The renowned broadcaster and television presenter is remembered on the anniversary of his death by Sheila O’Kelly

 

Eamonn Andrews was on born at 11, Synge Street, Dublin on the 19th December, 1922 to William and Margaret Andrews. He was educated at Holy Faith Convent in the Liberties, and later at Synge Street Christian Brothers School. When he completed his education, he secured a job as a filing clerk with the Hibernian Insurance Company in Dublin. As a schoolboy, Eamonn was a keen amateur boxer and won the Irish Junior amateur middleweight title in 1944 defeating Pte. P. Fitzgerald.

Whilst working in the insurance company, he obtained work as a boxing commentator on Radio Éireann and progressed to a professional broadcaster in the sports commentary box. He studied acting at the Abbey Theatre and took part in plays on Radio Éireann.

In 1948, Dublin born impresario Louis Elliman engaged Eamonn as quizmaster on ‘Double or Nothing’ before a live audience in the Savoy cinema in Limerick and then at the Theatre Royal in Dublin where bandleader, Joe Loss, hired Eamonn to present the quiz show as an interlude act on his 1949 British tour.

The following year, Eamonn left Radio Éireann to work as a Sports commentator with the BBC. He was studio presenter of ‘Sports Report’ on the BBC Light programme. He quickly made his mark as quizmaster on BBC radio programme: ‘Ignorance is Bliss’.

In 1951, Eamonn married Gráinne Bourke in Dublin. Residing in a house on the banks of the Thames, the couple adopted two daughters and a son. Eamonn became resident chairman on the BBC weekly panel television programme: ‘What’s my Line?’ He presented ‘Twenty Questions’ and the late night music show, ‘The Pied Piper’.

He moved into BBC children’s television programmes, presenting ‘Playbox’ and ‘Crackerjack’. He was also a regular presenter of the early Miss World beauty pageants established in London in1951.

Eamonn Andrews is probably most remembered for presenting ‘This is Your Life’ on British television where he would surprise a special guest, before taking them through their life in a studio, with the assistance of the ‘red book’ with the gold embossed inscription THIS IS YOUR LIFE.

It ran from 1955 to 1964 and became the most popular programme on BBC. It ended when Eamonn left the BBC to join ITV in 1964, where he hosted the ‘Eamonn Andrews Show’ for five years. A devout Roman Catholic, Eamonn received a Papal knighthood in 1964 from Pope Paul Vl for his charitable works.

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