Roger Michael Royle (born 30 January 1939) is a British Anglican priest and broadcaster. He is known for having presented the '' Sunday Half Hour'' programme on BBC Radio 2 for 17 years from 1990 to 2007.

Early life and education

Royle was born on 30 January 1939 in

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

, Wales. His father, Reginald, was vicar of St Saviour's church in

Splott Splott ( cy, Y Sblot) is a district and community in the south of the city of Cardiff, capital of Wales, just east of the city centre. It was built up in the late 19th century on the land of two farms of the same name: Upper Splott and Lower Spl ...

, Cardiff. His father died when Royle was 14 months old, and the family then moved to the

Penylan Penylan is a district and community in the east of Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, known for its Edwardian era period houses and spacious tree lined roads and avenues. Situated to both the north and south of the A48 dual carriageway, it ...

area of the city. Royle was educated at Marlborough Road and Roath Park primary schools in Cardiff. He then continued his education in England, attending St Edmund's School, then an all-boys independent school in

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

, Kent, which was run by the Clergy Orphan Corporation. He studied theology at King's College London, graduating with an

Associateship of King's College The Associateship or Associate of King's College (AKC) award was the degree-equivalent qualification of King's College London from 1833. It is the original qualification that King's awarded to its students. In current practice, it is an optional ...

(AKC) qualification (equivalent to an

ordinary degree The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading structure for undergraduate degrees or bachelor's degrees and integrated master's degrees in the United Kingdom. The system has been applied (sometimes with significant variati ...

) in 1961. He then undertook a year of training at St Boniface Missionary College, Warminster, in preparation for ordination.

Ordained ministry

Royle was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

as a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

in 1962 and as a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...

in 1963. From 1962 to 1965, he served his

curacy A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

at St Mary's Church,

Portsea, Portsmouth Portsea Island is a flat and low-lying natural island in area, just off the southern coast of Hampshire in England. Portsea Island contains the majority of the city of Portsmouth. Portsea Island has the third-largest population of all th ...

, in the Diocese of Portsmouth. Then, from 1965 to 1968, he served as senior curate at St Peter's Church,

Morden Morden is a district and town in south London, England, within the London Borough of Merton, in the ceremonial county of Greater London. It adjoins Merton Park and Wimbledon to the north, Mitcham to the east, Sutton to the south and Worcester ...

, London, in the

Diocese of Southwark The Diocese of Southwark is one of the 42 dioceses of the Church of England, part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The diocese forms part of the Province of Canterbury in England. It was created on 1 May 1905 from part of the ancient Dio ...

. Following his curacies, he moved to

Southwark Cathedral Southwark Cathedral ( ) or The Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Saviour and St Mary Overie, Southwark, London, lies on the south bank of the River Thames close to London Bridge. It is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Southwar ...

where he served as

succentor The succentor ("under-singer") is the assistant to the precentor, typically in an ancient cathedral foundation, helping with the preparation and conduct of the liturgy including psalms, preces and responses. In English cathedrals today, the prie ...

for the next three years. In 1971, Royle moved to the

Diocese of Oxford The Diocese of Oxford is a Church of England diocese that forms part of the Province of Canterbury. The diocese is led by the Bishop of Oxford (currently Steven Croft), and the bishop's seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford. It contain ...

where he was appointed to his first

incumbency The incumbent is the current holder of an office or position, usually in relation to an election. In an election for president, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the office of president before the election, whether seeking re-ele ...

. From 1971 to 1974, he served as priest-in-charge of St James the Less,

Dorney Dorney is a village and civil parish in the Unitary Authority of Buckinghamshire, England, bordering on the River Thames to the west and south, and bisected by the Jubilee River. In 2011 it had a population of 752. It is west of neighbouring ...

, and warden of the Dorney Eton College Project. Between 1974 and 1979, he served as Conduct (IE the senior chaplain) of

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...

, an all-boys public school near

Windsor, Berkshire Windsor is a historic market town and unparished area in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. It is the site of Windsor Castle, one of the official residences of the British monarch. The town is situated west ...

. After leaving Eton in 1979, Royle moved to London. There, he held a

licence to officiate A permission to officiate (PTO), also known as a licence to officiate, is a concessionary ministry licence granted by an Anglican bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a ...

in the

from 1979 to 1990. He was chaplain to Lord Mayor Treloar College, a special school for disabled children and young people, between 1990 and 1992. During this appointment, he was also an honorary curate of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Froyle, in the

Diocese of Winchester The Diocese of Winchester forms part of the Province of Canterbury of the Church of England. Founded in 676, it is one of the older dioceses in England. It once covered Wessex, many times its present size which is today most of the historic enl ...

. From 1993 to 1999, he was an

honorary canon A canon (from the Latin , itself derived from the Greek , , "relating to a rule", "regular") is a member of certain bodies in subject to an ecclesiastical rule. Originally, a canon was a cleric living with others in a clergy house or, later, i ...

and chaplain of Southwark Cathedral. He has held a

permission to officiate A permission to officiate (PTO), also known as a licence to officiate, is a concessionary ministry licence granted by an Anglican bishop. It is most commonly issued to a retired deacon, priest, or lay reader over the age of 70 years. It allows th ...

in the Diocese of Southwark since 1999 and has been retired since 2004.

Media career

Royle has been a presenter on a number of television series: * ''Royle Progress'' for Southern Television * ''The Royle Line'' for

Ulster Television UTV (formerly Ulster Television, branded on air as ITV1) is the ITV region covering Northern Ireland, ITV subsidiary and the former on-air name of the free-to-air public broadcast television channel serving the area. It is run by ITV plc an ...

* '' Songs of Praise'' for

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

. Royle's BBC career has also included presenting: * '' Good Morning Sunday'' * '' A Royle Tour'' * '' Stop the Week'' * '' Sunday Half Hour'' (from 1990 to 2007) He appeared on ''Pause for Thought'' on

Terry Wogan Sir Michael Terence Wogan (; 3 August 1938 – 31 January 2016) was an Irish radio and television broadcaster who worked for the BBC in the UK for most of his career. Between 1993 and his semi-retirement in December 2009, his BBC Radio 2 week ...

's Radio 2 weekday show and writes a weekly column for '' Woman's Weekly''.

Retirement

On 4 March 2007, Royle said that he would be standing down from his longstanding position on Radio 2 presenting '' Sunday Half Hour'', despite this he continued appearances on ''Pause for Thought'' on occasional weekday mornings. He also continued to present his Christmas Day early morning show on Radio 2 until 2017. On 23 October 2014, Royle accepted the position of patron to mental health charity Being Alongside, formerly the Association for Pastoral Care in Mental Health (APCMH).

Honours

In 1992, Royle was awarded a Lambeth Master of Arts (MA) degree in recognition of his work in the media.

Published works

*''A Few Blocks from Broadway'' *''Royle Exchange'' *''To Have and To Hold'' *''Picking Up the Pieces'' – a book about

Mother Teresa Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu, MC (; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa ( sq, Nënë Tereza), was an Indian-Albanian Catholic nun who, in 1950, founded the Missionaries of Charity. Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu () was ...

References

''Pause for Thought'' contributors

Video clips

* about Brinsworth House, presented by Royle {{DEFAULTSORT:Royle, Roger 1939 births Living people Clergy from Cardiff British radio personalities British television presenters British radio DJs BBC Radio 2 presenters People educated at St Edmund's School Canterbury Alumni of King's College London 20th-century English Anglican priests 21st-century English Anglican priests Mass media people from Cardiff Holders of a Lambeth degree Associates of King's College