Broadcaster Marty Whelan (above with Mary Kennedy) said he had “no intention” of retiring in the near future as “the highs and lows” of his career in television and radio were celebrated at the launch of his memoir.

About 120 people attended the launch of That's Life at the Trocadero restaurant in Dublin, including Whelan's past and present RTÉ colleagues. "I'm amazed so many people have come," he said.

“I didn’t write the book in a conventional sense – I spoke into a computer and it typed up the words. So it was like what I do in my job on the radio, and it reads like me speaking. I tried to share as much as possible and just be myself.”

Broadcaster Kennedy, who launched the book, said: “I felt like it was the man I know just chatting on the pages. It’s all very quick-witted and very typical of Marty’s Dublin wit. There is lovely insight into family life, being an only child and what that meant growing up.”

In the memoir, Whelan said he took inspiration from songs "that have had meaning" for him as he explores the themes of his life through Bruce Springsteen, David Bowie, Glen Campbell, Paul McCartney, the Three Degrees, Frank Sinatra and Madama Butterfly. "The book is woven around these rich memories of music," said Kennedy.