Programme 3: Bunny Carr
In the third programme Bunny Carr, one of the original big stars of RTÉ Television, talks about how he ‘stopped the lights’ in entertainment and quiz shows before moving on to PR and communications.
Bunny Carr was born in Dublin in 1927 and grew up in Clontarf. Surprisingly, a job as a bank clerk was to provide Bunny with his big break. Near RTÉ radio studios in O’Connell Street, Bunny was cashing cheques for, and making contacts with, Raidió Éireann employees. When Teilifís Éireann launched on New Year’s Eve in 1961, Bunny was in there. Within a few days he became an on-air ‘commercial reader’.
Bunny was also an ideas man. He developed TV shows for RTÉ like Teen Talk, The Life Game, Going Strong and of course the legendary Quicksilver. His catchphrase ‘stop the lights’ even became part of everyday language. Bunny also quizzed the leaders of the day on The Politicians and The Person in Question as well as religious leaders on Encounter.
In 1970 he went to work as Director of the Catholic Communications Centre where he trained priests in media skills. In 1973 he left to set up his own PR firm, Carr Communications. It was a one-stop shop for many a politician looking for media training and Bunny boasts six former Taoisigh as graduates.
Bunny finally left RTÉ in 1984, but made the occasional appearance on Irish television. He remained with Carr Communications until his retirement in 2004.
In 2005 Bunny’s much-loved wife, Joan, died. She had been living with a polio- related paralysis for much of their life together.
Now aged 84, Bunny still lives in his native Dublin.