Gay Byrne RIP

Mad_maxx · 06-11-2019 07:09PM

Lefty Bicek wrote: »

Fr. Brian Darcy with the Scalextric...

Fr Brian D'Arcy is such a media whore, I've yet to witness the death of any well known person in this country without the insufferable Fr Brian being wheeled out to tell us he'd known them since 1958

donkeykong5 · 06-11-2019 07:11PM

Mad_maxx wrote: »

And then got involved in the property bubble only to loose his arse

MM lost a tonne

Thought he made a fortune with land he owned around city west

easypazz · 06-11-2019 07:33PM

donkeykong5 wrote: »

Yeah I agree. The show last night was very good. There were some very genuine people there in audience and paying tributes. Unfortunately the usual plebs who go to the opening of a tin of beans were also there. It's a pity the show wasn't more researched and shown this Friday night.

I watched a bit of it and thought it was a cringe fest. The usual RTE jerk circle patting each other on the back promoting themselves behind it all.

Luckily I caught the Omagh bomb victims piece, probably the only genuine part of the whole show.

high_king · 06-11-2019 07:40PM

Ursus Horribilis wrote: »

He is also from the era when talk shows were more about the guests than the host. He had the ability to sit back and let his guests speak. The instinct to know when a conversation was heading in a different bit interesting direction. Those skills appear to have been largely lost on TV

Spot on. Tubbs, Miriam, Joe Duffy etc. all think it's about them being on TV instead of the guest. A soon as the guest's story gets interesting they ask some half witted off topic question to draw attention back to themselves, and the interview is fecked.

Lefty Bicek · 06-11-2019 08:28PM

Mad_maxx wrote: »

Fr Brian D'Arcy is such a media whore, I've yet to witness the death of any well known person in this country without the insufferable Fr Brian being wheeled out to tell us he'd known them since 1958

The original Fr. Trendy is bit of a relic alright. Been high profile for a long, long time though.

Must be nearly forty years ago since his 'A Little Bit of Religion' on the Sunday World ?

branie2 · 06-11-2019 09:34PM

One of my lecturers in college wrote a book about Gay.

Allinall · 06-11-2019 09:51PM

I went to the same school as Gay Byrne.

He was a few years ahead of me.

fryup · 06-11-2019 10:22PM

donkeykong5 wrote: »

Yeah I agree. The show last night was very good. There were some very genuine people there in audience and paying tributes. Unfortunately the usual plebs who go to the opening of a tin of beans were also there. It's a pity the show wasn't more researched and shown this Friday night.

i suppose they couldn't do a tribute show this friday as they already had guests booked....but i'm sure they'll do a segment dedicated to him

easypazz · 06-11-2019 10:33PM

branie2 wrote: »

One of my lecturers in college wrote a book about Gay.

My mother used watch the Late Late show on Saturday nights.

Seamai · 06-11-2019 10:41PM

Bob Harris wrote: »

TV interviews used to be very different in Ireland, UK and US. The setting of the interview was far more intimate as were the answers and the formats much longer.

Now it's 5-10 minutes, the topics largely superficial and the answers short and usually shortened further by the interviewer's anxiety to read the next question of the cue card.

Spot on!

Tell me how · 06-11-2019 10:49PM

Bob Harris wrote: »

TV interviews used to be very different in Ireland, UK and US. The setting of the interview was far more intimate as were the answers and the formats much longer.

Now it's 5-10 minutes, the topics largely superficial and the answers short and usually shortened further by the interviewer's anxiety to read the next question of the cue card.

That's where Tommy Tiernan, and Brendan O'Connor are notably different to many chat show hosts at the moment.
Love the structure of the Tommy Tiernan show and how he doesn't even know who the guest is and has no cue cards to guide the conversation.

Watching Tommy as his guest speaks is actually very intriguing.

Edgware · 06-11-2019 11:36PM

Tell me how wrote: »

That's where Tommy Tiernan, and Brendan O'Connor are notably different to many chat show hosts at the moment.
Love the structure of the Tommy Tiernan show and how he doesn't even know who the guest is and has no cue cards to guide the conversation.

Watching Tommy as his guest speaks is actually very intriguing.

You can read his mind saying
" Someone is actually paying me for doing this"

FrancieBrady · 06-11-2019 11:39PM

Edgware wrote: »

You can read his mind saying
" Someone is actually paying me for doing this"

You should just sell the telly Edge or do a Who on it.

RabbleRouser2k · 06-11-2019 11:48PM

Tell me how wrote: »

That's where Tommy Tiernan, and Brendan O'Connor are notably different to many chat show hosts at the moment.
Love the structure of the Tommy Tiernan show and how he doesn't even know who the guest is and has no cue cards to guide the conversation.

