PM gets Westlife autographs

Westlife had to change their name from Westside in 1999

Prime Minister Tony Blair bagged autographs from Irish boy band Westlife after his speech to the Labour party spring conference in Glasgow last weekend.

Westlife were due to play at a Young Labour reception when they crossed paths with the PM.

A spokesman for the Labour Party said: "Like any dad, felt he wouldn't get away alive if he didn't get home with an autograph for his daughter."

Tony Blair with Kathryn and baby Leo last summer

Kathryn Blair, who is almost 13, is a big fan of the group.

The spokesman said that Mr Blair got autographs from the whole group - Shane Filan, Mark Feehilly, Kian Egan, Nicky Byrne and Bryan McFadden.

Westlife were formed in 1998 when Boyzone's Ronan Keating pulled together a new Irish pop act from scratch.

They made pop history by becoming the first act to have six consecutive singles go to the top of the UK chart.

They entered the Guinness Book Of Records when their fifth single, Fool Again, went straight in at number one.

Then they broke their own record with a version of Phil Collins's 1984 song Against All Odds.

Westlife's next UK single with be a cover of Billy Joel's Uptown Girl in aid of Comic Relief.

The single is released on 5 March.