Simon Young RIP

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118102674#Comment_118102674

That's a great interview. Thanks for sharing it.

Dolphinsmile

RIP Simon

hawley

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118102674#Comment_118102674

Really sorry that his life was so tough in his later years. It was difficult to watch that. He really brightened up your day when he was on the radio and tv. Condolences to his family and friends.

ford fiesta

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118102843#Comment_118102843

Very funny

Pelvis Parsley

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118104228#Comment_118104228

"These will become the happiest days of our lives, if we're not careful!".

He was certainly enjoying himself there.

radiowaves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118103813#Comment_118103813

Yes, he was 62.

Get oura that garden! I followed his career and remember him talking about his mental health. Rest in peace. Will be dearly missed.

paconnors

RIP Simon

Gone to the Great Radio Studio in the Sky. He's with his Former Colleagues Larry Gogan. Tony Fenton & Gerry Ryan.

Condolences to his Family

briany

I was watching a clip of him on the Den earlier where he was on doing a pop music roundup. Dustin was cracking jokes in front of him and cracking Simon up. Simon caught his breath just enough to remark that, if they weren't careful, these could become the happiest days of their lives, and I think he was right there. What a sea change it was to where he disappeared for some years and then re-emerged on the Brendan o Connor show one night, and there was an air of sadness about him, which wasn't surprising when he told the story of personal tribulations he'd been through. It's a pity he never seemed to quite make it out of the depression he suffered from, even though I think the whole of Ireland, or at least those who remember him, would have been behind him and would've loved to hear him on the radio again.

Clon63

Really sad to hear. Good memories from growing up. Remember the BeatBiox, the weekend Dance Show abd the Jukebox on Sundays when I was a committed 2FM listener.

Remember the Weekend Breakfast Show most of all. I remember being about 19 and working in a part time job from 12pm - 8am Saturday night in a call centre on my own. Would be flagging by 7am and would make my last cup of tea just before he came on at 7am and would be listening to the last hour as I walked home and lookibg forward to bed. Remember him playing Take That Back For Good allthe time and bizarrely Elvis In The Ghetto.

Home then and now is Clondalkin and he wad a long time resident here. One of his neighbours in the apartments where he lived for the last while put up a nice but sad picture of him saying he had been a very good neighbour for the past 7 years.

Always thought he fitted the mould of the old style DJ of the Smashy and Nicey era. Was obviously big into the production side of things and his The Simon Young Radio Show on 2FM Irelands Number 1 ......... is a classic. I remember he used to do a "handover" smashy and nicey style with Lorcan Murray (yo bros, class tracks, beat it backwards) when he came on aftwr Simon and could be quite anoraky. I remember one night him talking about being in USA involved in recording jingles for the various 2fm shows and him.playing one that Gerry Ryan refused to use. It was a sickly sweet Gerry Ryan ... tbe Ryanline ... on 2FM Irelands Number 1 in the style of his own one.

I also remember an appearance on the Late Late Show with Tony Fenton, Lorcan Murray and Gerry Wilson doung "Rap Against Rape". The intenion was good but it was awful looking bad. I did buy the cassette single though. Innocent times!!

Always remember talking about going fishing with his nephews as well.

RIP

waxmelts2000

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118102674#Comment_118102674

Gosh, that was a pretty tough interview for Simon, I guess. Heartbreaking to watch it and know what he went through. RIP Simon, loved your shows from back in the day

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118104861#Comment_118104861

Indeed. And when you see Barry Lang return to the mic with ease after his pilot career ended with the Covid outbreak, it’s such a shame that Simon couldn’t get well enough to do the same-any classic hits type show would have been perfect for him

prunudo

Sad to hear of his passing, a voice from the past that many people 40 plus will have fond memories of. I remember watching that Brendan O'connor show and while willing him on to come back, at the back of my mind I feared he would struggle to get back into the industry he loved.

Bit of a cross over from the Louise McSharry thread, but I wonder is there a bad culture within rte radio management and how they handle their staff. Plenty of presenters have been pushed to ditch and struggled afterwards with their health, both mental and physical. It seems the drive for ratings, ad revenue and being hip trumps how you deal people on a personal level. The fact that it was 3pm before there was any word on the rte news site says it all tbh.

ford fiesta

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118105400#Comment_118105400

seriously? that would make aidan leonard 70 too🤣

it's just shoddy "journalism" Simon's age, location and programmes he presented/years are very inaccurate....coming from some of the established news outlets.

