Gay Byrne, TV star who 'challenged Irish society', di aged 85 | Ireland | The Guardian

Contents:

• GAY BYRNE, TV STAR WHO 'CHALLENGED IRISH SOCIETY', DI AGED 85
• GAY BYRNE, WHO TACKLED TABOOS AS IRELAND’S TV HOST, DI AT 85
• GAY BYRNE OBUARY
• GAY BYRNE OBUARY: THE LEADG IRISH BROADSTER OF HIS ERA
• GAY BYRNE LEAV €1.1M WILL MA 12 DAYS BEFORE HE DIED
• GAY BYRNE HAS DIED AT AGE 85
• IS GAY BYRNE DEAD OR STILL ALIVE? GAY BYRNE BIRTHDAY AND DATE OF DEATH
• GAY BYRNE AD – VETERAN IRISH BROADSTER DI AGED 85 AFTER LONG ILLNS
• GAY BYRNE, VETERAN IRISH BROADSTER, AD AT 85
• RTE LEGEND AND IRISH TV HERO GAY BYRNE DI AGED 85 AFTER LONG ILLNS
• GAY BYRNE OBUARY – SON OF GUNS WORKER WHO BEME MOST FLUENTIAL BROADSTER HISTORY OF STATE
• YOUR MEMORI OF GAY BYRNE: ‘I FEEL LIKE PART OF MY CHILDHOOD HAS DIED’
• GAY BYRNE OBUARY: THE MATRO OF IRISH BROADSTG
• GAY BYRNE, IRELAND'S 'MOST FLUENTIAL BROADSTER', DI AT 85
• GAY BYRNE
• GAY BYRNE: LEGENDARY IRISH PRENTER OF THE LATE LATE SHOW DI AGED 85
• IRISH BROADSTG LEGEND GAY BYRNE DI AGED 85
• VETERAN RTÉ BROADSTER GAY BYRNE DI AGED 85
• GAY BYRNE, PRENTER OF THE LATE LATE SHOW, HAS DIED AT THE AGE OF 85

GAY BYRNE, TV STAR WHO 'CHALLENGED IRISH SOCIETY', DI AGED 85

Generatns grew up watchg the host of RTÉ’s long-nng chatshow blend light entertament wh current affairs and taboo-shatterg moments, a cultural renzvo that domated Friday night viewg and praged a new Gay Byrne era officially end on Monday when he died at home Dubl, surround by fay, aged 85. ”Ireland had braced for the ath of Uncle Gaybo, as many lled him, sce he revealed he had prostate ncer hosted The Late Late Show om 1962 to 1999, one of the world’s longt chatshow ns, as well as a rad show and other gigs such as the Rose of Byrne 1962.

” Cogill/Associated PrsDUBLIN — Gay Byrne, a revered Irish rad and televisn personaly who broke s of silence over sexualy, abe and hypocrisy Ireland’s eply nservative Roman Catholic society, died on Monday at his home Dubl. Byrne produced many fg moments of Irish public life — live the 1985, for example, when homosexualy was still illegal and the Catholic clergy sacrosanct, he fied prayer-chantg protters by vg two Amerin lbian ex-nuns onto the show.

GAY BYRNE, WHO TACKLED TABOOS AS IRELAND’S TV HOST, DI AT 85

Image source, Getty ImagGay Byrne, or Gaybo, as he was almost universally known, was the leadg Irish broadster of his anchor of the Late Late Show, he steered the dience through the highs and lows of Irish Ballybunn to Buncrana, he was a faiar and ntroversial face on Irish screens every Friday night, pridg over the shiftg moods of the Republic of Ireland.

