Jim fixed it for Frances!

For Frances, from the Clonavon area of the town, was among the lucky applicants who had her childhood dream well and truly fixed by the cigar chomping DJ who was buried last week.

Frances, who was a huge traditional music enthusiast, had written to the immensely popular TV programme in the hope that she could realise her dream to meet and play with folk legends, Tommy Makem and Liam Clancey .. and, to her delight, she was picked to go on the show!

Says Frances: “Unfortunately I don’t remember much about Jimmy Saville as I spent most of the day with Tommy Makem and Liam Clancy. It had been a dream of mine to meet them for a long time, and I appeared in a special St Patrick’s week edition of the programme, in March 1983.

“I do remember asking Jimmy to say hello to some of my friends at school,He thought the best way would be to read them out - so we re-wrote my original letter to include their names and the name of my school - St Patrick’s High in Ballymena.”

The item was recorded live in a packed theatre but Frances remembers she thoroughly enjoyed the whole occasion.

“We had to do it twice because of feedback from the mics, but I don’t think anyone cared! I do remember getting the standard Jim’ll Fix It badge and a smaller one in silver, because Little and Large were on the same show.

“I played the bodhran with Makem and Clancy while they sang “A Place in the Choir” - they also presented me with a beautiful signed bodhran,” said Frances.