Norton returns to former school after 30 years

SO... Graham Norton visited his old school, Bandon Grammar, in Co Cork yesterday to present awards to students at the annual ceremony.

While there, the television and radio personality was also named Cork Person of the Month.

Norton’s talk show, The Graham Norton Show, has just been awarded the prestigious Friday evening slot on BBC One, replacing Jonathan Ross.

His first show in this slot will go out next Friday. He has also taken over Ross’s slot on BBC Radio 2 on Saturday mornings.

Of the move to Friday nights, Norton says: “It’s basically the same show, just moved from Monday. It is a more high-profile slot, but otherwise we haven’t changed a thing. There’s no great pressure – mostly it’s a nice pat on the back.

“We’ll record the first show next Thursday. We’ve got the singer Charlotte Church and the comedian Russell Howard on as guests, plus a few more I’m not naming yet.”

Norton says he was surprised to be offered both the new radio and television slots.

“In an ideal world, I would not have said yes to both,” he says. “But they offered me the radio one first, when I thought we weren’t being moved to Fridays on TV.

“And that’s why I said yes. It’s a very nice radio slot, at 10 o’clock on Saturday mornings. And then they turned around and said they would be moving the TV show to Friday nights, so I’ve said yes to both jobs.”

Norton, whose real surname is Walker, was born in Clondalkin in 1963, grew up in Bandon, and now has a holiday home outside Bantry, where he spends several months each summer.

“If you told me when I was 18 that each year I would voluntarily come back for two or three months, I would never have believed it, I would have thought you were mad,” he says. “When I finished school, I ran away. I couldn’t wait to get out of here. But I love West Cork now.”

This summer, he opened a new cancer care unit at Bantry hospital. “It was an amazing thing; the community raised nearly €300,000 in three years. For a small community, in a recession, that’s really impressive.”

Norton, who is openly gay, has often claimed that growing up he put his sense of being different down to being raised a Protestant in West Cork.

Of his time at school, he says: “I wasn’t unhappy. It was fine. I wasn’t a big fan of school, because all the things that help you get through, like being good at sports or being clever, I wasn’t.

“I just chugged along, got through it, six years. So I wasn’t unhappy here, but school wasn’t a very good fit for me.”

Yesterday was the first time he had returned to Bandon Grammar in 30 years. “It’s very different, but it’s the same. It’s like being re-cast in a soap opera; the same character being played by a different person. The vibe is very similar.”

After finishing school, Norton studied arts at UCC. He was active in student drama and once performed in a production of Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot.

“I played lucky, but after that, I just never got the breaks,” he jokes. “The same cast took Godot out on the road again a few years ago. Everyone but me was in it, but they did ask me to send them a good luck message.”

Norton left UCC without finishing his degree and lived in San Francisco for a time before settling in London. He trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama at the University of London, and worked as a barman while he established his career as a stand-up comedian.

His first forays into TV included appearances as Fr Noel Furlong in Father Ted in 1996. He made his mark at Channel 4 with the variety shows So Graham Norton and V Graham Norton.

Five years ago, he was poached by the BBC, where his notable accomplishments have included replacing Terry Wogan as the presenter of the Eurovision Song Contest, as well as presenting a number of talent shows with Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Norton is now one of the highest-paid television presenters in Britain. Although his salary was reportedly cut this year as part of the BBC’s financial review, he earns an estimated €2.4m per year.

“But you never feel like you’ve arrived,” he says. “You could be shown the door at any minute. So you enjoy it as you’re doing it, but you’re always thinking it might stop. That said, I love my job, and I do count my blessings.”

Norton was greeted enthusiastically by students, teachers and parents at Bandon Grammar. He happily posed for photos with many who attended the prize-giving ceremony.

Being named Corkman of the Month means he will now go forward for possible selection as Cork Person of the Year, at a gala awards lunch at the Fota Island Hotel on January 21 next.

This is the 18th year of the Cork Person of the Month Award scheme, which is sponsored by RTÉ, the Irish Examiner, Southern Advertising, and the Fota Island Hotel.