His friend’s recollections...
Marty Whelan
Broadcaster
The Larry Gogan I knew was the Larry Gogan of many decades. The young disc jockey whose autograph I obtained at the Spring Show when I was a young schoolboy. The man I met and who was kindness itself when I, along with others, joined Radio 2 in 1979 and needed a friend who knew their way around RTÉ. He and Gay Byrne showed such care and attention to this 23-year-old and smoothed my passage into national radio.
Later, we would share quite a few Eurovision Song Contests. I remember particularly my rst, in Brussels in 1987. That was the year Johnny Logan won for the rst time. Johnny took to a stepladder with a magnum of champagne and poured it over a mountainous pyramid of champagne glasses. “Right,” says Larry, “Let’s get into position to catch him!” Happily, we didn’t need to.
We always had a dinner during the week of Eurovision. An evening away from the madness of glitter and shimmering lovelies, the most wonderful time together in whatever city the show had arrived in that year. My late friend, our Eurovision head of delegation, Kevin Lenihan, also loved these few hours of joyous chat where anything and everything was discussed.
Other Eurovision colleagues like Brigette, Sharon and Deirdre, were all mad about Larry too – as Eurovision pals we relished each other’s company over a glass or two.
He was the DJ’s DJ. He loved the music and the joy of playing it. He didn’t appear bothered about striving in other areas like television. Yet he did present Come Dancing and John Players; indeed, he did TV ads for Daz back in the black and white days.
I will always cherish the time spent away from the microphone with Larry. The chats, co ees and con dences shared while sitting beside him at his desk in 2fm, shooting the breeze and enjoying his companionship.
Larry: 40 years of memories I will cherish. Farewell my friend.
Dave Fanning
Broadcaster I think of Larry as the classic DJ; the broadcaster who put pop music across with a smile in his voice. When RTÉ Radio 2 started in 1979, Larry was already a veteran of 18 years, having presented TV music shows and sponsored pop programmes. He even did live ads on the radio, like they did in the Grand Ole Opry 40 years ago! Larry was the most important part of all of that: he did it all. I remember when we started out, there was a Radio 2 gig in the RDS where they were giving out these photographs of all the DJs and it was such a cool thing for all of us. Nobody knew which photograph they would get. A young kid got a photo of Larry, who was standing beside me. He signed it and the kid looked at it and asked, “What does that say?” Larry said to him, “Go over there and ask your grandmother. She’ll know who I am!” Hahaha! And that was 1979! The praise people gave Larry may have sounded clichéd, but it was all absolutely true. You couldn’t meet a nicer guy. He was great on every level: a bright ray of sunshine around the radio building. Why did he last 50 years in the business? I know why: because he was Larry, and there was no-one like him.
Ian Dempsey
Broadcaster Larry had a boyish enthusiasm for all of his radio life. Most of us have that knocked out of us in the rst few years. He was born to be on the radio. It was always a pleasure to listen to him, but even better to talk to him o the air, when he always reminded me that radio can be easy (and fun) if you really love what you’re doing and don’t try to over-complicate it. He was such a generous person to work with and I don’t think he realised how much of an inspiration he was to me and many others, Thanks Larry.
Pat Kenny
Broadcaster When I rst arrived in RTÉ in 1972, Larry was already a big star. I probably rst met him on the shuttle bus that took us between the GPO and the new radio centre in Montrose. I was this naive and gauche beginner, but Larry was so welcoming and generous with his time, even to this stranger. Over the years, we’d regularly bump into each other, grab a cup of co ee in the canteen, and Larry was a great gossip. He’d have all his news and would be peppering you for yours. Larry was a kind man but also had great craic in him, slagging o managers who would probably be a little out of touch with Larry’s world. Pop music didn’t have a warm home in RTÉ in those days.
Of course, Larry and I also adventured together on the Eurovision jaunt, with him doing the radio commentary and me doing the TV. That’s where we really got to know each other: having started as colleagues, we became pals. When you walked into the canteen at RTÉ, you always knew who you’d like to sit with and if you saw Larry, you’d sit with him. Hearing that he was gone was a body blow, especially as it happened on the day that Marian was being buried. Above all, Larry was the ultimate professional, someone who was at all the receptions but also put in the hard work so that he hit it on the button each and every time.