Watching Tommy as his guest speaks is actually very intriguing.

He's also brought back the eccentrics to TV.

Eddie Lenihan is a wonderful storyteller-even if you don't agree with what he's saying, you're enchanted the whole time.
Tiernan let him go wild on the show-and it was PERFECT.

IF you imagined Tubridy doing that interview, he wouldn't let Eddie get a word in sideways. Or he'd mock him.
Never mind Eddie is far more intelligent than many of us, and most definitely smarter than Ryan.

Edgware · 07-11-2019 12:12AM

FrancieBrady wrote: »

You should just sell the telly Edge or do a Who on it.

But then I would lose all contact with the mother ship

brooke 2 · 07-11-2019 12:25AM

The Princess Bride wrote: »

My 80 yr old mother has been a lifelong fan of Gay.
When she was growing up, her brother bought their parents a TV, the first in the area.
The neighbours used dress up and go in to see the news etc...
And Gaybo was the star for everyone.

When Gay's autobiography was published, in the late 80s, he did a book signing in Dublin. My mother went to it and was smitten when Gay shook her hand. She joked that she'd never ever wash her hand s again!
In fact, my young adult daughter told me this week, that she had felt sad for my dad, as a child. She'd thought Grandma was gonna leave Grandad and run away with Gay Byrne.:o

Last year, when Gay was very ill, my mother was asking me about him. I knew then that the prognosis wasn't good.
I suggested that she write to him.
Then, when he was well enough to read it, and for her to tell him that she was a fan etc...and how much she had enjoyed his shows.
She did, and I hope it made him smile.

Anyone can pay tribute to someone after they've died.
But it surely makes more sense to let them know when they're still with us.

Requiescat In Pace, Mr Byrne.

Beautiful post.

MintyMagnum · 07-11-2019 12:33AM

Tell me how wrote: »

That's where Tommy Tiernan, and Brendan O'Connor are notably different to many chat show hosts at the moment.
Love the structure of the Tommy Tiernan show and how he doesn't even know who the guest is and has no cue cards to guide the conversation.

Watching Tommy as his guest speaks is actually very intriguing.

Tommy T & Brendan O'Connor are not afraid of letting the conversation go wherever it will even if it meanders off the cue cards - not like Darcy or Tubridy but similar to Gay. Also Claire Byrne. The three of them are more naturally curious & empathetic or something.

buried · 07-11-2019 12:35AM

RabbleRouser2k wrote: »

He's also brought back the eccentrics to TV.

Eddie Lenihan is a wonderful storyteller-even if you don't agree with what he's saying, you're enchanted the whole time.
Tiernan let him go wild on the show-and it was PERFECT.

IF you imagined Tubridy doing that interview, he wouldn't let Eddie get a word in sideways. Or he'd mock him.
Never mind Eddie is far more intelligent than many of us, and most definitely smarter than Ryan.

This is very true. I don't watch much RTE television these days but I did catch that Eddie Lenihan interview on Tiernan's show and it was total magic.
Tiernan gets it. Let the stories roll, let the person telling the story flood the stage with their story. The more you let someone feel comfortable to talk and let it all flood out, then the audience will follow, because everybody on the planet, literally everybody that is or has been on the planet wants to hear a story. We were all raised on stories. The human civilization from the west to the east to the jungles of the planet, for thousand of years, the first entertainment was the telling of stories around the campfire.
Tiernan could actually be a better Tv host than Byrne or the likes of Norton.
He doesn't have the uppity twang of Gaybo or the constant comedic tired witty cheekery of the likes of Norton. Tiernan allows the guest to flood out their flow. I've only seen both the Adam Clayton and the Eddie Lenihan interviews on his show and they were very refreshing. Both guests were treated the very same even though one guest was vastly more a worldwide mainstream celebrity than the other one. Didn't matter to Tiernan, Just let them all flow.

brooke 2 · 07-11-2019 12:52AM

171170 wrote: »

Mea culpa, you are correct. :rolleyes:

In my defence I had (mistakenly) assumed that readers of my post would understand the difference between mainstream RTE TV and Radio (from which Gaybo retired in 1999) and a niche station like Lyric FM.

I loved listening to Gay on Lyric FM, as I drove back from the West on a Sunday afternoon. I remember so clearly his last programme - the almost nonchalant manner in which he announced that he would not be back for a while, as he proceeded to inform the listeners why he was leaving. I did not think too much of it at first, until he continued to say that he had had a good life, had never been ill and that it was now his turn. Then, it hit me like a ton of bricks that this was a lot more serious than he was trying to make it sound. The poor presenter who came on after his programme - Aedín Gormley, IIRC - was in total shock as she also realised what she had just heard.

