Former Downtown Radio star Candy Devine was a broadcaster who could be “all things to all people”, a friend has said.
The DJ, one of Northern Ireland’s best loved radio voices, passed away in her native Australia. She was 85.
Candy worked for Downtown for almost 40 years after arriving in Northern Ireland in the late 1960s.
She was part of the original line-up when the station hit the airwaves in March 1976
Among those paying tribute was veteran Downtown DJ Trevor ‘Big T’ Campbell, who said her death was a huge loss to the world of broadcasting.
He said Candy was an “inspiration to many young radio presenters”.
“You might as well say she was from Northern Ireland, she was loved so much here by the listeners,” he told the Belfast Telegraph.
Mr Campbell was paired with Candy, the first woman presenter on the radio station, in the 1970s.
He used to holiday with Candy and her family on Lough Erne, revealing she was fond of hiring a cruiser to sail around the islands.
“She loved radio and radio loved her, listeners took to her because she could be all things to all people,” he added.
“She could be sympathetic to people when she was talking to people with problems, and she could laugh with them about something funny.
“I found out over the years a lot of the younger presenters had gone to her for advice, and she had taken them under her wing. She really was that type of person.
“Northern Ireland was her home – nobody ever thought about her fitting in here, she just did. She could be one of the boys when she needed to be, and also the lady of the station.
“We used to joke together all the time – some of the jokes would probably be offensive nowadays – but with Candy’s background, it seems diversity came to Northern Ireland long before we even realised.”
Candy Devine pictured at her Belfast home in 2012. Image: Pacemaker
In 2014, Candy received an MBE for services to broadcasting and to the community in Northern Ireland.
Mr Campbell added: “She and I have the honour of being on a wall in Dublin in Ireland’s Broadcasting House as part of the Irish radio Hall of Fame and it’s lovely that I am alongside her.
“This is why so many tributes are being made to her, people thought so much of her, she touched so many people whether it was work, play or help.
“I am so proud to say she was a friend of mine.”
Candy, who also starred in the Belfast panto, had returned to Australia in 2013.
In a 2016 interview with the Belfast Telegraph, she described how the loss of her husband Donald in 2012 was one of the reasons she left.
“Ultimately, I just felt a yearning to get back to where I had grown up, to where I had first studied music and where it had all began for me,” she said at the time.
Stuart Robinson, content director at Bauer Media, said: “Candy was a household name on radio in Northern Ireland having been with Downtown from launch in 1976 right through until her retirement in 2013.
“Candy was a great broadcaster and communicator and was an inspiration to many aspiring broadcasters coming up through the radio industry.
“Having grown up listening to Candy, it was a great honour to work with her at Downtown.”
Former colleague John Rosborough recalled “an outstanding broadcaster.”
He posted on X: “So very sorry to hear that Candy Devine has passed away. A wonderful colleague and outstanding broadcaster, she was loved by the local audience and much missed after she returned to Australia to be with her family.”
U105 DJ Johnny Hero remembered “a great broadcaster, a true professional and a very talented lady”.
“She was a great friend to many of us in the industry and will be greatly missed,” he said.
UTV presenter Paul Clark recalled “a tremendous communicator and broadcaster”.
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News Catch Up – Thursday 31 October