A shared attachment and a fond farewell to Bill O’Herlihy

Bill O’Herlihy was among the first guests I recognised as our family took our seats for the IFTA awards ceremony in Dublin’s Mansion House on Sunday night. We shared adjoining tables and, instinctively, I knew we’d say hello.

I could see Bill was having a great time, in his element, meeting and greeting. For me, this was a great family occasion: our daughter Caroline was hosting the glittering event and, naturally, all our family wanted to share in the euphoria.

Soon I was sitting in beside Bill and we were chatting about the great night we were having. Talk turned to the changing face of the media — and a shared attachment to our old alma mater. You see, we both had worked for The Examiner newspaper, though at different periods.