Gately (right) believes Keating will not be involved

Gately, currently starring in the musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, said he had been in discussions with the other three members of the group - Mike Graham, Shane Lynch and Keith Duffy - about the possibility of a comeback.

"I don't know whether there will be another record - probably," Gately told BBC World Service's The Ticket programme.

"I'd like there to be. Probably Ronan [Keating] won't be involved, but the four of us had dinner last week and had some discussions about what we could do in the future."

He added that he believed there was still a huge market for future Boyzone releases, even without Keating's involvement.

"There's still a great interest there," Gately said.

"There's still a huge fanbase, and we just had a re-released album out and that went straight in at number six here in the UK without doing any promotion."

Break

Boyzone's record-breaking chart career - they were the first group in history to have 15 consecutive top three singles - seemed to have fizzled out after Keating began his solo career with a number one record, When You Say Nothing At All.

In time, the rest of the group would attempt solo efforts, but only Keating's career has shown signs of longevity.

But Gately said that his absence from the chart world had been simply due to his need for a break.

"Being in a group for nine years, going around the world non-stop, takes its toll," he said.

"I needed to just chill out and give my head peace for a while.

Gately feels he has earned "respect" for his role in Joseph

"Joseph is a good come-back - it's good for press, it's good for me, it's good for the company, it's good songs.

"You get a lot of good press for doing a show in the West End and a lot of respect at the same time."

Gately added that he would only be appearing in Joseph for six months, although he was keen to be a part of its continuing success story.

The musical that has been so far seen by 15 million people since its original release in 1968.

"I think it's down to the music," Gately said.

"The melodies are so catching, people just come out humming the songs and knowing the songs.

"It's a family-orientated musical as well, so everybody can go and watch it.

"Close Every Door's a really nice song, I really enjoy singing that.