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Vincent Hanley

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Name
  
Vincent Hanley

Other names
  
Fab Vinny


Nationality
  
Irish

Residence
  
Ireland

Employer
  
Raidio Teilifis Eireann

Vincent Hanley reporting on the side of the street with yellow cabs, people and buildings in the background and wearing a black coat and a blue scarf around his neck

Born
  
2 April 1954 (
1954-04-02
)
Clonmel, County Tipperary, Ireland

Occupation
  
Radio and television presenter

Known for
  
Radio presenting, MT-USA and his early death

Died
  
April 18, 1987, Dublin, Republic of Ireland

Cause of death
  
AIDS-related blindness

Mt usa with vincent hanley dec 1984


Vincent Hanley (born in Clonmel, County Tipperary on 2 April 1954, died in Dublin on 18 April 1987) was a pioneering Irish radio DJ and television presenter, nicknamed "Fab Vinny". He worked mainly for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, and was the first Irish celebrity to die from an AIDS-related illness. He has been described as "Ireland's first gay celebrity."

Contents

A poster of Vincent Hanley having a mustache and his hand on his waist with his signature at the bottom and wearing a shirt under a vest, a coat, necktie, and pants

Hanley began presenting pop music shows on RTÉ Radio Cork in 1976. He also did stints in Dublin on RTÉ Radio 1 and RTÉ television, including a special on Gilbert O'Sullivan. When the first dedicated pop station, RTÉ Radio Two (now branded 2FM), was started in 1979, he was one of its best-known DJs. While in Dublin he shared accommodation with Charles Self. In 1981, he moved to London to work for Capital Radio. In 1984, he declined a lucrative offer to remain there and moved to New York City.

Vincent Hanley smiling having a mustache and a person behind him while wearing a white shirt under a black coat and a blue necktie

Hanley founded Green Apple Productions in 1983 with Conor McAnally, an RTÉ television producer and son of actor Ray McAnally. The company produced MT-USA (Music Television USA), a three-hour-long music video show modelled on the new American cable channel, MTV. MT-USA was broadcast on RTÉ from 1984–87 on Sunday afternoons. Each block of videos was followed by a segment filmed in New York City with Hanley introducing the videos, discussing American music and culture, and interviewing a celebrity. RTÉ described him as Europe's first VJ (video jockey).

Vincent Hanley smiling with a mustache and handing a CD inside the radio station with a headset around his neck and wearing a striped shirt

In 1987, Hanley died shortly after his 33rd birthday. He had been visibly ill for some time, and was rumoured to have an AIDS-related illness, which he denied. This reflected the stigma then associated with the disease and with homosexuality in Ireland, which was not decriminalised until 1993. The illness admitted by Hanley was congenital cerebral toxoplasmosis, described as an "eye disorder"; he was blind in one eye by his death. Toxoplasmosis is very rarely fatal in adults who do not have a weakened immune system. In 2000, Hanley's friend and colleague Bill Hughes, who had himself come out in the 1990s, agreed that Hanley had in fact died of an AIDS-related illness. The same year, the Sunday Tribune newspaper placed Hanley at the top of a list of Irish gay icons.

Vincent Hanley reporting with a building in the background, having a mustache and wearing a brown coat and scarf

Mt usa vincent hanley 1984



Vincent Hanley reporting with two people in the background, having a mustache and wearing a white shirt under a black coat and necktie

References

Vincent Hanley Wikipedia