The devastated husband of RTÉ newsreader Keelin Shanley
Conor Ferguson lost his beloved wife Keelin after her brave battle with cancer.
The award-winning reporter
He said that she was sad to be leaving her family behind, but felt lucky that she had lived a good life, RSVP Live reports.
"It was sunny, just before the storm rolled in and she looked happy and she looked very peaceful.
"You just have to let that be enough, I suppose, and not get tied up too much in regrets.
He told the Irish Star: "I'm sure that will come but at the moment you're in a bubble of love and support."
He said that it was only last Thursday when the family got the news that doctors could do no more to help Keelin.
"Her approach to life was just 'keep going'," he said.
"The approach to everyone else was just to get on with it so even like when they told us on Thursday that pretty much it was the end of the line, she accepted that.
"She wasn't trying to find some other type of the therapy and possibilities. She trusted her doctor - her oncologist.
"We both did. If he said this was it, then that was it.
He added: "We didn't realise how quickly 'it' was going to be. It was very peaceful in the end."
RTE journalists vowed the “show goes on” as tributes to their tragic colleague Keelin Shanley continued yesterday.
RTE managing director Jon Williams spoke of his deep sadness at the tragedy.
He shared a photo of a candle-lit shrine placed on Keelin’s desk in the RTE office in remembrance of the late Six One News anchor.
Mr Williams said: “Keelin would be first to say the show goes on. We will make her proud.”
Other colleagues to pay tributes to Keelin included radio hosts Rachael English and Sean O’Rourke who both showed their admiration for her work ethic.
Rachael opened The Sean O’Rourke Show describing Keelin as a “wonderful, warm, funny colleague”.
She added: “Not only was she great at her job – she could be a real devil as well.”
Rachael continued: “If Keelin was still with us she’d be here today and she’d be in the thick of [election reporting] and she’d be loving every last minute of it.”
Meanwhile, show host Sean spoke of how Keelin “had a really strong social conscience”.
He added: “We miss her and we will miss her and will continue to miss her so much. It’s the thing that overshadows.
“The show goes on obviously here on election day but it certainly is something. There is a cloud over us.”
In a touching news report on the night of Keelin’s death RTE News presenter Caitriona Perry said her former co-anchor was “a fearless journalist and inspiring woman”.
Caitriona, who hosted the RTE Six One News with her, described her former colleague as a “role model”.
She added she was “trusted by viewers right from the start”.
Caitriona said while Keelin could turn her hand to any topic she was cared most about “exposing injustice and highlighting social inequality”. In 2018 it was announced Keelin and Caitriona would be taking over as anchors for the Six One news.
In a landmark move, it was the first time two women held the reins on the flagship programme.
Keelin grew up in Dublin and graduated from Trinity College with a degree in biochemistry.
She worked for a while as a researcher before changing her focus to journalism.
Funeral arrangements have yet to be announced.
She is survived by her husband Conor and two children Lucy and Ben.
