Wednesday, March 12, was the 10th anniversary of the passing of Tony Fenton. I was already quite close with Tony when I met my wife. All of this he would deliver in that plummy on-air voice; rich, dramatic, beautifully enunciated. Arthur Mathews, of Father Ted fame, knew Tony too. Radio stations playing non-stop music was a game changer. It seems absurd at this point that the s passed Ireland by without that glorious soundtrack of The Beatles, Bob, The Stones and all that talent not issuing daily from our radio.
But better late than never. Tony was a bit late to that party too. He made a name for himself on Pirate Radio before auditioning for 2FM during the shake up that would see Gerry Ryan move from his nighttime slot to mid-morning.
The Ryan Line was about to open and Irish Radio would never be the same again. From to around it was a happy time for all involved with audience share and advertising revenue at record highs. Tony was born for this. He loved music, loved people, loved Chelsea was a gifted footballer and played at Home Farm with Ronnie Whelan , loved food, loved gigs, loved cars, loved going out and was great company. I never saw him down.
Two moments stand out: His efforts to get me and Paul Buchanan of the Blue Nile to sing at a session in Johny Foxes pub being one of them. The pub had a keyboard player, and the idea was to sing with him. Tony kept putting our names in the hat, Paul kept refusing to sing. Eventually I broke. As I went to sing the second chorus the piano player stopped. I looked over. I looked out. Tony appeared to be about to die laughing. The second one was an odd night.
She called Tony by accident. He got to the hospital before me. I was in a cubicle as he gave the nurse outside my details. I laughed so hard I set off a heart monitor. Please click here for our privacy statement. Music, film art, culture, books and more from Munster and beyond Sign in My Account Sign out. Tom Dunne. Read More. More in this section. Gracie Abrams review: Californian popstar showers fans with love at 3Arena in Dublin. Pierce Brosnan says next James Bond should be British.
