Charlie Bird says he feels 'so upset and guilty' he can't respond to all his letters of support
Charlie With Dog Bird Tiger His
Charlie Bird has extended apologies to anyone who has sent him support through the post as he says he is unable to respond to all of them.
Taking to Twitter this evening, the former RTÉ broadcaster who's publicly shared his journey with motor neurone disease since his diagnosis last year said he feels "so upset and guilty".
"It really hurts me that I don’t have the time and the energy to respond to everyone," he tweeted.
I need your help every one who follows me. I feel so upset and guilty I cannot respond to all the letters,cards and gifts that I am receiving in the post. It really hurts me that I don’t have the time and the energy to respond to everyone. So please pass on my apologies. Thanks.
— Charlie Bird (@charliebird49) June 16, 2022
Airing earlier this week, Charlie Bird: Loud and Clear follows the veteran journalist’s devastating diagnosis last October.
It is a rich, multi-layered documentary: a look-back at key events in the last four decades of Irish history from whose frontlines the much-loved broadcaster reported; a love story in which he openly expresses his upset for his wife Claire – “I want to put my arms around her, try to protect her and make sure whatever life she travels in the future will be ok”.
It is a story of meeting illness head-on, and becoming a phoenix, as Bird sets himself the challenge of climbing Croagh Patrick and raising funds for others travelling difficult roads.
But above all, it is a tribute to a voice. The voice we heard in our homes across the years, telling us about powerful, pivotal historical moments: the Stardust tragedy, IRA ceasefires, the NIB scandal, election of our first woman president Mary Robinson, the Marriage Equality Referendum – we heard the news in Charlie Bird’s voice.