Those Were the Days

by Terry Wogan

Welcome to the party. Pull up a chair, take your ease, and join Tom, king of the Cattle Market branch, for a bite to eat and a glass or two of wine.

Come and meet his many of whom have become his friends, and many more of whom haven't. Either way they've some fine tales to tell. Join Tom as he reminisces about the places he's been, the people he has met, the laughter and the tears of daily life as he made his way from humble bank clerk to the heady heights of Branch Manager . . .

Those Were the Days is a collection of short stories by national treasure Sir Terry Wogan, filled with his famous humour and charm.

Genres: Short Stories

176 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 8, 2015

About the author

Sir Michael Terence Wogan, KBE, DL (born 3 August 1938), or also known as Terry Wogan, is a veteran Irish radio and television broadcaster who holds dual Irish and British citizenship. Wogan has worked for the BBC in the United Kingdom for most of his career. Before he retired from the weekday breakfast programme 'Wake Up to Woga'n on BBC Radio 2 on 18 December 2009, Sir Terry had a regular 8 million listeners, making him the most listened-to radio broadcaster of any European nation. He began his career at Raidió Teilifís Éireann where he presented shows such as Jackpot in the 1960s.

Wogan has been a leading media personality in the UK since the late 1960s and is often referred to as a national treasure. He is perhaps best known in the United Kingdom for his BBC1 chat show Wogan, for his work presenting Children in Need, as the host of Wake Up to Wogan, the original host of the BBC game show Blankety Blank (before being replaced by Les Dawson), a presenter of Come Dancing in the 1970s, and as the BBC's commentator for the Eurovision Song Contest on radio and television from 1971 to 2008. Wogan started a primetime weekend show on Radio 2 from 14 February 2010.

Reviews

[H. Daley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A blether!

[Martin Turner · Rating 3 out of 5]

The bank setting was really just a convenient backdrop to string together several short stories. Terry Wogan is well known for starting out in banking in Ireland and he has obviously drawn on this experience to use a new bank branch opening and a new manager as a convenient vehicle for this motley collection of stories. The setting could otherwise have been any gathering of people - and not necessarily even that!
Several of the stories harked back to Terry's childhood/young adult times, so it was interesting to have these small glimpses ( as they were no more than glimpses) of life in Ireland 50-60 years ago.
Terry Wogan is the type of character who has collected whimsical stories throughout his broadcasting life, so he probably did the same in his earlier days. He has clearly drawn on this in writing this collection.
I would definitely recommend it to a Wogan fan, but not to a serious reader.
This book takes very little time to read and does not go into depth into any of the characters. Very simply written, it is a small collection of little fables. I enjoyed reading it but my tastes are very eclectic but this won't appeal to many readers and will probably be found in the reduced sections of bookshops before long.

[Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘Those Were the Days is a book that tells the story of the main character Claudia and her fear of falling in love because of how she has seen other relationships fail, especially her sister’s. She has been friends with a boy named Casey since she was young and he has asked her out on a date but she has refused telling him she only wants to be friends. After realizing that she has feelings for Casey but she was just afraid of having her heart broken she agrees to go out on a date with him. In the end she gives into her feelings thinking the risk is worth it and they visit their favorite place, Lake Pontchartrain, where Claudia and Casey kiss and realize that they are more than friends. This book was short and had a very simple story which was easy to follow but there wasn’t much of a plot. I also felt like you didn’t really get to know all of the characters very well since the story was so focused on Casey and Claudia’s relationship. I would not recommend this book to other readers since it was a story that could have been in a lot less pages and was too simple!

[Sheila · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection of Irish stories and characters did make me laugh and was of interest but perhaps not quite in the way I expected. I thought it was a collection of unrelated stories but as it turns out, it all centres around Tom, the Bank Manager, and all the different characters at his party to celebrate his becoming manager of the Cattle Market branch. I didn't expect this and so I guess it didn't entirely meet my expectations as Terry Wogan was my childhood hero. Having said that, there is one 'stand out' story which is filled with pathos and is excellent, the Feather. This is about the loss of a baby and the sadness accompanying it which is healed by a simple feather turning up several times. I found this very moving. I believe it was hearing this story read by Terry on the radio which encouraged me to buy the book. I still love it.

[Emma Dargue · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interlinked series of short stories with a bank manager tom opening a newly refurbished branch of a bank in rural ireland. He is people watching and reminising on the characters he comes across at the party. Whilst a lot of these have an injection of irish humour to them there is also an underlying melancholy that is enhanced by the much missed author narrating his own stories. These stories made me feel warm and fuzzy but with an irish twist.

[Agnesxnitt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fresh from finishing part 1 of TW's memoirs, 'Is It Me?' I read these short stories he had written based on his real life experiences.
To be honest, it's not such a stretch of fiction but they are pleasant enough to pass a couple of hours easy reading.
Donating to my church Christmas bazaar book stall.

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A charming and amusing reflective look back by the small town bank manager. A collection of short stories about the different customers at his bank over the years.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely calm and relaxing story, reminiscing the life led by a bank manger. He humorously tells the reader about the people he has met over the years in an enlightening and entertaining manner.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

very amusing. could not put it down.

[Toni · Rating 3 out of 5]

A gentle collection of vignettes about Ireland back-in-the-day, with a couple of really touching moments. I found this in my stocking on Christmas morning, and it went down well in the lazy, chocolate-stuffed post-Christmas days.

[Alice · Rating 2 out of 5]

I laughed a lot at some parts of this book, but unfortunately a lot of it wasn't that great.

[Rae · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lovely reminder of what it used to be like to work in branch banking - the staff, the customers, their small town hopes and dreams. Could hear Terry's voice in each witty story line. A gentle read.

[Andy Mckinney · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a pity that Terry Wogan did not turn his hand to fiction much sooner. This is a wonderful read which reflects a man who was a great observer of people. It is written using language that is accessible yet in a way that is beautiful. The characters are extremely authentic and no doubt reflect people who Terry knew from his years in Ireland. He shows an ability to capture events that are both very funny and very sad. One story about a young mother losing a child is written so delicately and beautifully that it will leave you in years whilst marvelling at the beauty of it.
A highly evocative collection not to be missed.