Dennis McCarthy (radio presenter)

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Dennis McCarthy (died 1996) was a British radio presenter and an employee of BBC Radio Nottingham. Among the people he interviewed were Prime Ministers. [1]

Dennis McCarthy MBE was a decorator, washing-machine salesman and dog-breeder before becoming one if the UK's most charismatic radio presenters. He joined BBC Radio Nottingham shortly after the station opened in 1968 following an interview that caught the attention of the station bosses regarding taking part in the Crufts Dog Show as an intentional .

He soon gained a regular programme, broadcasting six days a week, with his weekday show Afternoon Special gaining a special place in the hearts of East Midlands listeners, especially after the programme became syndicated to BBC Radio Leicester, BBC Radio Derby and BBC Radio Lincolnshire in 1980.

The Sunday Show—co-presented with his daughter Tara, now a practicing barrister—was hugely popular, regularly attracting one-in-six of the Nottinghamshire population as listeners.

During almost three decades on the airwaves many interviews were recorded on his afternoon show with Britain's show business figures and leading politicians, including six Prime Ministers. For BBC Radio 4 he contributed features and interviews, in addition to appearing as a regular reporter for the BBC on East Midlands TV.

Awarded the MBE for Services to broadcasting in 1991, he created a number of books linked to his programmes and dedicated around his love of dogs.

Taken ill whilst still on air, Dennis McCarthy insisted on continuing to broadcast until the end of the programme, dying later the same day in hospital. As his funeral procession travelled towards the Cathedral the traffic in Nottingham city centre stopped with crowds lining the pavements six deep in places—a scene not even closely approached until the death of Brian Clough a decade later.

With the opening of the NET Tram system, tram #214 has born the name Dennis McCarthy MBE.