Sir Terry Wogan was one of the nation’s favourite broadcasters. It was only last June that he took time off from BBC Broadcasting House for a special show at Guildford’s G Live, when Emily Horton enjoyed a dose of the endearing Wogan wit...
He might be 76, but Sir Terry Wogan shows no sign of slowing down. With his soft Irish lilt and mischievous sense of humour, the Irish-born broadcaster has been chatting up the great and the good for more than 50 years.
His interview list rivals that of Parky; for longevity he gives Brucie a good game. As for his Twitter account, it brims with photos of fans of all ages who turn out everywhere to support him. Such is the enduring appeal of the undisputed Don of light entertainment, whose mastery at the mic is laced with the wit of the jovial dad next door.
No wonder he is so hard to pin down ahead of next month’s show, An Evening with Terry Wogan, at Guildford’s G Live.
Born in Limerick, Ireland’s third largest city, to a grocery store manager in 1938, Sir Terry moved to Dublin in his teens. An ability to chat to Olympic standards won him his first radio gig in the 60s on Irish national broadcaster RTE, then saw him cross the water to the BBC in London.
Since then he has never looked back – or piped down! His BBC1 chat show, Wogan, was a staple of the 1980s, while his second breakfast stint on Radio 2, Wake Up With Wogan, commanded eight million listeners at its peak. From quiz shows (Blankety Blank) to Eurovision to Children in Need, the Wogan portfolio is vast.
Recently Sir Terry has been spotted filming a new food and drink series for the BBC. But we still managed to grab him for a quick Q&A...
Q: Sir Terry, what can we expect from your show at G Live? Will you be giving us a snapshot of the different eras of your career?
I wish I could promise the audience a spectacular evening of song and dance, but rest easy, I won't even be singing my hit single from 1978, The Floral Dance! It’ll just be a leisurely wander through the highways and byways of radio and television…
Q: The evening will include a Q&A with the audience. Is there one particular question that you find yourself frequently asked?
The questions are always varied, going right back to things from my early career – from Fight the Flab through to Jimmy Young, Eurovision, Blankety Blank, Wogan and Children in Need. I’ll do my best to answer the bits I can remember!
Don't forget, I'm the founder of TOGS, which stands for ‘Terry's Old Geezers and Gals’. It’s a term I affectionately coined for my fans of the older generation from my days on the breakfast radio show, Wake Up With Wogan.
Q: So when were you last in our fine county and what were you doing?
Last time I was in Guildford was when I was filming BBC1’s Secrets of the Body Clock at the University of Surrey. It appears I'm at my best in the morning – which makes sense, really, after 16 years of presenting the breakfast show.
So I do hope that I can stay awake for An Evening with Terry Wogan. Come to think of it, let's hope the audience don't feel like nodding off either...
Q: You once said that embarrassment was your constant companion on your live TV talk show, Wogan. How did you get over that?
Easily! I have a low embarrassment threshold. I'm completely unsuitable for television, radio or showbiz.
Q: Who has been the most interesting interviewee during your long career?
That’s an impossible question to answer in any short space of time! There were three Wogans a week, 50 weeks a year, for a period of over eight years. That's 1200 programmes, all of them live. I wish I could remember them all...
Q: You are very vocal in your support of the BBC as an institution that must be preserved. What is it about the Corporation that you believe to be so fundamental?
Everywhere in the world of broadcasting, the BBC is a byword for quality and integrity. It's still the broadcaster by which all others are measured. It's vital to Britain!
Q: You have said that the highlight of your day is getting home to have dinner with your family. Now your children have become successful restaurateurs – your daughter Katherine, with her husband Henry Cripps, owns the White Oak in Cookham and the Three Oaks in Gerrards Cross. So, is your children’s evident flair for great cuisine inherited from you?
Their mother – my wife, Lady Helen Wogan – is a fine cook. I can claim to have encouraged by eating enthusiastically, but the credit belongs to my wife and the children themselves.
Q: I believe you are writing a novel. Can you tell us a little of what it’s about and how you have made time for it in your busy schedule? Do you write at home?
I love writing, and I love being at home – the two go together. It's a book of short stories and is my first venture into fiction. It will be titled ‘The Way We Were’.
Q: Which aspect of your Irish heritage do you value the most? Do you get back to the mother country much?
Ireland comes to me in the shape of friends and family. However, I'm involved with the University of Limerick, in my home town, and I'm very proud to be a Freeman of the city.
An Evening with Terry Wogan: June 8, 8pm
at G Live, Guildford. Tickets from £29.50;
0844 7701 797; glive.co.uk
Other shows: The Alban Arena, St Albans (June 9)
and The Assembly Halls, Tunbridge Wells (June 10)
For more info on Terry, visit his website
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