BELLEEK journalist Kate Smith has “the perfect balance” in her life as a mother and businesswoman, almost two decades after she presented her final news bulletin on UTV Live.
Kate was a news anchor for UTV Live from 1983 to 2006. She toured the world and interviewed celebrity icons, but it’s covering the Enniskillen Bombing in 1987 that sticks out in her mind.
“I really struggled on air to keep overwhelming emotions in check with the powerful interview which Gordon Wilson gave about the death of his daughter Marie,” Kate told the ‘Herald.
“Gordon talked about the worries he and his wife Joan had when their daughter went to Belfast to train as a nurse. His closing words were ‘We never thought she’d be killed in lovely Fermanagh’.”
Kate grew up in an ‘idyllic setting on the shores of Lough Erne’, undergoing her early education in Belleek and Mount Lourdes Grammar School, before heading to university.
She studied French, Psychology and Sociology at Queen’s University and a post graduate degree at University College Dublin, working as an ‘Agony Aunt’ for the Sunday News newspaper.
With a keen interest in journalism, Kate spent a spell with Downtown Radio, before moving to RTÉ.
“My timing couldn’t have been better as there was a new direction with news reporters moving into the studios to front the news programmes,” Kate explained.
“Before that studio news presenters were trained actors. I was beyond thrilled to get picked as a member of the new revolutionary lineup of news anchors.”
Making her mark at RTÉ, Kate received an ‘irresistible offer’ to join UTV Live as a news anchor, at a time when the North was very much in the headlines with the Troubles ongoing at that time.
“Northern Ireland was a top news item across the world and a magnet for the international press corps, as stories of terrible atrocities, civil and political unrest were revealed,” she said.
“There were unrelenting days for newsrooms. They were the worst of times and sometimes the best of times in ways. It was against this backdrop I spent the rest of my broadcasting career.”
During her 20-year career with UTV Live, Kate experienced the highs and lows of the job, meeting some A-List celebrities, including the likes of famous actors Tom Cruise and Pierce Brosnan.
“We worked hard and played hard together,” said the mother-of-one.
“I got to travel a lot and was more than a little star struck at times with some of the rich and famous I met. Being on the red carpet at the Oscars in LA was as glitzy as it could get though.
“Any notions of glamour soon disappeared when I realised I needed to elbow my way through the throng of international showbiz reporters if I was to get my interviews.”
Kate presented a number of major awards ceremonies and it was at one that she met her future husband Michael Deane, a Michelin Star chef and restaurant owner from Lisburn.
Michael had opened his first restaurant ‘Deane’s on the Square’ when Kate was informed of a voluntary redundancy package at UTV. She decided to commit fully to the family business.
“UTV was like being part of a big family and was a wonderful place to work,” the journalist said.
“We needed to restructure our lives if we were to create any sort of family life. As fate would have it, UTV was restructuring which presented the opportunity to apply for voluntary redundancy.
“[Voluntary redundancy] was the perfect opportunity for our family. It allowed me to make the financial investment that enabled the buyout of Michael’s business partners.”
The family owns and runs a number of restaurants throughout the North, opening their latest venture, the ‘mrDeanes Bistro Bar and Social’, in Howard Street in Belfast, in May.
Kate is at the forefront of the Deane hospitality empire and she’s pleased with its success.
“While business hasn’t all been plain sailing, I have no regrets about changing the direction of my own career,” the Belleek mother explained.
“The hospitality industry has faced and continues to face challenges and you need a resilience and ability to see beyond the here and now as well as attending to the detail.
“I recognise that my background in journalism has given me skills that I apply in business. I’ve gained significant hospitality industry knowledge and learned a lot from Michael.
“Our business is about teamwork. I have had an unwavering belief and confidence in Michael’s talent and hard work and he has complete trust and confidence in my advice and guidance.”
The couple are particularly proud that their son, Marco, has now joined the family business.
“After leaving UTV, I had the perfect balance of being engaged in my own career and our family business while being able to give attention to Marco,” said Kate.
“Marco has taken to the business like a duck to water. We have every confidence he’ll take the helm, though neither Michael nor myself are planning to take our feet off the pedals anytime soon.”
Although she’s not actively involved in journalism, Kate is a board member of the Northern Ireland Screen and board member of Cinemagic, aiming to encourage young people into film and TV.
The Belfast resident is urging Fermanagh youngsters to embrace their creative talents.
“It’s a wonderful career. It opened opportunities for me that I can hardly believe,” Kate said.
“Journalists are privileged to access a breadth and diversity of knowledge and experiences few professions can offer and this equips you with many transferable skills and insights.”
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