Image source, Inpennt News and Media/getty imagImage ptn, Gay Byrne his famo terview wh Gerry AdamsIn the 1960s, Byrne, famo for his tchphrase "and there's one for everyone the dience", was the talk of the well as givg out ee gifts to the dience, the programme and s host were creded wh fluencg Irish attus towards many show provid a platform for an unmarried mother to expla her posn at a time when to be such a suatn was still eply owned an terviewer, Byrne was very much his own man, he did not thk twice about sldg one gut who appeared unr the fluence while on another ocsn, he refed to shake the hand of former Sn Fé print Gerry Adams. Unnists were outraged and, shortly afterwards, the secretary of state Late moments:•Amerin woman Annie Murphy: the mother of Bishop Eamonn Casey's son, tells her story•NI Secretary Peter Brooke sgs O My Darlg Clemente wh hours of an IRA bomb •The Gerry Adams/Gay Byrne terview•Irish journalist Terry Keane tells of her affair wh former Taoiseach (Prime Mister) Charlie HgheyIt was not jt policians who had their feathers ffled by Byrne, but prits too. Image source, Getty ImagImage ptn, Late Late Show hosts Pat Kenny, Gay Byrne and Ryan Tubridy celebratg 50 years of the show 2012Bishop of Clonfert, Dr Thomas Ryan, protted vigoroly at the ntent of the Late Late ed natnal outrage and led some to clare the show was "filthy dirty" and "smut" 1993, his terview wh Amerin woman, Annie Murphy, who had a child wh Bishop of Galway Eamonn Casey, end very remarked that Eamonn Casey's son would be fe, if he was "half the man his father" rponse, Ms Murphy icily retorted: "I'm not so bad eher, " before she got up and walked off was not jt Ms Murphy who had been later, her son said he had wanted to "ck" Byrne for the way he had treated his source, RTÉImage ptn, In more recent years Gaybo had a much lower profileAnother notable affair of the heart to be shared wh the Irish public was an terview wh journalist Terry Keane spoke to Byrne about her long-standg relatnship wh former Taoiseach (Irish prime mister) Charl Hghey.

Image source, Inpennt News and Media/getty imagImage ptn, On his last Late Late Show Larry Mullen and Bono om U2 gave Gay a Harley DavidsonAfter biddg his fal "goodnight" to viewers May 1999 after 37 years on the show, Byrne said he planned to "do nothg" for six months. His employers, RTÉ, said after his parture that the door would "always be open for a return for Gaybo" more recent years he has had a much lower profile, but still prented rad and televisn programm and was the chairman of Ireland's Road Safety Authory.

GAY BYRNE OBUARY

Birthday: Augt 5, 1934Date of Death: November 4, 2019Age at Death: 85 Gay Byrne - BgraphyGabriel Mary "Gay" Byrne (born 5 Augt 1934; affectnately known as Uncle Gay, Gaybo or Uncle Gaybo) is a veteran Irish prenter of rad and televisn. "On rad and on televisn over so many s 'Uncle Gaybo' provid a voice for all those who had been silenced or were aaid to speak up, and helped nont thgs that need to be changed. "Gay Byrne was a rare treasure who touched the liv, not only of his fay and iends, but the hundreds of thoands of people who weled him to their liv and their hom on the rad and TV.

In a statement to RTÉ, his fay said: “It is wh sadns that Kathleen, Crona and Suzy wish to announce that their beloved Gay has died peacefully at home today, surround by his fay. “Gay Byrne was the most fluential broadster the history of the State, a much-loved figure who changed Ireland for the better so many ways, ” Irish Prime Mister Leo Varadkar said on Twter, also praisg “the effectivens of his mpaign agast the needls tragedy of road aths.

“On rad and on televisn over so many s ‘Uncle Gaybo’ provid a voice for all those who had been silenced or were aaid to speak up, and helped nont thgs that need to be changed, ” Varadkar said. Shortly afterwards, Gay returned to Ireland beg the biggt name Irish broadstg for the last half century wh a morng rad programme on RTE Rad and RTE TV's flagship programme The Late Late Show, which he hosted until 1999. It was a goln age of TV where anythg uld happen and often did om actor Oliver Reed throwg himself at actrs San Gee on live TV, to Gay challengg psychiatrist RD Lag for g on dnk.

