Mikey Graham has accused RTE presenter Kieran Cuddihy of ‘insulting his daughter’ after he asked her about ‘backlash to his performance’ in a recent interview.
Last week Mikey sparked concern from fans, after he failed to join his fellow Boyzone band members on stage for the whole of their performance in London last weekend.
Band members Ronan Keating, 49, Keith Duffy, 51, and Shane Lynch, 49, opened the Two For The Road concerts as a threesome last Friday and Saturday night at London Emirates Stadium, leaving spectators scratching their heads over the absence of 53-year-old Mikey.
And following his performance, Mikey’s daughter Sienna appeared on RTE Radio 1 where host Kieran asked her: ‘How have you all dealt with, is backlash the right word? Some of the negative reviews.’
While Sienna calmly batted off any negativity and insisted she is ‘so proud’ of her dad, Mikey was left unimpressed by Kieran’s questioning and took to Twitter to make his feelings known.
In an angry tweet he penned: ‘Woe is not me. I’m a quiet private man but when a stupid and cruel excuse of a so called talk show host tries to insult my daughter on live radio about her father you better be ready for backlash from me!
Boyzone’s Mikey Graham has accused RTE’s Kieran Cuddihy of ‘insulting his daughter’ by asking her about the ‘backlash to his performance’ as the radio station defends interview
Mikey’s daughter Sienna appeared on RTE Radio 1 where host Kieran (pictured) asked her: ‘How have you all dealt with, is backlash the right word? Some of the negative reviews’
‘You’re no kind of man at all to ask that question to a young girl!’
Mikey went on to share a video from the London show, in which the crowd could be heard cheering and singing as he asked: ‘I was told there was apparently some backlash mentioned on Irish radio. I can’t see any there, can you?’
He added: ‘Shame on RTE NATIONAL IRISH RADIO. Try to kick a guy when he’s down!’
In response to Mikey’s comments, an RTÉ spokesperson told RSVP Live: ‘Mikey Graham’s daughter Sienna appeared on Wednesday’s Liveline and was received with respect and empathy during her interview
‘For context, Sienna was asked about how it felt watching the band on stage again and then about the negative publicity Boyzone had received after their reunion in London.
‘Edward Grimes of Jedward appeared on the programme on Monday of the same week, defending the band against the negative reviews.’
The Daily Mail have contacted Mikey’s representatives for further comment.
In her interview on Wednesday, Sienna insisted that ‘no one knows what it took’ for Mikey to perform in the band’s reunion shows, after he was cruelly trolled for his appearance.
When he eventually appeared, Mikey was raised from the stage floor and stayed seated during the three songs he appeared on before standing up for the encore of Ronan’s 2000 solo track Life Is A Rollercoaster.
Social media was flooded with questions over his involvement and looks – leading to a wave of supporters who recalled his vow to never return to the band amid depression, alcoholism and weight battles in 2025 doc Boyzone: No Matter What.
While Sienna calmly batted off any negativity and insisted she is ‘so proud’ of her dad, Mikey was left unimpressed by Kieran’s questioning and took to Twitter to make his feelings known
As she was asked on Wednesday about the backlash, Sienna told RTE: ‘In all honesty, we’d be of the same opinion to not give too much time to those sorts of things. There’s no point looking at all of those things’
As she was asked on Wednesday about the backlash, Sienna told RTE: ‘In all honesty, we’d be of the same opinion to not give too much time to those sorts of things. There’s no point looking at all of those things.
‘All I can really say is, as his daughter, I’m just so proud of everything he’s achieved.
‘In a stadium there are a lot of people, so it’s an achievement in itself to go up and do that and sing in front of all those people again.’
Kieran then added: ‘Critics who write reviews for newspapers are entitled to their opinion and you can ignore them. Some of the commentary online has been really nasty. I know that stuff is best ignored.
‘Have you seen much of it, or the stuff directed at your dad? There has been awful stuff said about him.’
