Ronan Keating has broken his silence after becoming a grandfather for the first time.
The singer’s son, Jack, 23, surprised fans earlier this month when he revealed that he had welcomed a baby girl, just eight months after appearing on Love Island.
And while hosting The One Show on Monday, Ronan, 46, referenced his family’s newest addition, insisting he wants to be called ‘pops’.
When his co-host Jermaine Jenas said, “You’re a grandfather now,” the former Boyzone star replied, “Yes, I am. My son had a beautiful baby.
Jermaine then said: ‘Would you rather be called something else?’ with Ronan responding. ‘Dad.’
Jack announced in an Instagram post that he had welcomed a baby girl, which confused fans as he hadn’t mentioned a boy before.
Also because she appeared on the ITV2 show eight months ago, which means her daughter was probably conceived before she appeared on the show.
Jack hasn’t gone public about a romantic relationship since leaving the Love Island villa last summer, but the mother has been revealed to be artist Keely Iqbal.
However, Ronan and Yvonne, 49, who divorced in 2015 after 17 years of marriage, did not mention any speculation, instead sharing sweet messages of support.
He is the first grandson of Ronan, a father of five children, who called his granddaughter “little cutie”.
The Irish singer shares eldest son, Jack, with his ex-wife, Yvonne Connolly, who is also the mother of Missy, 22, and Ali, 17, of the couple’s 12-year marriage.
Yvonne wrote on Jack’s post: “I miss her so much already.”
Jack looked every inch the doting father in the snaps as he gazed adoringly at the little one he cradled in his arms.
Surprise! It comes after Jack revealed that he welcomed a baby girl on Thursday in a shocking announcement, making Ronan a grandfather for the first time.
He captioned the snap: “Welcome to the world my little princess.”
His friends and other Love Island stars were quick to congratulate him, as Paige Thorne wrote: “Congrats honey!!”
Ronan’s second wife and Jack’s stepmother, Storm, responded with a series of heart emojis below the post.
The Magic Radio Breakfast host has been with his Australian fashion designer wife, Storm, 40, since 2010 and the couple have children, Cooper, five, and Coco, two, together.
Before stepping into the Love Island villa eight months ago, Jack said: “I’ve been single for a long time, probably 4 or 5 years now, and I’ve really been missing that spark that I haven’t had in dating.” scene, as if he had been dating for a long time.
‘And I thought why not? Hopefully I’ll get a connection to someone and see what happens.
The mother of Jack’s newborn daughter is the artist Keely.
Keely works as an artist designing custom trainer designs and greeting cards and kept her fans in the loop throughout her pregnancy by sharing several snaps of the hits.
She describes herself as ‘mom’. Artist • Sneakerhead’ on her company’s Instagram profile.
Keely and Jack are not believed to be together, with Jack insisting earlier this month that he was “still single and ready to mingle.”
Fans have deduced that Jack conceived his daughter before he found fame on Love Island, due to the fact that he entered the villa eight months ago.
MailOnline contacted Jack’s representatives for further comment at the time.
Fans also took advantage of the comments on Jack’s post to share their congratulations, but noted that “math is not math.”
One follower said: ‘I’m so confused. The math isn’t adding up.’
Another repeated: ‘I know I’m bad at math, but math isn’t math on this at all! Love Island isn’t even 9 months old yet. I mean, I know accidents happen, but…’
A third added: “So he had a girlfriend when he was on Love Island, correct me if I’m wrong, he said he was in the villa 8 months ago and a baby takes 9?”
New mum: Addressing the speculation for the first time, Jack has confirmed that he and his mum, Keely Iqbal, are ‘not together’, after MailOnline exclusively revealed his identity.
On Screen: Having entered Love Island’s famed Casa Amor in July, viewers of the show were previously made aware that Jack had conceived his daughter before he rose to fame in the villa.
A fourth accused: “So you went on a show to find love without thinking about the girl you got pregnant.”
And a fifth agreed, writing: ‘Was someone pregnant with your baby when you went to Love Island? Are you kidding.
While a sixth explained: ‘yes, he must have gotten the mother pregnant in June and then went to LI (Home) in July. Unless she waited until she got out of LI and the baby was born a month early.
It comes after Jack talked to the independent this month and insisted: ‘I’m still single and ready to hook up. i’m on hinge [the dating app], but I don’t use it too seriously. I dip in from time to time and enjoy being single.
He added: ‘People think my account is fake. I’m verified, but they still think I’m a catfish who stole someone else’s photos. I’m like, “Trust me, I’m the real deal.”
He also admitted to going on Dinner Dates on ITV in his search for love, saying: ‘I’ve just done Dinner Dates with ITV, and that comes out in March. Filming took a couple of weeks and I met some nice girls and ate some good food, so it was a complete experience.
Jack entered Love Island’s Casa Amor villa alongside Deji Adeniyi, 25, Josh Le Grove, 22, George Tasker, 23, Samuel Agbiji, 22 and Billy Brown, 23, in the Summer 2022 series.
The Dublin-born influencer confessed to having been unlucky in love at the time and hoped that signing up to Love Island would mark the end of his dating woes.
Grandparents: Ronan Keating and ex-wife Yvonne Connolly were quick to publicly congratulate their son Jack (pictured in 2009)