Boyzone members to stay with Gately's body in church

London, (ANI): The four surviving members of Boyzone plan to stay in the church with Stephen Gately"s body overnight before his funeral because late singer 'didn"t like to be alone'.

As per their plan, Ronan Keating, Mikey Graham, Shane Lynch and Keith Duffy will bed down in the chapel late tomorrow. “It proves how close they were. Those lads would do anything for Stephen and they know he would not want to be there on his own," the Mirror quoted a source as saying.

In Ireland, the body is often taken to the church the night before a funeral but friends and family do not stay with it.

An undertakers" source said: “People do not stay overnight in churches. It just doesn"t happen. They don"t even stay the night in funeral homes. But with young people like Stephen, maybe they"ve discussed their wishes with friends before and told them they would not like to be alone overnight," the source added.

Gately's four bandmates will fly to Majorca by private jet to bring the body, 33, home. They will return to Dublin the next day when his coffin will be taken to a funeral home for a private family viewing. It will then be moved to St Laurence O"Toole Church in Dublin"s inner city, a few hundred yards from where the singer grew up, accompanied by the band.

The funeral will take place there at noon on Saturday. A band statement announced there would also be a memorial service in London at a date to be fixed.