Ryan Tubridy has paid tribute to Colm Keane, the former RTE journalist who died on Saturday at the age of 70.
Sean was married to former RTÉ newsreader Una O'Hagan, with whom he had a son, Sean, who passed away in 2007.
Ryan spoke about his "colleague and friend" Colm, who he described as "warm and thoughtful".
He said: "It's very poignant for us for a number of reasons, largely because, the bottom line is Colm was as good as going to be here with us this week.
"We were talking to him only last Tuesday or Wednesday. He very suddenly passed away.
"He was very kind to me when I started here. He was a producer. He was warm, convivial and thoughtful, and made great programmes about great pop artists. Still even this morning, we were reminiscing about his programmes with the Lovin' Spoonful and his lovely style of producing and presenting."
Ryan added: "He was married to the very amazing Una O'Hagan, who retired not too long ago from the newsroom here.
"They were the parents of the most beautiful young man called Sean who passed away way too soon.
"They were a beautiful family and I just wanted to say that Colm's legacy is highly respected among his colleagues and friends here at RTE."
Colm's funeral is to take place today, Tuesday January 25 at 11.30am in Our Lady of Lourdes Church in his native Youghal, County Cork.
In the late 70s, Colm joined RTÉ’s Today Tonight programme, a show known for its deep investigative reporting and analysis.
He soon moved to radio where he was a producer, presenter and reporter.
He also produced many radio series during his long career at RTE and wrote best selling books including Nervous Breakdown, The Stress File, Mental Health in Ireland, The Teenage Years and Death and Dying.
To get the latest breaking news straight to your inbox, sign up for our free newsletter
