DUBLIN, Ireland, Oct. 19 (UPI) -- An estimated 450 people attended a reception in Dublin following the private funeral and cremation of Irish pop star Stephen Gately, sources told the BBC.
The 33-year-old singer was found dead in his vacation home Oct. 10 on the Spanish island of Majorca. He had spent the previous night out drinking with his civil partner, Andrew Cowles. An autopsy determined Gately died of natural causes -- acute pulmonary edema.
"The world has lost one of its brightest stars; we have lost our brother," Ronan Keating, Gately's fellow Boyzone member, said during a tearful eulogy at St. Laurence O'Toole's church Saturday. "We will carry on, but it will never be the same without him. Forever young and never forgotten. A man, a friend, a brother, a son, a husband and a hero. I'm gonna really miss you, brother. We love you and always will. And we know you have found peace. Perfect peace."
Surviving members of Gately's vocal group sang Westlife's song, "In This Life," during the church service while about 3,000 fans gathered outside, the BBC said.
Among the mourners inside the funeral were former Irish Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, members of Boyzone and Westlife, Elton John's husband, David Furnish, and Gately's family members and close friends. George Michael, David and Victoria Beckham, Simon Cowell, Take That, U2, Robbie Williams, Cheryl Cole, Colin Farrell, Sharon Osborne, Brian McFadden and Delta Goodrem sent messages of condolences, the reort said.