Sienna replied: ‘Thankfully, my dad is experienced with all of this. The lads in Boyzone, they’ve been doing this for 30 years.’
Speaking to Evoke, she added: ‘I think with the (Sky) documentary and everything – I said this before – I think coming into the shows, everyone has come in with so much awareness of what everyone has been through over the years and I almost feel like that because of that awareness, it also enhances the pride that we all feel.
This kind of shows that you can go through struggles and come out the other end and that there is so much joy to be had within this world and starting fresh.’
Sienna added that she is ‘incredibly proud’ of her dad’s achievements, and even ‘welled up’ when she saw him perform alongside his bandmates.
She had been involved in the production of the concerts, as she directed, produced and edited the visuals which were displayed across the giant screens throughout the shows at London’s Emirates Stadium.
After users began to question Mikey’s appearance, many Boyzone fans took to X to defend him.
They said: ‘I’m not a fan of Boyzone—there are a few songs I like, but that’s not the point here. What really bothers me is the awful comments being made about Mikey Graham…
‘If you’ve been lucky enough not to struggle in life, then good for you, but having money or success doesn’t make someone immune to personal battles…
‘It’s clear that Mikey has faced his own difficulties, and mocking someone when they’re already down is about as low as it gets;’
‘I genuinely hate bullying. None of us know whether he’s reading those comments, but people who tear others down for their own amusement should think twice. Words have consequences….
Sienna replied: ‘Thankfully, my dad is experienced with all of this. The lads in Boyzone, they’ve been doing this for 30 years’
Mikey previously opened up about his battles with depression in the Boyzone documentary. The singer split from his wife Karen in 2024 after 20 years of marriage
‘For someone who is already struggling, that kind of cruelty can do real harm—sometimes even life-threatening harm. If that’s something you’re contributing to, it’s worth asking yourself what you’re actually proud of.
Echoing the sentiment, fellow social media users replied: ‘I’ll be honest, I’m not a fan either, but all I’ve seen is lots of love, support and also concern for him on here, nothing negative at all. Maybe it’s the algorithm on my timeline!…
‘But I’ve only seen lovely things… I’ve seen many defending him mainly fans but still the amount of nasty comments still no need… Too many trolls leaving pointless comments, but also people saying he’s got this, or I heard he has that…
‘He is incredibly private, and said very little recently bar admitting to weight gain, comfort eating and a weightloss journey. But people still comment, do they really know?’
After he suggested he would not return to the stage in the Boyzone: No Matter What documentary, fans praised the star for making it to the stage, writing: ‘Lovely to see him back on stage, especially after he said he wouldn’t in the documentary…
‘Wishing him all the best. He absolutely nailed it… Mikey was always my favourite back in the day, was sad listening to his story in the documentary. Fame isn’t everything. Lovely to see him back up there…
‘Sending so much love to Mikey. Despite facing health challenges, u gave ur all at the Boyzone show, and it didn’t go unnoticed. Your strength, dedication & the effort you made, we’re so proud of you. Wishing you better days ahead. We all love you’.
Mikey broke fans’ hearts during the documentary, when he revealed he had no plans to join in the reunion due to his personal battles.
He said: ‘I wish them all the best, no grudges, no animosity, nothing. However, I don’t want to go back to how I felt for many years…
‘To see them, if it were for too long, would remind me of that. My future is far too important for me to waste it looking back at my past but I wish everybody well….
‘It was a hard struggle for me through the years. My confidence that I had beforehand about music fell through the floor. It was a bit heartbreaking…
‘I’ll be honest with you, when you see an audience full of posters for Stephen and Ronan and Shane and Keith… and then you might see the odd one with Mikey.’
‘Remember, I was 21. As a kid that was tough, and Louis [Walsh] went from one day speaking with me to never speaking with me for seven years and I never knew why, I had absolutely no idea why. I just thought he didn’t like me.’
He detailed how he derailed due to ‘the sadness, the disenchantment’, saying: ‘I was very frustrated, angry, depressed and because of all of that I would withdraw from the band’.
