Mary Kennedy - “I’m at an age now where I don’t care what people think of me”
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Mary Kendi, good afternoon. You're very welcome.
Thank you very much, Brendan. I'm really looking forward to doing this. It's something I like listening to on your programme because I like to kind of mark your life through music. And, you know, it was lovely. I was actually coming in in the taxi. I had a lovely man. His name was Terry. And I was telling him what I was doing. He asked me and he said he does exactly the same. Music are moments in life. And that's how he remembers significant moments. Oh, fantastic. I know. And he's listening.
I love the people who commit to this. Oh, no, no, no, I love it. Yeah, great. Just to give the rundown on you, you've had an extraordinary life career so far. So you were a teacher, then you became an announcer on RT when that was the last word in glamour and everything. Because we appeared in Vision. Yes. And then you went on to be a newsreader, a presenter, everything from open house up for the match, Eurovision. And now you're supposed to be retired. You're an author, a podcaster. You're not relaxing at all.
Are you having a relaxing summer? Oh, my goodness. I only came back last night from walking the Camino de Santiago a week ago.
OK, that's relaxing.
What the fuck is that?
How did Mary Kennedy transition from teaching to a broadcasting career?
It was lovely. It was hot. Again, a great group of people. But yeah, I've got so much more free time now. And also, Brendan, I do like to do little bits, do a series for TG Cahir every year called Moving West. Very nationwidey, which is nice. That vibe suits me. But, you know, I've got seven grandchildren now and I have come to the stage in life. Nearly 72, where you realise that these are the these are the precious years. These are the times that have to be celebrated. And as an old French author said long ago, there is no sense of joy, no hope of joy except in human relations. And that I believe fully.
Yeah. OK. What's the what's the best thing about getting to, you know, 70 ish?
The bills are paid. The freedom. And also, I feel a confidence now that I didn't feel at younger ages. Do you?
That's interesting.
Oh, definitely. Definitely. You give less of a damn, is it? Yes, very much so. And I'm writing a book. I've written it. It's with the printers now. It'll be out in October. And it's about ageing. And I interviewed four people about it, you know, and they all said, I said, what are the things that are nice? The fact that, you know, I'm confident in where I am and that I really don't care what people think of me. And I don't, it's not that I don't care. It's that I am happy with what I think and what I say and what I do. And I live my life in a way that is nice, fun, honest.
And for you.
And for me.
So does that increase with each decade, would you say, that kind of confidence and comfort in your own skin?
Well, it certainly did with me, Brendan. And the title of the book will be, it comes from a quote from a woman called Lady Diana Cooper, who lived at the end of the 19th century and into the early years of the 20th century. And she had a kind of a maxim by which she lived. And it was, first you are young, then you are middle-aged, then you are old, now you are wonderful. And Now You Are Wonderful is the title of the book.
Ah, brilliant. Any downsides to hitting the 70s? What? Any downsides to hitting the 70s?
Well, I mean, you have to be more careful of your health and your strength. And I noticed it, I really became aware of it with... with the arrival of grandchildren and not when they're tiny babies when they start getting a bit bigger and you're trying to lift them and it is so important for especially for women I think because after we you know after menopause we lose oestrogen to keep the upper body it's lovely going for walks and things like that but the upper body has to be strong so you've got to lift the weights
OK, so that's the main thing.
They used to say it's optional up to your 50s. It's essential.
OK, and don't get frail. Right. So music, was music a big part of your childhood?
Yes, it was. We were kind of a kind of a sing-song house. I can remember being on my mother's knee as a small girl.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–1:07
2
How did Mary Kennedy transition from teaching to a broadcasting career?
1:07–5:28
3
Why does Mary say her 70s bring more confidence and freedom?
5:28–13:31
4
How did family sing-songs and party pieces shape Mary’s childhood memories?
13:31–17:20
5
What impact did Mary’s father’s sudden death have on her life?
17:20–30:24