GAY BYRNE OBUARY: THE LEADG IRISH BROADSTER OF HIS ERA

Even more ntroversial was Gay's terview the year before 1993 wh Annie Murphy, who revealed the tails of her affair wh the Bishop of Galway Eamon Casey, which led to their birth of their son. But Gaybo's fence, late newspaper edor Pl Dry said "All Gay had been dog was reflectg the mood of the Irish people - most of whom, back then, still had an enormo rpect and affectn for Dr Casey. In her book, The Gaybo Revolutn: How Gay Byrne Challenged Irish Society, thor Fola Doyle-O’Neil wrote: "From 1962 to 1999, Byrne mataed what appeared to be an effortls grip on the live talk show, both on rad and on was not a missnary; he was a talented broadster who had no hatn phg boundari to make entertag televisn.

No one ptured the mood of the natn more than Gay when he vered the ath of 15-year-old Anne Lovett, who had given birth to a stillborn child next to the Grotto of Our Lady a field Granard Co Longford, which beme one of the most poignant stori vered by the groundbreakg Gay Byrne rad programme.

GAY BYRNE LEAV €1.1M WILL MA 12 DAYS BEFORE HE DIED

On page 224, Gay reunted how Ryan Tubridy's grandfather Todd Andrews, then Chairman of the RTE Authory, once rang RTE's Director General to tell him "get rid of that f***er Byrne. It was the late Gerry Ryan who joked shortly before his ath "'s a py Gay wasn't ad" bee the olr man so often got the shows he wanted to do, cludg beg the job of hostg an Irish versn of Who Wants To Be A Millnaire, another post Late Late outg for Byrne semi-retirement. Close pals said Gay's reluctance to stop workg was fuelled by his experienc wh late acuntant acuntant Rsell Murphy, who effectively stole everythg Gay ma durg his early reer.

GAY BYRNE HAS DIED AT AGE 85

Fah discsn The Meang of Life, and entertament show For One Night Only were other vehicl for Gay semi-retirement, as well as a Sunday afternoon programme on Lyric FM which quickly beme the most listened to show on the easy listeng statn. If that didn't make his semi-retirement by enough, 2006 Gay beme boss of The Road Safety Authory vowg he would "walk away" om the job if nonted by a "solid wall of burecracy".

In a statement, his fay said: “”It is wh sadns that Kathleen, Crona and Suzy wish to announce that their beloved Gay has died peacefully at home today, surround by his fay.

Livele prenter Joe Duffy, a protégé of Byrne, add: “More so than any one dividual, Gay Byrne reprented morn Ireland and through his daily broadstg on rad and televisn he propelled this untry and s people forward. – Lorrae M Co GalwayThe Gay Byrne Show rned all 13 Cron siblgs wh their parents 1998 We the Cron fay of Ballyfermot, wt Dubl, are forever grateful to Gay and his show for the gift of our fay homeg, live on his rad programme, on December 18th, 1998, when he surprised our parents wh the rnn of all 13 children unr the one roof after 26 years. – Anne Marie Hourigan DevonIt was Febary 1986, three months after the publitn of my book The Dtctn of Dubl, and I was stg bi Gaybo on The Late Late Show, wearg a black leather jacket and a th yellow leather tie, facg a panel that clud Frank Feely, who was Dubl cy manager at the time, and Sam Stephenson, the notor archect, discsg the state of the cy and what should be done about .

IS GAY BYRNE DEAD OR STILL ALIVE? GAY BYRNE BIRTHDAY AND DATE OF DEATH

– San SlaneAnne O Neill’s son William wh Gay Byrne on O’Connell Street Dubl More than 12 years ago, while a stunt at the Natnal College of Art and Dign, my son William spotted Gay Byrne as he waed, hat pulled low across his forehead, to cross O'Connell Street Dubl.

