RICHARD HANNAFORD:THE DEATH of Richard Hannaford, aged 49, brought an untimely end to the career of a journalist who achieved notable success as a broadcaster on both sides of the Irish Sea.
In recent years, he broadened his career into print, magazines and event management. He was the classic English person who came to relish working and living in Ireland.
He had a great love for radio and mastery of the medium. His deep mellifluous voice made for an immediate engaging presence on air. BBC Radio 4 with its authority and depth of coverage was an ideal fit for him. His wife noted at his funeral that “he had a voice like warm chocolate”.
His marriage to Norah Casey, publisher/owner of the Harmonia magazine group and Dragons' Denpanellist, was to become a successful business partnership too as he worked as editorial director of Harmonia,the largest consumer magazine group in Ireland.
Hannaford was with the BBC for 17 years, as a news correspondent and then as the BBC’s health correspondent. Much of his success in the latter role can be attributed to his ability to identify with the priorities and concerns of the health consumer.
In 2002 he left the BBC and moved to Dublin with his wife and their now 12-year-old son.
Within a year of relocating to Ireland he produced and presented a landmark series, the Truth about the Health Service, a 10-part examination of the Irish health service for RTÉ Radio 1.
The following year he produced and presented a six-part documentary on recreational drugs, for which he received the Irish Health Writers’ broadcaster of the year award.
He went on to produce another series for RTÉ Radio – Transport in Crisis– with Frank McDonald of The Irish Timesand wrote occasionally for The Irish Timeshealth supplement.
His natural curiosity and genuine warmth with people made him an outstanding journalist. He increasingly wanted to write, and pen opinion pieces in particular.
Last year he visited Asia and China with his wife for a sojourn over several months to explore new business ideas.
Hannaford won many awards for his work both in the UK and in Ireland, including the Irish Health Writers Guild Broadcaster of the Year (2003) and the UK’s National Health Correspondent of the Year (2001).
He worked as a consultant, provided media training, and was an adviser to a number of international and governmental organisations, including the National Health Service in the UK, the Kings Fund for health, the EU’s External Advisory Committee and the World Health Organisation.
In Ireland, he was appointed to the board of the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) in 2010.
Richard Hannaford died in Blackrock Hospice in Co Dublin after a short battle with cancer, and is immediately survived by his wife Norah, son Dara, mother Adria and brother Simon.
Richard Hannaford: born May 17th, 1962; died October 12th, 2011