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It’s a fine line to tread being a public personality who is irreverent, iconoclastic even, without being hurtful or offensive. One could therefore only applaud Terry Wogan, who would fulfill that role on Britain’s radio and television for nearly half a century after he came over from RTE Ireland in the late 1960s to join the BBC. Presenting ‘Late Night Extra’ and then ‘The Terry Wogan Show’ on BBC Radio 1, he was essentially someone my parents listened to. Being a devotee of Johnny Walker’s informative style and Kenny Everett’s innate zaniness, to my teenage mind Wogan belonged to another generation but over the years his self effacing geniality won me over. My portrait dates from 1972 after his move to Radio 2 and his early morning exhortations to housewives everywhere to “fight the flab. For his male listeners, there was “Wogan’s Winner,” his daily racing tip therefore ensuring no-one felt left out.

For more than fifty years, his career never faltered culminating in a knighthood for services to broadcasting and children in need. If it all looked effortless, then it’s because he made it look that way. Whether debunking ‘The Eurovision Song Contest’ or discussing the inanities of life, he brought a sense of togetherness for all his beloved TOGs (Terry’s Old Geezers) and for millions of workers, the drudgery of early morning rises will never be the same again.

He was worth a reported £20 million at the time of his death but the Inland Revenue never saw a penny of it, having long since gifted assets into various trust arrangements. Clearly, his early career in banking had stood him in good stead.