The final edition for legendary newsman Paddy Clancy in Ballyshannon

After six decade of making the headlines and reading them, Paddy Clancy was the story on Tuesday.

The funeral of the veteran journalist, who passed away last Friday at Sligo University Hospital at the age of 82, took place at St Patrick’s Church in Ballyshannon.

His contribution to journalism was marked in 2019 when he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Newsbrands Ireland Journalism Awards. The award rested beside his coffin during Tuesday’s funeral Mass. There, too, were a Sligo Rovers flag and a newspaper, marking two great loves of his life. 

In a moving tribute, Tara Clancy offered an insight into her father’s unique personality and work ethic. 

“Our lives were filled with excitement and a never ending ring of phones, beepers, fax machines, and pagers,” she said.

“He wasn’t a nine to five man. This was his life. He lived and breathed it from the moment he woke until the moment he went to sleep. No days off, always ready to be the first to break the next scoop. His passion and excitement for his work rubbed off on us all, our house became a living representation of everything he was, and we loved it.”

Paddy was a friend and mentor to many in the media and he covered some of the world’s biggest stories in his time, such as reporting from Bloody Sunday in Derry and travelling to war-torn Somalia along with President Mary Robinson in 1990.

Among the congregation for his funeral was Ballyshannon native Andrea Gilligan, the presenter of Lunchtime Live on Newstalk, who joined an array of former and present-day newspaper men and women who turned out to say farewell to a legend of their trade. It felt somewhat fitting that Paddy’s remains arrived at the Church just a little after 11am; the master newshound pushing right to the deadline even in death. 

After his retirement and leaving the hustle bustle of Dublin to settle in Creevy, Paddy never truly stopped working.

Tara said: “The first thing he did was convert a room into a little office, and true to his work ethic, he spent most of every day in there with the familiar one finger tap tap tap of the keyboard, at a speed that could have earned him a medal at the Olympics. 

“So much for semi retirement. But he loved what he did, and it made him happy.”

She recalled how he developed a love of gardening and adored Christmas with family at the centre of his world.

At the epicentre of Paddy’s life and times were his beloved wife, Bernadette, who were married for over 58 years.

“Their devotion to each other was obvious to anyone who knew them,” Tara said. “Dad loved Mam more with each passing day. Any attention from her was like sweet nectar to him. Nobody took care of him the way she did.

“We were blessed to grow up in a home that was secure and loving, interesting and exciting, welcoming to all who entered, with a dad who never said no and would have gone to the ends of the earth for each of us.”

Mourners also heard a touching story from Paddy’s Australian-based brother Tommy, read by Ciaran Clancy - Paddy’s son - remembering their innocent days growing up in Sligo.

From the early 1980s until 2008, he presented It Says In The Papers on RTE’s Morning Ireland and he also worked for the Sligo Champion and the Donegal People’s Press before joining the Irish Sun as bureau chief. He also worked as a columnist for the Irish Sun and Irish Mirror during a long and distinguished career in journalism.

“It was the voice on the radio in the morning, reading the newspapers, giving us the fresh news for the day,” said Fr Eugene Barrett OFM, guardian of Rossnowlagh, who was the chief celebrant at Tuesday’s funeral. “Before ever we met him, we knew the voice.”

Fr Barrett was joined in celebrating Mass by Ballyshannon parish priest Fr Rory Brady, Fr Dermot Burke and Fr Sunil Joseph.

Paddy was laid to rest in Abbey Assaroe Cemetery. He is survived by his wife Bernadette, children Ciaran, Niamh, Tara, stepdaughter Patti, eight grandchildren and a wide circle of family, friends and colleagues.

Tributes poured in following his death and Donegal County Council held a minute’s silence at its plenary meeting on Monday in Lifford.

The Taoiseach, Micheal Martin, said Paddy was: “an enormous presence in Irish journalism for over six decades. His distinctive take on RTE's morning paper round up was essential listening. His reporting and columns were essential reading for many years.”

Group Editor for the Irish Mirror and Irish Star, Neil Leslie, said: “Paddy was the hack’s hack. He was the Godfather of Irish tabloids. But also just a top class journalist, a brilliant reporter and an old style newshound with that elusive nose for a story that marks out the best in this business.”

Tara Clancy said that one word kept cropping up in recent days: Legend.

"My dad, Paddy Clancy, the legend,” she said. “You will be greatly missed. We love you. There will never be another like you.”