Bird was full of praise for the singer.
Charlie Bird has opened up about a special moment he shared with Daniel O’Donnell recently.
The retired RTÉ reporter made the comments during an interview for The Mario Rosenstock Podcast where he discussed his diagnosis with Motor Neurone Disease last year and his upcoming Climb with Charlie event.
The latter will see him climb Croagh Patrick in Mayo on 2 April to raise funds for the charities Irish Motor Neurone Disease Association and Pieta House.
Speaking with Rosenstock, the conversation turned to an encounter Bird shared with O’Donnell backstage on The Late Late Show when they both appeared on the programme in December.
“On the night that I was on the first Late Late, Daniel O’Donnell was on before me,” the retired reporter told Rosenstock.
“When he walked out of the studio I was walking in and he said hello… and he was really nice to me.
“After the show when I was walking out of the studio, Daniel was still at the door of his dressing room and he walked over to me and he put something into my hand.”
Bird did not give any specifics about what it was but said it “was the loveliest gesture that any human being can do for another”.
“I mean it… I’m going to cry now but this is a serious thing. That man in that moment did something really marvelous for me,” he added.
“What he did in that moment, it really lifted me and I mean it.
“He knows what I’m talking about but no one else does. But I’ll tell you, that was the best gesture.
“It will be with me until I die.”
During another appearance on the Late Late in January, Bird said he “found peace” following his diagnosis with Motor Neurone Disease and spoke of his excitement to climb Croagh Patrick.
Though numbers for the climb will be limited, he has encouraged people to organise their own Climb with Charlie event on 2 April to raise money for the charities close to his heart.
“There is somebody out there who will be listening to this podcast who will get a diagnosis of Motor Neurons, Parkinson’s, MS, or they will have throat cancer, or anything,” Bird told Rosenstock.
“Just think of all the people who have terminal illnesses. I am climbing Croagh Patrick for every one of them.
“I’m also climbing Croagh Patrick in a way for everybody in this country. We have all gone through hell because of the pandemic.
“By golly, I want everybody to be involved… and in the end two charities will benefit from it – the Motor Neuron Disease Association and Pieta House…
“In relation to Motor Neurons, I want to make sure that more money is put in for research, so maybe in a year’s time or two years’ time, something will happen to turn it from a terminal illness to a serious illness.
“It won’t come in time for me, but I want that to happen.”
For more details about the climb, visit the event’s website here.
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