– John Rogers Abu DhabiWe always admired Gaybo's art beg able first to lay a fger a fterg wound and, moments later, to have stch wh a hilar storyIn 1981 my first hband and I bought a relict ttage Co Lerim. Photograph: Eddie Kelly Dpe havg harboured a ol, on-trend teenage rejectn of Uncle Gaybo, when I was faced wh him my late 20s, on the top floor of RTÉ, I was stantly won over by this charismatic, charmg man, who seemed to float the length of the rridor towards me. – Douglas Syme ArizonaKathleen, should be well wh your soul that you were the one to live this amazg life wh your beloved GayBack 1967, while still St Louis' Sendary School, I was asked to sg on The Late Late Show by Pan Colls, his rearcher.

GAY BYRNE AD – VETERAN IRISH BROADSTER DI AGED 85 AFTER LONG ILLNS

Her words about Gay and his health were betiful, and she monstrated aga why so great a man would wd up wh so betiful a soul, even though the grandchildren lovgly scribed her as daft. Photograph: Peter Rowen My first memory of Gay Byrne is om the late (Late Late) 1970s, via parentally sanctned transgrsns that allowed me to sneak down om my bed, while my younger sister was fast asleep, to watch the show on a Saturday night – only to be hooshed up the stairs aga if somethg unsuable was on. Gay Byrne helped me accept that the gog was tough at tim, to feel part of the wir world and to five myself for beg humanAs a new mother 1980s Ireland I had given up my job to stay home and be the perfect mum.

Stills: The Irish Tim/ As creded Gay Byrne Born: Augt 5th, 1934 Died: November 4th, 2019Gay Byrne, who has died at the age of 85, was the undisputed leadg figure the history of Irish broadstg, and played a hugely fluential role the transformatn of attus the latter part of the 20th a reer that spanned six s, he was father figure, nfsor, quisor and entertaer, all rolled to one.

GAY BYRNE, VETERAN IRISH BROADSTER, AD AT 85

Mr Moynihan was so pleased wh young Gay Byrne’s performance that he gave him a threepenny those the stud thought of the boy who, the future, would revolutnise Irish broadstg, remas unknown.

She had promised to go to Mass and Communn every day if her hband me back safely om the first World War – they had married Belfast 1917 – which he daily Mass-gog eventually chafed wh the young Gay Byrne and at the age of 14 or 15 he had a ser row wh his mother durg which he said some extremely solent thgs to her. By the time the uple fally married Saggart Parish Church 1964, their weddg was a celebry event, wh a crowd of more than a thoand gatherg the Dubl village to tch a glimpse of the newlyweds, who need a Garda rt to get to their a broadster, Gay Byrne, or Gaybo, as he me to be known, saw his populary as fickle and as somethg that uld disappear at the whim of the dience. The girls who flocked to the ballrooms uld, if they beme pregnant, fd themselv shut to a mother and baby home for up to two years, spendg their time scbbg floors and workg the kchens, their nam changed, their right to munite wh the outsi world cut off, their babi taken om them to be sent to Ameri on a few hours’ Gay Byrne – who was very well aware of the existence of that other Ireland – chipped away and away at , lethally on The Late Late Show, brgg on, for stance, guts who champned the right of unmarried mothers and their babi to be treated cently by the the old Ireland stepped – and had plenty of reprentativ RTÉ, polics and the civil service – to sist that The Late Late Show stick to “safe” entertament, the story of Gay Byrne would probably be of ltle tert to today.

