Henry Kelly facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Henry Kelly
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Kelly (r) hosting After Dark on 13 August 1988: "Derry '68"
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| Born | 17 April 1946 Athlone, County Westmeath, Ireland
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| Died | 25 February 2025 (aged 78) |
| Occupation | Television presenter, radio DJ, actor |
| Years active | 1975–2025 |
Henry Kelly (born April 17, 1946 – died February 25, 2025) was a well-known Irish TV and radio presenter. He was also an actor and journalist. Most of his career was spent working in the United Kingdom.
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Early Life and Education
Henry Kelly was born in Athlone, a town in County Westmeath, Ireland, on April 17, 1946. He went to school at Belvedere College. Later, he studied at University College Dublin. While there, he was a leader of the Literary and Historical Society. He also wrote reviews about plays for a newspaper called The Irish Times.
Career in Journalism
After finishing his English degree in 1968, Henry Kelly started working as a journalist for The Irish Times. In 1970, he became the Northern Editor, based in Belfast. This was at the beginning of a difficult time in Northern Ireland known as The Troubles. He worked in this role for five years.
During his time as a journalist in Northern Ireland, he wrote a book called How Stormont Fell (1972). This book is still highly respected today. In 1976, he left The Irish Times and moved to London. There, he worked for the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) on their Radio 4 programme, The World Tonight.
Television Career
In 1980, when he was 34, Henry Kelly decided to change his career. He left journalism to work in television, mostly presenting fun, light entertainment shows. He was inspired by the success of his friend's family member, Terry Wogan, who was also a successful BBC presenter.
In 1981, Kelly became a co-presenter on the ITV show Game for a Laugh. This show was very popular and made him a famous face in the UK. He stayed with the show until 1983. In June 1983, Kelly joined TV-am, where he co-hosted the Saturday morning show Good Morning, Britain. He also filled in for other presenters and hosted Summer Sunday.
From 1987 to 1996, he presented Going for Gold on BBC1. This was a popular lunchtime quiz show where contestants from different European countries competed. In 1988, he briefly returned to journalism to host After Dark. He had previously appeared on this show to talk about events in Northern Ireland that he had seen as a journalist.
In 2000, he played a quiz show host in the last two episodes of the TV comedy dinnerladies. He had worked with the show's creator, Victoria Wood, before. He also sometimes appeared on Sky News to review Sunday newspapers.
Radio Career
In 1992, Henry Kelly was one of the first presenters on Classic FM, a new radio station. He first hosted the mid-morning show. Later, he moved to the Breakfast Show, which he presented until 2003. He returned to Classic FM between 2006 and 2008 to host a Sunday morning show.
In September 2003, Kelly started presenting the Drivetime show on LBC 97.3, a news and talk radio station in London. In 2005, he spent two weeks presenting a late show on BBC Radio London 94.9. In September 2005, he took over the weekday mid-morning show on BBC Radio Berkshire. He later presented a Saturday mid-morning show for that station until 2015.
Other Work and Interests
In 2013, Henry Kelly appeared in a series of video advertisements for a car dealership. He was also the narrator for many of Video 125's "Driver's Eye Views," which are videos showing train journeys from the driver's perspective, especially on Irish railways.
Henry Kelly was married to journalist Karolyn Shindler. They lived in Hampstead, North London, and had two children. He enjoyed playing golf. In 1994, he won the first-ever William Roache Charity Classic Invitational golf tournament.
Publications
