LONDON - Gay Byrne, a former television presenter and radio host who became a fixture in Irish households and used his celebrity to shine a light on the shadier aspects of Irish society, died Monday, his longtime employer RTE said. Byrne died after undergoing treatment for cancer, RTE said. A staple of Irish households, he did a decadeslong stint as host of “The Late Late Show,” and also hosted other radio and TV programs for Ireland’s national broadcaster. “He challenged Irish society, and shone a light not only on the bright but also the dark sides of Irish life,” Irish President Michael Higgins said in a statement. In the 1960s, he returned to Ireland full-time as the presenter and producer of “The Late Late Show.”One of Byrne’s more famous interviews was with the boy band Boyzone, soon after it formed in 1993.

Source: thestar November 04, 2019 19:41 UTC