Obituary: Denis Walsh, journalist

Denis Walsh, who has died at 85, was former industrial correspondent at the Yorkshire Evening Post, who turned to radio and produced If You’re Irish, the country’s first programme exclusively devoted to traditional Celtic music. It ran for eight years from 1980.
Denis WalshDenis Walsh
Denis Walsh
By The Newsroom
Published 29th Jan 2022, 09:48 GMT

Denis Walsh, who has died at 85, was former industrial correspondent at the Yorkshire Evening Post, who turned to radio and produced If You’re Irish, the country’s first programme exclusively devoted to traditional Celtic music. It ran for eight years from 1980.

He started his career at the Batley Reporter before moving to the Scunthorpe Telegraph, the Evening Post in Doncaster and the Sheffield Star before arriving in Leeds.

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There, as head of the local branch of the National Union of Journalists, he negotiated what was regarded at the time as a landmark pay deal.

He left the Post to join BBC Radio Leeds as a producer and then News Editor. While there he won a national Sony Radio award for a documentary on the Yorkshire Ripper.

Born and brought up in Batley, he was a member of the parish of St Mary of the Angels, and was an active member of the parish community holding numerous voluntary posts. He was also a director of Batley Action, an 18-member board which drove the Batley City Challenge, a government-funded project that saw £32m invested in the town.

He is survived by his wife Moya, daughters, Brigid and Kate, and three grandchildren and an extended family.

Related topics:Yorkshire Evening PostCelticLeedsDoncaster

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