RTE LEGEND AND IRISH TV HERO GAY BYRNE DI AGED 85 AFTER LONG ILLNS

Neverthels, his survival was a remarkable achievement for the boy who got a ser beatg over givg cheek to his mother bee he didn’t want to go to great ntradictn of Gay Byrne, of urse, was that so many of his views he was nservative, though he did so much to unrme the very nservative approach which had characterised Irish life well to the 1960sHe did make one apology which he regretted was the Bishop and the Nightie affair, when he asked a woman the dience what she had worn on her weddg night. But he didn’t feel good about and he cid he would never aga apologise when he had done nothg enough, he was probably the only one who remembered years later that he had apologised: all the public remembered was that a bishop had ma a fool of himself over a harmls joke by a woman about her weddg Gay Byrne Show, the rad programme which brought him to the natn’s kchens every weekday morng, started 1972 and ran until 1998. They ntaed the prevly untold, heartrendg experienc of many women Ireland at the great ntradictn of Gay Byrne, of urse, was that so many of his views he was nservative, though he did so much to unrme the very nservative approach which had characterised Irish life well to the took the view, for stance, that the untry was gog to the dogs enomilly and that State spendg was too high.

GAY BYRNE OBUARY – SON OF GUNS WORKER WHO BEME MOST FLUENTIAL BROADSTER HISTORY OF STATE

”This renred the loss of his money the Rsell Murphy affair all the more shockg – when emerged after Murphy’s ath 1984 that the acuntant had taken all the money which he had managed on Gay Byrne’s behalf and had left him bt. Worse, Murphy had been a close iend and Gay Byrne had seen him almost as a father blow was a grievo one to a man who nfsed to havg a sense of secury about his e, spe his great succs.

He ntued to appear on televisn, prentg the Irish versn of Who Wants to Be a Millnaire?, along wh seri such as The Gay Byrne Mic Show and Make ’Em Lgh (about edy Ireland), Gaybo’s Gmpy Men and Class beme a tirels and forceful advote for savg liv, appearg equently on rad and televisn, durg a perd which saw a dramatic fall road traffic fataliHis long-nng terview seri The Meang of Life clud a number of remarkable moments, cludg actor Gabriel Byrne’s admissn that he had been abed as a child and Stephen Fry’s nunciatn of God.

YOUR MEMORI OF GAY BYRNE: ‘I FEEL LIKE PART OF MY CHILDHOOD HAS DIED’

“I am not gog to say, bee would promise me terms of the show if people knew I had a posn, ” he 2006, he also prented Sunday afternoon shows on Lyric FM, where he displayed his encyclopaedic knowledge and ep love of classic jazz while lightg his substantial dience wh curmudgeonly asis about the state of 2014, he prented a documentary, Gay Byrne: My Father’s War about his father Edward’s service the 19th Royal Hsars durg the first World War, and his return to Ireland afterwards.

Photograph: David Sleator Gay Byrne was diagnosed wh prostate ncer 2016 and he wrote and spoke publicly about the gellg nature of the chemotherapy treatment regime he was recently due to receive the Ireland-US Council’s Lifetime Achievement Award om Print Michael D Higgs, but was unable to attend the ceremony due to a broken wrist and cht fectn. Print Higgs paid tribute to him at the event, sayg: “Controversial, outspoken, and unaaid to break new ground, has been said that, throughout his many s on televisn and rad, Gay Byrne’s role the shapg and craftg of morn-day Ireland has been profound. DUBLIN (Rters) - Ireland’s bt known televisn personaly Gay Byrne, who hosted “The Late Late Show” for almost 40 years, died aged 85 on Monday, and was hailed by the prime mister as the “most fluential broadster the history of the state” hosted the first episo of natnal broadster RTE’s flagship chat show 1962, beg Ireland’s answer to U.

GAY BYRNE OBUARY: THE MATRO OF IRISH BROADSTG

“Gay Byrne was the most fluential broadster the history of the state, a much-loved figure who changed Ireland for the better so many ways, ” Prime Mister Leo Varadkar said on Twter.