JoeA3

If you listen back to Ray D'Arcy's show from yesterday (about 20 minutes into it), he has Ian Dempsey on and they give him a great tribute. Iano also clarifies the age question. Definitely not 70!

Fr Tod Umptious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118101019#Comment_118101019

Plenty about him later on in the day on RTE both online and on TV and radio

It was on the Ian Dempsey show that I first heard about it and that was Ian reminiscing about him, not a news story as such.

Maybe the family did not want a press release about his passing and preferred the news filter out like it did ?

But hey, anything to take a dig at RTE yea ?

Glaceon

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118105678#Comment_118105678

I was thinking that myself; maybe RTE were more careful about making sure that family were informed first?

flazio

I have to agree with others that RTÉs wait, see and verify information was the right call unlike other establishments. I mean, we hardly expect everyone working in RTÉ today to be able to call up.....Garath O'Callaghans for example, exact age at a moments notice.

ford fiesta

there was no basis for the established newspapers / media outlets saying Aged 70 - it was a wild guess from someone and the others copied it (along with other incorrect information) - VERY unprofessional.

Simon's brother Glenn Meade, confirmed Simon's age:

https://twitter.com/MeadeGlenn/status/1455244507184775173

Losty Dublin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118105404#Comment_118105404

It's coming from an American tabloid website linked to Simon's Wikipedia page stating that he was both 70 and living in DC; both incorrect.

Ger Roe

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118107263#Comment_118107263

Not to take away from the tragic loss of Simon/Tom, but the copy and paste reporting of 'facts' relating to his death are very disappointing and probably a reflection of the times we are now in where legitimate media outlets feel that they are in a constant battle with social media and other unofficial and unaccountable websites.

They would serve their audience best to hold fire and verify facts first, like it used to be in the old days. Copying and pasting inaccuracies is not generating news. It was annoying to see so many word for word copied articles circulating all over the web with the same inaccurate 'facts'. We really have descended into a clickbait culture.

radiowaves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118107828#Comment_118107828

I couldn't agree more. The problem is that's exactly what RTÉ did, they waited until they had it verified (as did The Irish Times and Irish Independent from what I can see) but they've been criticised left, right and centre for being behind so many other outlets. Unfortunately, most people now get their news from social media accounts - unfortunate because many people do not differentiate between official journalist / news / industry accounts and the musings of your average Joe Bloggs (pun intended).

However, the one question that might be asked is why did it take RTÉ - who contacted us on Monday afternoon - so long to get/seek verification when the news had already broken on Sunday?

ford fiesta

These articles STILL have not been corrected on Simon's age and where he was living !!!!!!!.

There should be an apology published for inaccuracies in these publications (Irish Examiner, The Journal, Irish Ind etc) - I assume if it was some other well known figure, this would be done fairly quickly.

ford fiesta

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118108024#Comment_118108024

rip.ie is not a deaths register, some people think it actually is !!

I am sure Simon's funeral details will appear there soon.

flazio

@radiowaves The reason for contact on Monday instead of Sunday is probably down to the fact that it was probably a skeleton crew working on Sunday. Anyone in RTÉ invested didn't come in until Monday morning.

radiowaves

Radio Retro from Radiowaves.fm

Tribute to Simon Young

Here is an edition of the Anorak Hour from April 2002 which features clips from Simon's last ever Weekend Breakfast Show on 2FM in May 1999.

The programme was presented by Ger Roe and was broadcast on Phantom FM.

http://radiowaves.fm/ire/blog/1902/04/21/the-anorak-hour-304/

Losty Dublin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118108024#Comment_118108024

It is now listed on said site.

ford fiesta

Early 1986. Some Radio 2 weekend presenters:

Michael McNamara, John Clarke, Maxi, BP Fallon, Hugh O'Brien, Simon Young, Tony Fenton, Andy Ruane

beertons

He looks a bit like Ronan Collins in the talk show above.

