all women are obsessed with handbags - I just don't get it at all. As long as they're new and different, it doesn't matter how expensive they are, they always need another one. I don't really understand why women like to shop as much as they do. Gillian loves shopping, but I absolutely hate it, so she does most of my shopping for me. I trust her completely to choose things for me, but I don't know if it would be quite the same if it was the other way round.
• Westlife's new single Home is out on 29 October, followed by their new album, Back Home, on 5 November.
Last updated: 15-Oct-07 00:04 BST
living.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1648752007
• Shane Filan, 28 is a member of Westlife. He lives in Sligo with his wife, Gillian, and their two-year-old daughter, Nicole.
WHEN I was a teenager I wasn't very confident with girls at all. I used to get my mates to ask them out for me, because I was always terrified that they'd reject me. My first kiss, when I was about 11, was actually really nice, but the second was awful, a real washing machine effort. The third was good, and it's been all uphill from there.
I've been with my wife Gillian for ten years, since we were both teenagers. People say that the grass is greener on the other side, but I've never been curious to find out, because I think that when you know, you just know. We got together a year before I joined Westlife, but I didn't tell anyone about her for the first few years, because she wanted a bit of anonymity.
It was really weird at first when I was in Westlife and there were loads of girls screaming at us. I was quiet with girls as a teenager, then suddenly they were screaming their heads off at me! We all loved it, it was such a novelty. Now it's not quite so manic, but there's still a lot of screaming. Our fans are a bit older now, and there's often about 20 of them in the front row of a concert on a hen night, screaming and lifting their tops up at us. It's mad.
Gillian is just so cute. She's got the whole package, great personality, everything. I love her eyes, I especially love her arse... she's beautiful. I knew straight away that she was the woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.
I think that when you're in love, you just feel complete. When I see Gillian in the morning I smile, and when we fight I just want to make up. The making up is the best part, the hugging and kissing, and whatever else you want to do! We don't fight that often, but when we do it can be about absolutely anything. Women always have to be right, which drives me crazy, but I've noticed recently that we tend to fight mostly when I'm hungry. The way to my heart must be through my stomach.
At the same time, when you've been together for so long, you do need to work to keep the spark there. You can get lazy in a marriage, everyone's guilty of it, and you've just got to make the effort. Cooking her dinner, or putting a lot of thought into a cheap present works well. Even cleaning the kitchen can be romantic. It's important to show how much you care.
I think it's very difficult to know exactly what it is that women want, probably because they want so many things. They definitely want attention and plenty of it. But at the same time, sometimes they just want to be left alone, and in that situation you've got to tiptoe around them a bit.
Also, they definitely want handbags. To a certain extent all women are obsessed with handbags - I just don't get it at all. As long as they're new and different, it doesn't matter how expensive they are, they always need another one. I don't really understand why women like to shop as much as they do. Gillian loves shopping, but I absolutely hate it, so she does most of my shopping for me. I trust her completely to choose things for me, but I don't know if it would be quite the same if it was the other way round.
• Westlife's new single Home is out on 29 October, followed by their new album, Back Home, on 5 November.
Last updated: 15-Oct-07 00:04 BST