“On rad and on televisn over so many s ‘Uncle Gaybo’ provid a voice for all those who had been silenced or were aaid to speak up, and helped nont thgs that need to be changed. Irish broadster Gay Byrne has died at the age of 85, Irish state broadster RTE has broadster and former Late Late Show host, who appeared on televisn Ireland for s, had been unrgog treatment for ncer for some time the perd leadg up to his Mr Byrne, a father-of-two, died Howth, a village not far om the pal, surround by his director-general Dee Forb paid tribute to the TV stalwart on Monday: “We are all greatly sadned by the passg of Gay Byrne who has been a hoehold name this untry for so many years. ”An Irish legendHe prented the Late Late Show for s (Photo: PA)Born Dubl Augt 1934, Gay grew up on the South Circular started work as a newsrear and ntuy announcer on Rad Eireann the late 1950s before movg to Granada Televisn Manchter, where he worked on a variety of shows, terviewg acts cludg The a time he muted between Dubl and UK, workg for both the BBC and RTE, but me back to Ireland full-time the late 1960s as prenter and producer of The Late Late programme went on to bee the world’s longt-nng chat also prented a long-nng rad show on RTE Rad 1, first known as The Gay Byrne Hour and then The Gay Byrne show had a close relatnship wh s listeners, many of whom wrote to or phoned Gay to ment on the issu of the day, and wh their own won a Jab’s Award for the programme TV hostOver his long reer Gay prented The Rose of Tralee, The Calor Hoewife of the Year petn, and a range of special prented his fal daily rad show 1998 and his fal Late Late Show the followg summer.

However, he did not retire om public life, beg the chairman of the Road Safety Authory and prentg other acclaimed televisn shows, cludg The Meang of is survived by his wife Kathleen, their dghters Crona and Suzy, and their Byrne was scribed as a man “of great charisma” by Ireland’s print Michael D Higgs add: “Gay Byrne was someone who exud warmth and prence, who was posssed of effortls w, charm and who had a flair for broadstg. “Gay Byrne was a rare treasure who touched the liv, not only of his fay and iends, but the hundreds of thoands of people who weled him to their liv and their hom on the rad and TV. Gay was the first prenter of The Late Late Show (Picture: Phillip Massey/FilmMagic)Print Michael D Higgs led the tribut, sayg: ‘Through his work rad and on televisn he challenged Irish society, and shone a light not only on the bright but also the dark sis of Irish life.

GAY BYRNE, IRELAND'S 'MOST FLUENTIAL BROADSTER', DI AT 85

The star was affectnately known as Uncle Gaybo (Picture: Phillip Massey/FilmMagic)Sce retirg om the long-nng shows, Byrne remaed on TV and rad, prentg Who Wants To Be A Millnaire?

GAY BYRNE

The renowned Irish TV and rad prenter Gay Byrne has died, aged 85, after sufferg a long broadster is a hoehold name Ireland thanks to his three- stt hostg the Late Late Show on RTÉ ByrneBrian Lawls - PA Imag via Getty Imag“Ireland grew up unr Gay Byrne, and we will never see his like aga, ” she print Michael D Higgs also paid tribute. ”As well as the Late Late Show, Gay also prented a long-nng rad show which was first known as the Gay Byrne Hour and then the Gay Byrne prented his fal daily rad show 1998 and his fal Late Late Show the followg his most memorable moments at the helm of The Late Late Show me 1993, when a pre-fame Boyzone ma an appearance on the show, billg themselv as “Ireland’s answer to Take That”:He is survived by his wife, Kathleen, and his dghters Crona and Celebs: Stars We Lost In 2019Relatktv celebrygay byrneThe Late Late Show Irish talk showBefore You GoYou May Like.

GAY BYRNE: LEGENDARY IRISH PRENTER OF THE LATE LATE SHOW DI AGED 85

IRISH BROADSTG LEGEND GAY BYRNE DI AGED 85

VETERAN RTÉ BROADSTER GAY BYRNE DI AGED 85

GAY BYRNE, PRENTER OF THE LATE LATE SHOW, HAS DIED AT THE AGE OF 85