Shed.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118101806#Comment_118101806

62 according to The Sun ( If you can believe The Sun). He had a great voice. Perfect tone for radio. Anyone know the cause of death?

briany

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118105358#Comment_118105358

When he appeared on the Brendan O' Connor show back in 2011, he did say at the end that he would like to get back into doing radio, but he never got that slot from RTE AFAIK. Maybe RTE could have been looking at it and weighing up the potential good publicity of getting a beloved former radio personality back on the air and helping them on their road to recovery, vs. the potential bad publicity if Young had been unable to maintain his period of mental wellness at the time.

There were/are plenty of radio stations that presumably would have been happy to give him airtime but then again maybe Young himself decided that getting back into the DJ thing wasn't right for him. We didn't really hear much from him since that short period where he was doing publicity.

ford fiesta

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118109384#Comment_118109384

In this case The Sun is spot on with Simon's age, not like the other established Newspapers and News websites out there

JoeA3

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118109498#Comment_118109498

I think if he was willing and able for it, he’d probably have gotten a slot somewhere. The likes of RTE Gold or Classic Hits / 4FM would have been tailor made for him. Who knows, but I suspect his health issues ultimately prevented him from ever getting back into it. A great shame, he had a lovely warm voice for radio.

Its funny how memorable and catchy his 2FM jingles are to this day - to a certain age group anyway.

Doodah7

What I find interesting is the overwhelming fondness there is out there for many of the DJ's that were on the airwaves during the 80's and early 90's when many if not all of these voices had worked and worked and worked through clubs and/or pirate radio stations to hone their craft to be as professional as possible. It obviously shone through in the work and their personality and they were genuinely liked by the listener.

Fast forward to today's present incumbents. Will they be held in same high regard as their predecessors in thirty years time when they start passing on? I highly doubt it somehow. Mainly because most of them are not DJ's or broadcasters but are parachuted in because they have become known in another field and the listener is expected to respect and like them for some previous job unrelated to radio.

RIP Simon.

JoeA3

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118112932#Comment_118112932

100% agree.

Also, I think it was just very different times. In the 1990's, 2FM had the "youth" market almost entirely to itself, certainly outside of Dublin anyway. The DJ's themselves had a certain degree of celebrity status - those "Beats on the Street" gigs they used to do had 30+ thousand in attendance! I don't think the youth of today would be too interested in watching the likes of Fergal D'Arcy prancing about on a stage!

Simon himself also had a strong TV presence with the youth market - with his Den appearances and his stint on the Beatbox.

There isn't a chance in hell the radio presenters of today will be remembered the same way in 10 years time, never mind 30 years time.

ford fiesta

Simon, Ian, Gerry, Larry, Tony, Barry and Gareth .... these 2FM guys were like family members in certain homes in the 80s / 90s.

This deep connection is hard to describe.

I genuinely do not think this was the case with the presenters on the Pre 1988 Superpirates / Post 1989 Independents.

Declan A Walsh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118113490#Comment_118113490

Except that Tony and Gareth came from the superpirates, and Gareth only joined RTE during 1988, starting with Millennium Radio! But I get your point at the same time.

Declan A Walsh

Before Gerry Ryan moved to his famous mid-morning slot, there was a solid nighttime combination of Gerry Ryan, Mark Cagney and Dave Fanning on 2FM.

Edit: I'm not saying necessarily immediately before, in case I'm picked up on that statement!

Doodah7

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118113490#Comment_118113490

And each and every one of the DJ's you listed were very, very good at their job! That is no coincidence. They each had a great personality, a warm voice, a love of music and a wish to share that love with the listener.

If today's lot spent less time worrying about the latest tweet or post from some gobdaw celebrity and more about injecting a bit of passion into presenting and playing music, it would serve them well.

Tork

I was shocked when I saw Simon being interviewed on TV. I assume it was Brendan O'Connor's chat show but can't remember that detail now. What stayed with me was how shook he was. It wasn't just how he looked - it was how he spoke. It was as if the light had been extinguished in him. He was also rambling a bit. That's no criticism of him because of all those awful health issues that beset him. But it might help explain why he never got another radio gig of note.

Declan A Walsh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118113490#Comment_118113490

Four of those names are now deceased.

Ian is on Today FM, where he looks increasingly out of place amongst the other presenters and its daytime music.

