BY ANGELA DANIELS.
We at The Eye of Media join our voice to the endless outpouring of grief and tributes across Britain and Ireland – from politicians to film stars, on the announcement that Sir Terry Wogan, the legendary television and radio broadcaster has succumbed, after a short but brave battle with cancer, at the age of 77. He was survived by his wife of fifty years, Lady Helen and their three children. The family was with him when it happened today.
Sir Terry’s fifty years career in Radio and Television, including presenting Wake Up to Wogan on Radio 2 and the Wogan chat show on BBC1 will not be quickly forgotten. Born in Limerick, Ireland Sir Terry was brought up and educated as a Catholic at a Jesuit school. He started life as a bank clerk at the Royal Bank of Ireland and later made his BBC debut on the Light Programme, now Radio 2 and in 1969 was asked to stand in for Jimmy Young on the mid morning show. This led to a regular afternoon slot. He took over the breakfast show in 1972 and was an immediate hit.
Sir Terry was the face of Euro vision in the UK in 1973, then from 1980 to 2008 and he provided the commentary for BBC every year. The much loved television personality then anchored the Children In Need charity since its inception in 1980 and remained involved for 35 years. He was last on air on radio on 8 November 2015.
Radio 2 Controller, Bob Shennan described him as ‘one of the greatest and most popular radio hosts this country has ever heard…’. Sir Terry earned the love of millions of people for the wry, inoffensive and sometimes self-deprecating humour he brought to the chat shows, Blankety Blank and the Euro vision Song Contest.
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Sir Terry’s voice will sadly no longer be heard.
Speaking to Lexi Finnigan of the Telegraph, Father D’Arcy- a friend of Sir Terry- gave a poignant insight into the final days of the deceased. The priest revealed that he visited Sir Terry at his Buckinghamshire home last Thursday, where he and the broadcaster- a self-declared atheist – though brought up as a Catholic, prayed together during ‘a desperately sad scene’. He agreement to join the priest in prayer may have been an implicit sign that he changed his mind about the existence in God. It also may mean nothing more than a respectful compliance with the wishes of the priest. Father D’Arcy was quoted as saying, ‘It was the kind of sadness I haven’t experienced, possibly outside my own parents’ death.
The priest was a regular contributor to Wake Up To Wogan for 20 years, a friend for more than forty years, and also officiated at the weddings of Sir Terry’s children. The priest made an intriguing statement. ‘If there is not room for Terry Wogan in heaven, well then, the God I’ve been preaching is a way off.’
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Lexi Finnigan further reported that Sir Terry spoke in recent years about not believing in God, saying he had railed to himself against faith, after the death of his three weeks old daughter. Sir Terry said in an emotional interview, ‘I didn’t flee to God…I was extremely resentful…I don’t believe in God, at this point in my life..’
Lavish tributes include –Broadcasting genius..broadcasting icon….a master of the airwaves…veteran broadcaster…national treasure…intriguingly subversive national treasure…a true pro- a lovely, lovely man…joyful…good-natured…’.
Among the long list of tributes were the following: colleague, Simon Mayo called him ‘a radio genius’, saying, ‘The staple of all great radio is the friend behind the microphone- and he was the ultimate friend behind the microphone’.
Jeremy Vine said Sir Terry was ‘probably the greatest broadcaster since the invention of the microphone’
Former James Bond star, Sir Roger Moore, tweeted, ‘Terry was the most brilliant fundraiser. My fav memory was when someone bid 75k for CIN (Children In Need ) to have lunch with us both. A privilege’.
Prime Minister, David Cameron tweeted, ‘…Britain has lost a huge talent – someone millions came to feel was their own special friend.’
Further tributes came from President of Ireland, Michael D Higgins said, ‘Always proud of his origin in Limerick, he made many returns to his native country for television and radio projects’.
In the Mail of 25 October 2013, John MCentee featured Sir Terry in his Buckinghamshire home where the broadcaster said he was lucky he had met the Queen a number of times. He intimated, ‘Someone went to see her recently, and in conversation it emerged she knew all about Children In Need. Apparently she said, ‘Oh, that’s the one with Terry and the Teddy’. Even the Queen was familiar with his work.
Sir Terry evidently made his indelible mark here, on planet earth. Like Father D’Arcy, we hope he made it to a room in heaven, he seemed to have changed his mind about not believing in God.
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