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The Independent
26-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Irish premier praises Henry Kelly for his ‘huge contribution to journalism'
Ireland's premier has praised Henry Kelly for making a 'huge contribution to journalism and broadcasting' within Ireland and the UK following his death. The former Going For Gold and Game For A Laugh host died 'peacefully' on Tuesday 'after a period of ill health', his family said. Writer and broadcaster Kelly began his career at the broadsheet newspaper The Irish Times while doing theatre reviews as a student at University College Dublin. He went on to become its northern editor, based in Belfast in the 1970s – where he covered the height of the Troubles. In 1976, he moved to London and joined the long-running BBC Radio 4 current affairs programme, The World Tonight, as a reporter and presenter. TV presenting gigs followed from the 1980s, including entertainment show Game For A Laugh on ITV from 1981. He went on to host BBC 1 game show Going For Gold for 10 seasons from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s. Taoiseach Micheal Martin paid tribute to the broadcaster in a post on X, writing: 'Very saddened to learn of the passing of Henry Kelly. 'From his time as northern editor of the Irish Times to presenting BBC shows including Going For Gold, Henry made a huge contribution to journalism & broadcasting here and in the UK. 'My thoughts are with his family at this time.' Former Sky News presenter Kay Burley recalled how Kelly was 'always game for a laugh' and said he will be 'sadly missed' as she paid tribute. Downton Abbey star Peter Egan remembered him as a 'delightful man and a terrific presenter' and said he 'liked him very much'. Classic FM, where Kelly hosted a daily breakfast programme from 1992 to 2003, thanked him for 'sharing your love of music with us all'. In 1994, he was voted national broadcaster of the year in the Sony Radio Awards. GB News presenter Mark Dolan described the broadcaster as a 'total legend' who was 'generous, funny, clever and wise' as he recalled meeting him when he worked at LBC. He hosted the Henry Kelly Show on LBC for a stint, as well as presenting on the local station, BBC Radio Berkshire, between 2005 and 2015. Irish broadcaster and journalist Vincent Browne also hailed Kelly as a 'great reporter' but said it was a 'pity he drifted into entertainment'. A statement from Kelly's family said: 'Henry will be sorely missed by his friends and family, including his partner Karolyn Shindler, their son Alexander, Henry's daughter, Siobhan, and her mother, Marjorie.' His programme Going For Gold, which featured a theme tune from Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer, saw people from different countries competing against each other for a cash prize through answering questions. It was shortly revived by Channel 5 with newsreader John Suchet at the helm during the 2000s, with the European contestants absent from the revival. Kelly also appeared in comedy show Dinnerladies, had a stint on morning programme TV-am, and talk show After Dark. He also wrote a number of books including the 1970s work, How Stormont Fell, about the events which hit the Northern Irish parliament, and co-authored the 1990s collection Classic FM Musical Anecdotes, Notes And Quotes with John Foley. In 2022, Kelly along with RTE and TV3 current affairs presenter Browne was asked by a Belfast coroner to give evidence at the inquest of barman John Moran, who was killed in a loyalist bomb attack in 1972. A hearing, at Belfast Coroner's Court, heard that Kelly's partner had indicated he had no recollection of the incident and was unable to assist. Last year, the court said it had been unable to conclude the inquest by a deadline.