Gareth, who only came to 2FM in 1989, is retired for health reasons, with his last station being Classic Hits.

Barry left 2FM in 1998, the same year as Ian, and only returned to radio this year on Classic Hits after many years as a pilot.

Who else from the 1980s that became household names on Radio 2 / 2FM:

Dave Fanning is the only one from the pack still with 2FM, although sometimes he is on Radio 1 as well.

Mark Cagney was long gone from 2FM, but spent many years on Ireland AM on TV3/Virgin Media, and returned to radio in recent years on Newstalk, but he had health issues this year.

Marty Whelan left in 1989 for his ill-fated turn with Century Radio. These days he is on the tv, as he indeed he was before that move, and on Lyric FM.

Jim O'Neill was one of the first of that big name pack to leave Radio 2, as it was then. Done different things since, but now a weekend presenter on Wicklow's East Coast FM.

Let's not forget Jimmy Grealey, who left 2FM for Millennium Radio and eventually left RTE for 98FM. He retired after a stint with 4FM (Classic Hits).

All those memories that Simon's passing has invoked indirectly.

ford fiesta

Simon was our own Tony Blackburn, in terms of his presentation style was very similar most of the time....first love of soul music, self deprecating, dry jokes or puns about songs/artists right up to the vocals, great timing and you could hear the smile in his voice.....just simple fun on the air !!!

although I might add not as cheesy as Blackburn is !!!

Pelvis Parsley

So many of them gone relatively early in life, or with ongoing difficulties, either mental, physical or both!

ford fiesta

These must be some of Simon's final appearances on 2FM, as John Clarke had suddenly taken over from Simon's regular show (Ireland's Biggest Jukebox) in Summer 2001.

April 2001:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WXRFQtEouM

May 2001:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlsMWvxOcYQ

briany

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118212328#Comment_118212328

That's really good quality to randomly have a radio show from 2001 in. Actually, I seem to remember that RTE did have at least some radio archives online at one point because I was able to find the 2007 Liveline were the FAI stuck Bobby Robson on - an elderly and ailing Bobby Robson - to defend Ireland's last-gasp 2-1 win over San Marino. Is there an archive of Simon Young's show as well? It'd be great to go back and listen to some of his and other presenters old shows.

ford fiesta

I did not know that Simon filled in for Gerry Ryan on 2FM Ryanline - this schedule from December 1988. I only remember Barry Lang or Dave Fanning filling in for Gerry.

JJKC

I'm surprised to see Brendan Balfe having a primetime Saturday lunchtime slot in that era.

Declan A Walsh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118288154#Comment_118288154

Brendan Balfe was of course more associated with Radio One, but he did pop up from time to time on 2FM. I think that particular programme probably did not last for too long. It could well have been his last slot on 2FM.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118287603#Comment_118287603

I think that might well have been the only time that Simon Young filled in for Gerry. I think Bob Conway was filling in for someone on the breakfast show as well - Marty Whelan or Ian Dempsey - neither are in the schedule? I notice too that Simon was co-hosting Poparama with Ruth Buchanan on Saturday's schedule.

ford fiesta

That Saturday lunchtime show with Brendan Balfe was taken over by "Dial a Number 1" with Gerry Wilson in around summer 1989.

Bob Conway is filling in for Ian Dempsey breakfast

Simon is filling in for Gerry

Lorcan Murray is filling in for Mark Cagney drivetime

Tony Fenton is filling in for Marty Whelan at 10pm (Marty took over this slot when Gerry Ryan went to 9am a few months earlier)

Interesting that this week's 2FM schedule is for the week is when the 1988 pirates went off air.

Declan A Walsh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118289206#Comment_118289206

A lot of presenters on holidays! The date at the bottom of the RTE Guide says the 16th December. The pirates did not go off air until December 31st. I don't think Mark Cagney was doing drivetime for too long. I know that he left RTE in 1989. I remember Dial A Number 1 - I got through to Gerry Wilson on three different occasions!!

It is interesting that, apart from filling in for Gerry Ryan and his "Jimmy" character on Ian Dempsey's breakfast show, Simon Young never had a regular weekday slot. Was he working behind the scenes on 2FM on weekdays?