Paddy O'Byrne (8 December 1929 – 4 December 2013) was an
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
radio broadcaster and actor who became one of the best-known radio personalities in South Africa.
Early life
O'Byrne was born in
Killiney
Killiney () is an affluent seaside resort and suburb in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, Ireland. It lies south of neighbouring Dalkey, east of Ballybrack and Sallynoggin and north of Shankill. The place grew around the 11th century Killiney Churc ...
, a suburb of
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. He attended
St Mary's College, Dublin
Saint Mary's College C.S.Sp. (Congregatio Sancti Spiritus) is a voluntary boys' primary and secondary school run by the Congregation of the Holy Spirit and located in Rathmines, Dublin, Ireland. The school was founded in 1890, closed in 1916, an ...
,
Castleknock College
Castleknock College ( ga, Coláiste Caisleán Cnucha) is a voluntary Vincentian secondary school for boys, situated in the residential suburb of Castleknock, west of Dublin city centre, Ireland.
Founded in 1835 by Philip Dowley, it is one o ...
and
University College Dublin
University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...
, where he earned a degree in Legal and Political Science. In 1952, he was called to the
Kings Inns
The Honorable Society of King's Inns ( ir, Cumann Onórach Óstaí an Rí) is the "Inn of Court" for the Bar of Ireland. Established in 1541, King's Inns is Ireland's oldest school of law and one of Ireland's significant historical environmen ...
. In 1954, he abandoned a legal career in favour of the performing arts, joining the
George Mitchell Singers in London but had a "day job" working for an insurance company. During the summer season in
Llandudno
Llandudno (, ) is a seaside resort, town and community in Conwy County Borough, Wales, located on the Creuddyn peninsula, which protrudes into the Irish Sea. In the 2011 UK census, the community – which includes Gogarth, Penrhyn Bay, Craigsi ...
, he met and later married a singer and dancer from Dublin named Vicky Fitzpatrick. They had three children Jane, John (died 1980) and Dominic.
[ He was the son of ]John O'Byrne
John O'Byrne (24 April 1884 – 14 January 1954) was an Irish judge and barrister who served as a Judge of the Supreme Court, Judge of the High Court from 1926 to 1940 and Attorney General of Ireland from 1924 to 1926.
Early life
He was born o ...
, K.C. and Marjorie (née McGuire).["The late Paddy O’Byrne, a major radio name in two countries, dies in Mullingar"]
(11 December 2013) ''Westmeath Examiner
The ''Westmeath Examiner'' is a weekly newspaper in Westmeath, Ireland. It was founded in 1882.
The ''Westmeath Examiner'' is a sister paper of the ''Westmeath Independent'' which circulates in the Athlone area of the county. The ''Westmeath E ...
''
Career in South Africa
O’Byrne emigrated to the Union of South Africa
The Union of South Africa ( nl, Unie van Zuid-Afrika; af, Unie van Suid-Afrika; ) was the historical predecessor to the present-day Republic of South Africa. It came into existence on 31 May 1910 with the unification of the Cape, Natal, Trans ...
in 1958. In 1961, he won a competition called The Voice of South Africa, thereby gaining a contract with the South African Broadcasting Corporation
The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) is the public broadcaster in South Africa, and provides 19 radio stations ( AM/ FM) as well as six television broadcasts to the general public. It is one of the largest of South Africa's state ...
and a new career.[ As was commonly the case at the time, both among Irish actors abroad as well as many South Africans in the theatre and broadcast media, he used ]Received Pronunciation
Received Pronunciation (RP) is the Accent (sociolinguistics), accent traditionally regarded as the Standard language, standard and most Prestige (sociolinguistics), prestigious form of spoken British English. For over a century, there has been ...
for his professional speaking voice.Peter Roach (2001) ''British English: Received Pronunciation'', School of Linguistics and Applied Language Studies, University of Reading
In 1980, when the radio station Talk Radio 702
702 is a commercial FM radio station based in Johannesburg, South Africa, broadcasting on FM 92.7 and FM 106 to the greater Gauteng province. The station is also webcast via its website. It claims to be Johannesburg's number one news and talk ...
was launched in Johannesburg
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...
, he was the first announcer heard on it. He also worked for Radio Today
Radio Today is a 24 hours radio station in Bangladesh that started airing in May 2006. It is currently available in Dhaka, Chittagong, Cox's Bazar, Khulna, Bogra, Sylhet, Mymensingh, Barishal, Kushtia, Comilla
Comilla (; bn, কুমি ...
and Radio Veritas
Radio Veritas Asia was the non-commercial Catholic shortwave station broadcasting to Asia. It is based in Quezon City, Philippines, and is owned by the Philippine Radio Educational and Information Center, which previously owned the original Rad ...
, a Roman Catholic station, in Johannesburg and for Fine Music Radio in Cape Town.[ He also worked for the ]BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
in the United Kingdom, during the 1970s and 1980s.