Rest In Peace, Gay.

bodhrandude · 07-11-2019 01:58AM

the way that Gay interviewed Spike Milligan was effortless, they were just like old buddies having a laugh, most of these great interviews the guests were at their ease.

RabbleRouser2k · 07-11-2019 02:03AM

MintyMagnum wrote: »

Tommy T & Brendan O'Connor are not afraid of letting the conversation go wherever it will even if it meanders off the cue cards - not like Darcy or Tubridy but similar to Gay. Also Claire Byrne. The three of them are more naturally curious & empathetic or something.

Brendan O'Connor was and is hopeless as a presenter-genuinely terrible. When he interviewed 'P*ssy Riot (Censoring myself to get past the Boards' automod) he completely ar*ed it up in a way that Ray D'arcy probably would do.
Calling ardent feminists 'c'mere to me girls', in all seriousness, and then having them walk off the set...
Stephen Colbert interviewed them weeks later-had em laughing, joking, and generally relaxed.
BOC doesn't connect with the mainstream-Cutting Edge lost steam very quickly. As did his chatshow.
Claire Byrne is completely unqualified for the job-she scaremongers, she's uninterested. She pays more attention to 'juicy' gossip pieces (like fortnite) than she did the abortion debate-or the Belfast rugby trial.
(She should have been forced to take a pay cut after her disastrous Repeal the 8th debate- she lost control, and enabled the No side to say any bull they wanted. The papers the next few weeks said she cost the Yes side a large holding).

Gay Byrne was head and shoulders above them- they weren't worthy enough to make his cup of tea.He could get people to open up in ways that surprised even them. It was therapy, practically. Even Brenda Fricker admitted as such-when she spoke to Gay on Meaning of Life-she opened up about sexual abuse she suffered as a child-something she'd never spoken of, to anyone.

blueshade · 07-11-2019 06:49PM

I enjoyed the tribute show the other night. Watching the old clips reminded me of what a different place Ireland was. The vitriolic letter from some woman about how disgusted she was about Gay showing a condom for example, summed it up really. The attitude was if you gave people access to condoms they'd become promiscuous and if a girl got pregnant back then she was considered a dirty hoor. If you wanted the contraceptive pill your GP could refuse if it went against their personal religious beliefs and condoms were almost as difficult to get.

railer201 · 07-11-2019 07:34PM

An absolute legend who informed, entertained and enriched us all over the years - may he rest in peace !

Spon Farmer · 07-11-2019 09:06PM

RabbleRouser2k wrote: »

:D:D:D

Well, Gaybo managed to conquer Irish radio AND television. Not trying to be a jerk, but he got serious high listenership, and high viewership on both mediums. (In comparison to other presenters, who either succeeded at radio, or tv, but never the twain. Gerry Ryan could never seem to gain traction on TV).

When he retired, suddenly the license fee 'wasn't enough' (and hasn't been 'enough' for close to 20 years).
Because when Gay Byrne was hosting the LLS, or presenting radio... they could ask any price for an advert to air during the LLS.
And not only that, different advertising segments cost less or more. In the days when RTE tracked viewership (and printed it in the RTE guide/ newspapers/ teletext or on the web) corporations paid attention-if they saw 'at the mid point of the show, every night, is the largest audience', then that means advertising was most expensive. And RTE (and Gaybo) could ask any price-those slots were like gold-dust. License fee wasn't an issue-RTE had money they could throwaway, practically.

Soon as they lost Gay Byrne-they essentially lost the 'man of the people'... and they never got anyone to replace him.
And sadly, never will.

Frank McNamara’s comment that “back then” the Late Late Show could pull a million viewers was very nice.

Wasn’t said with malice or anything, just stated as a fact.

Even Tubridy’s own words on Six One the other day about how good Gaybo was showed Tubridy as being the exact opposite in every way.

bobbyss · 08-11-2019 12:06AM

Spon Farmer wrote:

Frank McNamaraâ€™s comment that â€œback thenâ€ the Late Late Show could pull a million viewers was very nice.

Spon Farmer wrote:

Wasnâ€™t said with malice or anything, just stated as a fact.

Spon Farmer wrote:

Even Tubridyâ€™s own words on Six One the other day about how good Gaybo was showed Tubridy as being the exact opposite in every way.

I agree 100% with you. He seemed like an engaging man and soneone I'd like to hear more of. He was witty too.

