'Ireland has lost a unique voice' - RTÉ to air Late Late Show tribute to Marian Finucane
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said weekend mornings will never be the same again after the death of “broadcasting legend” Marian Finucane.
He led tributes to the 69-year-old who died suddenly at her home.
Ms Finucane had only recently returned from a holiday in India.
More tributes are due to be paid to her throughout today on a variety of RTÉ radio programmes, and the Late Late Show is expected to feature a tribute to Ms Finucane.
The lesser known Marian Finucane. The architect, activist and proud Dublin woman: RTÉ Archives | Arts and Culture | Marian Finucane as a Student Protester https://t.co/BP9AIx7WGa
— Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) January 2, 2020
As well as her RTÉ colleagues, tributes to her were made by the president and the Taoiseach. Leo Varadkar said he was “stunned and deeply saddened” to hear she had died.
And he said: “She was a true broadcasting legend who reshaped current affairs radio in Ireland. Ireland will miss her voice... Weekend mornings will never be quite the same again.”
And he added: “I spent many hours in the studio with Marian. She was thorough, courteous and professional.
Shocked and saddened to hear of the sudden passing of Marian Finucane. She paved the way for so many women in broadcasting and journalism. Deepest sympathies to her family, friends and RTÉ colleagues. RIP. https://t.co/hxpt1fcYt2
— Katherine Zappone (@k_zappone) January 2, 2020
“I’m very sad to think that we won’t hear her voice again on the radio.”
I'm really saddened by the news about #MarianFinucane, she was a brilliant broadcaster, full of mischief and intelligence, but most tellingly, she was a kind, kind person. V sad. https://t.co/xhS1xo4u8f
— David McWilliams (@davidmcw) January 2, 2020
Michael D Higgins said: “Ireland has lost a deeply respected, trusted and much loved broadcaster.
“A superb professional, many will remember the wisdom and sensitivity with which Marian Finucane dealt with discussions and confrontations between different voices on what were controversial issues of the day.
“She was one of the very early exemplars to those who sought a proper representation of women in broadcasting.
“There will be many, in every part of Irish life, who will miss Marian’s voice, but of course her loss is felt most acutely by her family and friends.”
She died suddenly at her home. It is believed she died in her sleep.
The 69-year-old, who was last on air on December 8, had only recently returned from India and had been due to return to her Saturday morning radio programme.
So sad to hear of the passing of Marian Finucane, Marian always treated me with patience and kindness throughout interviews over the years.
— Paul McGrath (@Paulmcgrath5) January 2, 2020
What a wonderful lady, my thoughts and prayers are with her family, friends and colleagues at this very sad time. R.I.P 🙏🏻 pic.twitter.com/UUb5nNnW7J
No arrangements have been finalised about her funeral but they are expected to be delayed to allow for her son Jack to return from India.
One of the last of her RTÉ colleagues to speak to her was Joe Duffy, who took over Live Line from Ms Fincune.
He told told RTÉ's Drive Time: “I am in shock.”
He praised her “charming voice”, recalling that when she hosted Live Line, “everyone knew she’d give people a fair hearing”.
May 31 ,1979 ,on RTE Radio One the Gay Byrne show was extended to 2 hours and Marian Finucane launched “Women Today” which grew into Liveline in 1985 .It was a historic day .In less than 2 months we have lost the twin pillars of public broadcasting over 40 years Gay & Marian
— JOE DUFFY (@joeliveline) January 2, 2020
He said: “She’d ask everything we would all want to ask. We know she was brilliant, and a trailblazer.
“She had the most gracious, soothing voice and personality. She also had a fantastic sense of humour. She was so genuine and charming.”
He also praised her “extraordinary ability and sharp, sharp brilliance”.
And he said her death is “an enormous loss to broadcasting, a terrible loss of a great person, and an incredible and premature loss”.
He spoke to her a few weeks before Christmas, when she was going go head to India for a wedding with her son Jack.
“She was so looking forward to going to India,” he said. “She loved travel.”
RTÉ Director General Dee Forbes described Ms Finucane as a “a broadcaster of immense capability”.
Shocked and saddened to hear of the passing of Marian Finucane. She was an iconic broadcaster, ahead of her time on so many issues. She will be terribly missed by her family, her colleagues and her many fans across the country. She was a powerful voice in all our lives. RIP.
— Micheál Martin (@MichealMartinTD) January 2, 2020
And she said: “She was first and foremost a tenacious journalist with a zeal for breaking new ground.
Ireland has lost a unique voice. RTÉ has lost a beloved colleague.
Born in 1950, Marian Finucane first worked with RTÉ in the 1970s.
A qualified architect, she became a programme presenter working on programmes concerned with contemporary social issues, especially those concerning women, notably on Women Today.
In 1990, tragedy struck when her only daughter Sinéad died at the age of just eight from leukaemia.
Marian Finucane rarely spoke about the tragedy. Indeed, she was notoriously protective of her privacy and that of her family.
So sorry to hear of the passing of Marian Finucane, condolences to her family and all who loved her..🌻 https://t.co/of8tusSJcm
— Frances Black (@frances_black) January 2, 2020
For example, if she ever let a journalist into her house for an interview, it was never for anything else other than a place to meet for the interview.
The tragedy saw her devote part of her time over the decades that followed to hospice services here and abroad. She was, for example, a long-time supporter of the 'Ireland's Biggest Coffee Morning' fundraiser and helped launch it in 1993.
It was always a great pleasure to contribute to Marian Finucane’s programmes. A most generous broadcaster and a real listener. Really sad news
— Fergal Keane (@fergalrte) January 2, 2020
Her charity work in Africa began after she and her husband visited South Africa in June 2002.
While there they had visited an HIV/Aids hospice run by the Sisters of Nazareth in Cape Town.
The charity Friends in Ireland that they set up was initially asked to build a hospice in Khayelitsha in Cape Town by Mèdicins Sans Frontières (South Africa). But their work expanded into other areas and the charity has since funded a string of other centres.
Ms Finucane became a household name with her Live Line programme on RTÉ Radio 1.
A winner of the Prix Italia, her television work included Consumer Choice and Crime Line.
On Gay Byrne's retirement in 1999, she took over his early morning radio slot to present The Marian Finucane Show, ultimately taking over the morning slots on Saturday and Sunday.
Latest figures for her show - which showed consistent audience increases throughout the year - were 343,000 for Saturday and 290,000 for Sunday.
Ah, that’s very sad about the death of Marian Finucane. A lovely woman and a brilliant broadcaster, it was always a pleasure to do an interview with her; just the easy intelligence of her. She will be missed.
— Dara Ó Briain (@daraobriain) January 2, 2020
Despite defining her reputation as an interviewer, she once admitted she hated being interviewed.
Marian is survived by her husband John and son Jack.
