‘After Italia 90 Rome defeat I asked Packie Bonner for a chat... he turned the air blue’
As Des Cahill’s new RTÉ radio show hits its stride, he tells MoS his ‘career low’:
HIS new show is all about sweet sounds, but Des Cahill can recall his lowest ebb in broadcasting – when the mood music with Packie Bonner hit an F major!
The seasoned sports presenter Cahill has been providing the nation with some light relief with the new radio show – Des’s Island Discs.
Cahill said while the Desert Island Discs-style idea had been floating around his head for some time, it came to fruition as RTÉ strives to lighten the mood of the country in the midst of the coronavirus crisis.
‘I had the idea for this programme in my head for a while; it’s a simple programme,’ he told the Irish Mail on Sunday. ‘The idea is that people pick a few songs from a time in their life, or a story in their life or career; a song that reminds them of something; it’s the stories behind the songs, not necessarily their three favourite songs, just songs that reminds you of a particular time.’
One story that Cahill, who has been covering sport at Montrose for 37 years, recalls is what he jokingly refers to as ‘the lowest point in his career’ when he made Mr Nice Guy, Packie Bonner turn the air blue.
‘One of the nicest people I have ever met in sport is Packie Bonner. I used to do the flash interviews after the match when they are walking off. I always got on with Jack Charlton and when we lost to Italy in the quarter-finals of the World Cup in Italia 90, I was on the sidelines waiting for them to come off. I went to grab Jack and he said, “Ah, f*** off, Des”. So I saw Packie coming along and I thought, “Sure I’m grand, at least I’ll get Packie”, so I had the cameras ready to go and I’m like, “Go, go, go” and Packie said, “Ah Des, would you ever f*** off, we’ve just lost the World Cup quarter-final”. That was an all-time low for me. So, Andy Townsend was coming along, and he saw it and he had some sympathy for me, and he came over and he said, “C’mere, Des, I’ll do it”.’
From being a well-known face in sporting circles, Cahill tip-tapped his way into the showbiz realm when he appeared on the first season of Dancing With The Stars.
And he is now calling on the stars from sports, showbiz and journalism on his new show.
‘We found that the guests are enjoying it and they like doing it. There’s also the obvious factor that people are stuck at home, so they are easier to get.’
Open winner Shane Lowry was among his first guests and the pair have built up a friendship with Des covering Lowry’s golf successes.
‘I kind of knew Shane anyways. He sent me a gift at Christmas, the flag from the 18th hole of the Open. He sent it to lots of people, he got copies of it done and signed it. I did Shane’s homecoming and stuff; he said everywhere he turned at the celebrations he saw me, I was also celebrating.
‘I interviewed him at the homecoming in Clara and I said to him, “It’s fantastic to see so many people here,” and he said to me, “Yeah, there was a few people supported me all along, but there was a lot of people who jumped on the bandwagon and in fairness you’d probably be the biggest of them”.’
So, he sent me the flag with a note saying, “Thanks for helping me with the celebrations”. He just has that giggly shy warmth and I think people just identify with him. He’s the boy next door.’
Cahill has also told the MoS that his own three top musical picks and not unsurprisingly, two of them are sports-centric: ‘You’ll Never Walk
Alone, Joxer Goes To Stuttgart, Lying Eyes… When there’s a bit of drink taken in the Cahill household and if we’re at home at night there’s always music and sing-songs. That would be one of the songs, a lot of Bee Gees, my wife is big into the sing-songs and singing.’
Like the rest of the country, Des is housebound and the dearth of sport has seen him take daily walks. In fact, the lockdown has made him fitter: ‘I’m walking more and watching less telly; it’s ironically a healthy time. I watch an awful lot of telly but it’s all sport, so now there’s no sport on I’m not watching so much telly.’
However, being stuck at home is taking its toll on the Cahill barnet. ‘It’s just growing and is very fluffy, so I’m using a lot of hair gel,’ he laughs.
‘I thought, “I’m grand, I’ll get Packie”’
‘I’m walking more and watching less telly’