Goldengirl · 08-11-2019 12:42AM

Totally agree.
He was a natural, interested in people, liked to listen . Maybe a bit nosey even , I thought when I was younger. But I so enjoyed the good interviews he did , where he just let people talk and tell their own stories.
Unlike the present crew who are more interested in getting the smart questions asked, that their researchers and editors have cued for them, that they fail to listen and go with the flow of the conversation.
I often cringe when some guest is revealing some inner feeling or truth , only to be interrupted by a question that cuts the conversation short.
Mike Murphy the other night was cut off by Ryan precisely this way, he should have left him talk more because he was so close to Gay and had all the funny stories. I think Ryan was a little jealous. And the rude way Ryan dealt with poor Nell McCafferty must have had Gay doing a jig. Nell was a favourite of Gay's. I wanted to hear her talk, not bloody Theresa Lowe!
I also have professional experience of Gay and his families' generosity , anonymously giving to those in need. That is the whole premise of the Toy Show also . .All are donated to children's charities .
There will never be his like again, a wonderful person and talented broadcaster...RIP .

MonkieSocks · 08-11-2019 01:11AM

Always remember when Mike Murphy pranked Gabo as a french rugby supporter a long time ago

From the Mike Murphy Show

RIP Gabo.....a true gentleman

Realtai · 08-11-2019 04:13PM

Had a peek at the funeral today on TV, Very sad indeed.
Truly one of a kind.
RIP Gay.

Joe_ Public · 08-11-2019 04:45PM

Goldengirl wrote: »

Totally agree.
He was a natural, interested in people, liked to listen . Maybe a bit nosey even , I thought when I was younger. But I so enjoyed the good interviews he did , where he just let people talk and tell their own stories.
Unlike the present crew who are more interested in getting the smart questions asked, that their researchers and editors have cued for them, that they fail to listen and go with the flow of the conversation.
I often cringe when some guest is revealing some inner feeling or truth , only to be interrupted by a question that cuts the conversation short.
Mike Murphy the other night was cut off by Ryan precisely this way, he should have left him talk more because he was so close to Gay and had all the funny stories. I think Ryan was a little jealous. And the rude way Ryan dealt with poor Nell McCafferty must have had Gay doing a jig. Nell was a favourite of Gay's. I wanted to hear her talk, not bloody Theresa Lowe!
I also have professional experience of Gay and his families' generosity , anonymously giving to those in need. That is the whole premise of the Toy Show also . .All are donated to children's charities .
There will never be his like again, a wonderful person and talented broadcaster...RIP .

I am watching this on catch up. Agree with everything you write. Theresa Lowe's "anecdote" was about the time her mediocre quiz show beat the late late in the ratings (wtaf!?). Waited for the punchline, but there was none.

And was it my imagination but was Miriam ocallaghan sitting on a raised chair or is she just naturally that tall? Seemed to in nearly every camera shot, bright red obviously a good choice to wear for that!

Still enjoyable enough fare. Its probably not possible to make a bad tribute show to a presenter as great as Gay Byrne.

RabbleRouser2k · 09-11-2019 02:11AM

blueshade wrote: »

I enjoyed the tribute show the other night. Watching the old clips reminded me of what a different place Ireland was. The vitriolic letter from some woman about how disgusted she was about Gay showing a condom for example, summed it up really. The attitude was if you gave people access to condoms they'd become promiscuous and if a girl got pregnant back then she was considered a dirty hoor. If you wanted the contraceptive pill your GP could refuse if it went against their personal religious beliefs and condoms were almost as difficult to get.

The one thing I was sort of saddened they didn't show was when they showed the clip of the guy being all like 'I wouldn't advise my children to use condoms, nor would I allow my 18 year old daughter'... they never showed the follow up clip.

After Gay Byrne discussed condoms, and their uses, and how they prevent STD's, pregnancies, STI's, and the 'death sentence' that was AIDS-Gay went back and spoke to that same guy.

You can see that the information has started the gears turning in that guys head. I mean, if you look at the following questions he receives, you know it's sunk in.

Also, the 'woke' people who think Ireland wasn't learning to accept homosexuality in the 1980s, notice how, when Gay Byrne is discussing use of the condoms, he mentions 'vagina or anus'.
(Also, despite what they say-that gentleman wasn't far off, on his second guess, of finding a cure. That clip is from 1987, when the man says 'we're 5 years... okay ten years away from finding a cure'... he's off by one year-the first AIDS treatment that caused the virus to go into remission, was in 1998.
There was so much debate back then- nowadays it's 'follow the remit-or else if you go against it, you're a racist, homophobic, nazi, misogynist/ internalized misogynist, communist, fascist weirdo'.

People going around saying they're woke are pretty much asleep at the wheel.

Gay Byrne RIP

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