Westlife 'rule out Brian McFadden return'

Westlife have ruled out Brian McFadden ever rejoining the group, claiming that it would be too "weird".

Singer Shane Filan rubbished suggestions that McFadden, who left the band in March 2004 to launch a solo career, would be welcomed back by his former bandmates.

"It would be weird, it would be like a stranger coming back to a band," he told the Pontefract And Castleford Express.

"Brian being in the band for us was kind of like going to school with somebody for five or six years.

"Then you go to college and you see each other at the end of college and it's hard to be back all of a sudden being perfectly friendly with that person and to fit into that role again."

However, the star, who is expecting his third child with wife Gillian early next year, revealed that he still keeps in touch with McFadden.

"I was chatting with him the other week and he said he was really enjoying himself and he was very happy and everything was starting to make sense for him. So I don't think he would want to be back in Westlife personally," he said.

He added: "Maybe someday we would sing with him."

Westlife released new single 'What About Now' on Monday. Their album Where We Are is out on November 30.