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Irish premier praises Henry Kelly for his ‘huge contribution to journalism'
Ireland's premier has praised Henry Kelly for making a 'huge contribution to journalism and broadcasting' within Ireland and the UK following his death. The former Going For Gold and Game For A Laugh host died 'peacefully' on Tuesday 'after a period of ill health', his family said. Writer and broadcaster Kelly began his career at the broadsheet newspaper The Irish Times while doing theatre reviews as a student at University College Dublin. He went on to become its northern editor, based in Belfast in the 1970s – where he covered the height of the Troubles. In 1976, he moved to London and joined the long-running BBC Radio 4 current affairs programme, The World Tonight, as a reporter and presenter. TV presenting gigs followed from the 1980s, including entertainment show Game For A Laugh on ITV from 1981. He went on to host BBC 1 game show Going For Gold for 10 seasons from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s. Taoiseach Micheal Martin paid tribute to the broadcaster in a post on X, writing: 'Very saddened to learn of the passing of Henry Kelly. 'From his time as northern editor of the Irish Times to presenting BBC shows including Going For Gold, Henry made a huge contribution to journalism & broadcasting here and in the UK. 'My thoughts are with his family at this time.' Former Sky News presenter Kay Burley recalled how Kelly was 'always game for a laugh' and said he will be 'sadly missed' as she paid tribute. The great Henry Kelly, always game for a laugh, has died at the age of 78. From Irish newspaper reporter to UK household name, Henry will be sadly missed. — Kay Burley (@KayBurley) February 26, 2025 Downton Abbey star Peter Egan remembered him as a 'delightful man and a terrific presenter' and said he 'liked him very much'. Classic FM, where Kelly hosted a daily breakfast programme from 1992 to 2003, thanked him for 'sharing your love of music with us all'. In 1994, he was voted national broadcaster of the year in the Sony Radio Awards. GB News presenter Mark Dolan described the broadcaster as a 'total legend' who was 'generous, funny, clever and wise' as he recalled meeting him when he worked at LBC. He hosted the Henry Kelly Show on LBC for a stint, as well as presenting on the local station, BBC Radio Berkshire, between 2005 and 2015. Irish broadcaster and journalist Vincent Browne also hailed Kelly as a 'great reporter' but said it was a 'pity he drifted into entertainment'. A statement from Kelly's family said: 'Henry will be sorely missed by his friends and family, including his partner Karolyn Shindler, their son Alexander, Henry's daughter, Siobhan, and her mother, Marjorie.' His programme Going For Gold, which featured a theme tune from Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer, saw people from different countries competing against each other for a cash prize through answering questions. It was shortly revived by Channel 5 with newsreader John Suchet at the helm during the 2000s, with the European contestants absent from the revival. Kelly also appeared in comedy show Dinnerladies, had a stint on morning programme TV-am, and talk show After Dark. He also wrote a number of books including the 1970s work, How Stormont Fell, about the events which hit the Northern Irish parliament, and co-authored the 1990s collection Classic FM Musical Anecdotes, Notes And Quotes with John Foley. In 2022, Kelly along with RTE and TV3 current affairs presenter Browne was asked by a Belfast coroner to give evidence at the inquest of barman John Moran, who was killed in a loyalist bomb attack in 1972. A hearing, at Belfast Coroner's Court, heard that Kelly's partner had indicated he had no recollection of the incident and was unable to assist. Last year, the court said it had been unable to conclude the inquest by a deadline.
MTV Lebanon
26-02-2025
- Entertainment
- MTV Lebanon
TV presenter and journalist Henry Kelly dies at 78
Journalist and TV presenter Henry Kelly has died aged 78, his family has announced. Kelly was a journalist who later pivoted to light entertainment, hosting TV gameshow Game For A Laugh and Going For Gold in the 1980s and 90s. He also presented programmes on BBC Radio 4, LBC and Classic FM. In a statement, Kelly's family said he "died peacefully" on Tuesday "after a period of ill health". "Henry will be sorely missed by his friends and family," it continued, "including his partner Karolyn Shindler, their son Alexander, Henry's daughter Siobhan and her mother Marjorie". Born in Dublin on 17 April 1946, Kelly started his journalistic career in newspapers. He worked for The Irish Times in the 1970s during civil unrest and the Troubles in Northern Ireland. He left the newspaper and moved to London to join the BBC in 1976, working as a reporter and presenter for Radio 4's The World Tonight. But in 1980, aged 34, he left journalism to become a light entertainment presenter. He went on to front ITV's Game For A Laugh, and the first iteration of Good Morning Britain on TV-am, alongside Toni Arthur. Game For A Laugh largely involved practical jokes and elaborate set-ups, often on members of the studio audience or filmed on location on unsuspecting members of the public. Kelly also fronted lunchtime quiz show Going For Gold for 10 seasons from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s. The theme tune for Going For Gold was composed by Hans Zimmer, who went on to become a hugely successful film and TV composer. The show saw contestants from different European countries compete against each other to answer questions to win prizes. Going For Gold was briefly revived in the late 2000s by Channel 5, presented by John Suchet. Kelly later became one of the launch presenters of Classic FM and also hosted shows on speech station LBC, BBC Radio London. He hosted a show on BBC Radio Berkshire for 10 years from 2005. Speaking to Challenge TV about his memories of Going for Gold, Kelly – who almost missed the hosting audition as he was planning to play golf – noted how "the whole point" of the show "was that it was Pan-European". "We were the only people in this country at the time, and probably since, who were really European, and so we had contestants from all over Europe," he said. Recalling one example of comedic cross cultural confusion on episode one of the new show, he added: "The question for all the contestants was, what is the name of the piece of least value on a chessboard? "Bang, goes [Swedish contestant] Ida-Britt, and looked at me and said: 'the farmer'. "'Right, I think not' [he replied]. But we checked, only to discover that in Sweden, a pawn is in the shape of a little Swedish farmer. So she was right!" Kelly also appeared in Victoria Wood's comedy show Dinnerladies, and hosted journalistic talk show After Dark. In 1994 he was voted national broadcaster of the year in the Sony Radio Awards.
