Hector Ó hEochagáin has revealed Michael D. Higgins reached out to him after the death of his brother.
The presenter’s brother Derek ‘Freddie’ Keogan was killed in a bicycle accident in Denmark earlier this month.
The 51-year-old admitted he was “stunned” when he received a phone call from the President as he was flying to Denmark for the funeral.
Speaking to Tommy Tiernan and Laurita Blewitt on their podcast, Hector said: “What a lovely chat from a great man. That just shows you the calibre of the man he is, and why he is in that place because the people of this country love him so much.”
He explained how he had received a number of calls in the airport prior to his flight while trying to find RocDoc to get a Covid-19 test done prior to traveling.
Hector recalled: “The phone rings and it is a strange number, and I am not going to answer another phone call, because I am done with talking to people. So I left it.”
“The number rings again, and as I leave RocDoc I answer the phone and it says ‘Hector can you take a call from the president within five minutes?'”
“I went ‘excuse me’ and he said, ‘Hector, we are just wondering is this the number to reach you at’ and I said, ‘I’m at Dublin Airport, that is no problem.'”
Michael D. Higgins spoke to Hector for ten minutes, and asked him if he needed any help.
Hector announced the tragic death of his brother Freddie on July 1 via a statement shared on Twitter.
He said: “So it’s with a sad heart that we bring the news of the sudden passing of Hector’s brother Freddie… Memories and smiles will stay with us forever… Rest in Peace now Freddie.”
— Hector (@hectorirl) July 1, 2021
