by Gerry Hand

In 2021 I was doing a lot of work for the Irish Mail On Sunday and one piece I done was on the 40th anniversary of the Stardust tragedy.

For those of you too young to remember that was a fire at a night club in Artane, Dublin, in which 48 young people died at a Valentines night disco.

Research discovered Charlie was RTE’s man at the scene and somewhat surprisingly it took little effort to get both a mobile and home phone number for the man himself.

When I called him I anticipated the first question would be ‘ Where did you get my number’.

Wrong !

His first question was;’  What can I do to help’.

I explained who I was and what I needed and there followed a thirty minute chat in which he outlined in great detail the fact he was the first reporter on the scene and the horror he witnessed.

Shortly after our conversation finished he called back I was expecting to be asked if he could see what I wrote before it was published.

Wrong !

‘Here’s numbers for a few people that will speak to you,a couple of those who survived and the DJ on the night’ was what the man said.

Now a few things.

First of all well known people generally dont like there phone numbers being widely available, Charlie’s were

Secondly he didn’t know me from Adam so asking to see what I wrote before it went in the paper would not be unusual, it is a request I would have refused but would have expected to be asked, Charlie however not alone didn’t ask he told me I could tell the survivors and the DJ that he gave me their numbers.

The story appeared that Sunday and that afternoon Charlie’s number flashed up on my phone.

I expected some ‘constructive’ criticism.

Wrong !

His words will never leave me, ‘I couldn’t have wrote it any better myself’.

Now the above is not by way of self praise, but in the thousands of articles I have written over the years just one person ever bothered to ring back and say well done in such a manner.

That person was Charlie Bird.

In an occupation that houses many pricks and backstabbers, and believe me I have worked with both Charlie wasn’t one of the good guys.

He was one of a rarer breed.

One of the great guys.