Sky News
26-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Sky News
Going For Gold and Game For A Laugh presenter Henry Kelly dies
Going For Gold presenter Henry Kelly has died aged 78, his family has said. The Dublin-born writer and broadcaster died "peacefully" on Tuesday "after a period of ill health". "Henry will be sorely missed by his friends and family, including his partner Karolyn Shindler, their son Alexander, Henry's daughter Siobhan and her mother Marjorie," they added in a statement. Kelly began his career in journalism in the 1960s while in Dublin - radio and TV presenting gigs followed from the 1970s when he moved to England. While at University College Dublin, he wrote theatre reviews for The Irish Times, graduating with an English degree in 1968. He went on to become the newspaper's northern editor, based in Belfast in the 1970s - where he covered the height of The Troubles. Kelly joined BBC Radio 4 current affairs programme The World Tonight as a reporter and presenter when he moved to London in 1976. He was a presenter on the ITV entertainment show Game For A Laugh from 1981 - and went on to host BBC One game show Going For Gold for 10 seasons from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s. The original show saw people from different countries competing against each other for a cash prize through answering questions. The show's theme tune was composed by future multi-award winning composer Hans Zimmer. The show was revived by Channel 5, featuring contestants from the UK and Ireland only, with newsreader John Suchet at the helm. Kelly also appeared in Victoria Wood sitcom Dinnerladies, had a stint on morning programme TV-am, and talk show After Dark. He was a founding presenter on Classic FM where he hosted a daily breakfast show from 1992 to 2003 - and won a Sony Radio Award in 1994 when he was voted national broadcaster of the year. His later radio career saw him have the Henry Kelly Show on LBC for a while, as well as present on BBC Radio Berkshire from 2005 to 2015. He also wrote books including the 1972 work How Stormont Fell, about the events which hit the Northern Irish parliament, and he co-authored the 1990s collection Classic FM Musical Anecdotes, Notes And Quotes with John Foley.
The Independent
26-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Going For Gold and Game For A Laugh host Henry Kelly dies aged 78
Former Going For Gold and Game For A Laugh host Henry Kelly has died aged 78. The writer and broadcaster died 'peacefully' on Tuesday 'after a period of ill health', his family said. They said in a statement: 'Henry will be sorely missed by his friends and family, including his partner Karolyn Shindler, their son Alexander, Henry's daughter Siobhan and her mother Marjorie.' Born in Dublin on April 17 1946, Kelly was a friend of fellow Belvedere College pupil Sir Terry Wogan, who fronted a host of entertainment shows including the Eurovision Song Contest and Blankety Blank. Kelly began his career at the broadsheet newspaper The Irish Times while doing theatre reviews as a student at University College Dublin. He went on to become its northern editor, based in Belfast in the 1970s – where he covered the height of the Troubles. In 1976, he moved to London and joined the long-running BBC Radio 4 current affairs programme, The World Tonight, as a reporter and presenter. TV presenting gigs followed from the 1980s, including entertainment show Game For A Laugh on ITV from 1981. He went on to host BBC 1 game show Going For Gold for 10 seasons from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s. The original show, which featured a theme tune from Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer, saw people from different countries competing against each other for a cash prize through answering questions. It was shortly revived by Channel 5 with newsreader John Suchet at the helm during the 2000s, with the European contestants absent from the revival. Kelly also appeared in comedy show Dinnerladies, had a stint on morning programme TV-am, and talk show After Dark. He was a founding presenter on the classical music radio station Classic FM where he has a daily breakfast programme from 1992 to 2003. In 1994 he was voted national broadcaster of the year in the Sony Radio Awards. His later radio career saw him have the Henry Kelly Show on LBC for a stint, as well as present on the local station BBC Radio Berkshire between 2005 and 2015. In 2022, Kelly along with RTE and TV3 current affairs presenter Vincent Browne was asked by a Belfast coroner to give evidence at the inquest of barman John Moran, who was killed in a loyalist bomb attack in 1972. A hearing, at Belfast Coroner's Court, heard that Kelly's partner had indicated he has no recollection of the incident and is unable to assist. Last year, the court said it had been unable to conclude the inquest by a deadline. Kelly also wrote books including the 1970s work How Stormont Fell, about the events which hit the Northern Irish parliament, and co-authored the 1990s collection Classic FM Musical Anecdotes, Notes And Quotes with John Foley.
