Maxi (singer)
Encyclopedia
Maxi is an Irish
radio disc-jockey and producer; actor, journalist, and singer. Her real name is Irene McCoubrey. She was nicknamed Maxi in school because of the McC letters in her name. She came to fame as part of the popular girl band, Maxi, Dick and Twink
, in Ireland in the late 1960s.
She grew up in Dublin's Harold's Cross. At school she sang in the Little Dublin Singers before joining the Young Dublin Singers. It was in that choir that she was teamed with Barbara Dixon and Adele King
- Dick and Twink respectively. The trio toured Ireland, UK and Canada and recorded two singles. They also worked a session singers in Motown studios in Detroit, Michigan
before disbanding.
Maxi pursued a career with Danny Doyle
and Music Box before going solo. She represented Ireland twice in the Eurovision; 1973 Eurovision Song Contest
singing "Do I Dream
", and again in 1981 with Sheeba
and their entry "Horoscopes"
.
During her singing days she was under contract to the Holiday Inn
group of hotels in Canada and the USA as well as headlining her own shows in such far-flung shores as Florida
and Greece.
In the late 1970s Maxi became part of the all-girl trio Sheeba, with Marion Fossett and Frances Campbell. After making several records, appearing all over Ireland and Europe, the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest
, Sheeba's career came to halt following a road accident in 1982 in Mayo
in the west of Ireland.
Despite a short tour of Japan in 1983, the group realised they could no longer tour and broke up. Maxi embarked on a career in broadcasting with the Irish national broadcaster RTÉ. Working mainly on radio, she also took on some television work including a quiz show, presenting Ireland's lottery
and fronting the Miss Ireland
contest. In 1987 Maxi presented the selection contest for Eurovision alongside Marty Whelan
.
As an actor, she has performed in Dublin's Abbey Theatre
and Cork Opera House
. As a celebrity journalist, her favourite interviewees include Roger Moore
, Bianca Jagger
, Paul Young
, Gerry Adams
, Louis Walsh
, José Carreras
and Gene Pitney
.
Maxi was appointed special representative for UNICEF Ireland, and one of her first public engagements was to highlight the situation is on several disaster fronts, particularly in sub-Sahara Africa.
Attending the fifth annual UNICEF International Mother's Day Lunch held in Dublin, she appealed with stories of the deprivation and disasters facing the people in AIDS
-ravaged Zambia
, where she spent two weeks.
In 2006 she continued to work as the early morning presenter on Risin' Time on RTÉ Radio 1
.In 2010 she left the show for abput 6 months because of ill health
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
radio disc-jockey and producer; actor, journalist, and singer. Her real name is Irene McCoubrey. She was nicknamed Maxi in school because of the McC letters in her name. She came to fame as part of the popular girl band, Maxi, Dick and Twink
Maxi, Dick and Twink
Maxi, Dick and Twink were an all-girl singing trio in Ireland in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Maxi is Irene McCoubrey , Dick is Barbara Dixon and Twink is Adele King...
, in Ireland in the late 1960s.
She grew up in Dublin's Harold's Cross. At school she sang in the Little Dublin Singers before joining the Young Dublin Singers. It was in that choir that she was teamed with Barbara Dixon and Adele King
Adele King
Adele King is an Irish entertainer better known as Twink from her time as a member of a group called Maxi, Dick and Twink which was a girl band in Ireland in the late 1960s and 1970s. She is Chloë Agnew's mother....
- Dick and Twink respectively. The trio toured Ireland, UK and Canada and recorded two singles. They also worked a session singers in Motown studios in Detroit, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
before disbanding.
Maxi pursued a career with Danny Doyle
Danny Doyle
Danny Doyle is a solo Irish folk singer.- Background :Reportedly, the songs on which Doyle was raised came from his mother and great-grandmother and from the last of Dublin's street singers and from some of Dublin's contemporary writers, such as poet Patrick Kavanagh and playwright Brendan Behan,...
and Music Box before going solo. She represented Ireland twice in the Eurovision; 1973 Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest 1973
The Eurovision Song Contest 1973 was the eighteenth Eurovision Song Contest and was held in Luxembourg. The language rule forcing countries to enter songs sung in any of their national languages was dropped, so performers from some countries sang in English....
singing "Do I Dream
Do I Dream
Do I Dream, or with a question mark Do I Dream? as it states the Eurovision official website, was the Irish entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1973, performed in English by Maxi....
", and again in 1981 with Sheeba
Sheeba
Sheeba were an all-girl pop trio popular in Ireland in the late 1970s and early 1980s. They were Maxi, Marion Fossett and Frances Campbell. They are best known for representing the host nation, Ireland, in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1981 with "Horoscopes"....
and their entry "Horoscopes"
Horoscopes (song)
"Horoscopes" was the Irish entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1981, performed in English by Sheeba.The song is an up-tempo number, with the girls singing about the fascination some people have with horoscopes and star signs. They explain that this is "crazy, crazy", because "It's we, not the...
.
During her singing days she was under contract to the Holiday Inn
Holiday Inn
Holiday Inn is a brand of hotels, formally a economy motel chain, forming part of the British InterContinental Hotels Group . It is one of the world's largest hotel chains with 238,440 bedrooms and 1,301 hotels globally. There are currently 5 hotels in the pipeline...
group of hotels in Canada and the USA as well as headlining her own shows in such far-flung shores as Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
and Greece.
In the late 1970s Maxi became part of the all-girl trio Sheeba, with Marion Fossett and Frances Campbell. After making several records, appearing all over Ireland and Europe, the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest 1981
The Eurovision Song Contest 1981 was the 26th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 4 April 1981 at the Simmonscourt Pavilion of the Royal Dublin Society in Dublin. The presenter was Doireann Ní Bhriain...
, Sheeba's career came to halt following a road accident in 1982 in Mayo
County Mayo
County Mayo is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the village of Mayo, which is now generally known as Mayo Abbey. Mayo County Council is the local authority for the county. The population of the county is 130,552...
in the west of Ireland.
Despite a short tour of Japan in 1983, the group realised they could no longer tour and broke up. Maxi embarked on a career in broadcasting with the Irish national broadcaster RTÉ. Working mainly on radio, she also took on some television work including a quiz show, presenting Ireland's lottery
Lottery
A lottery is a form of gambling which involves the drawing of lots for a prize.Lottery is outlawed by some governments, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of regulation of lottery by governments...
and fronting the Miss Ireland
Miss Ireland
Miss Ireland is a national beauty pageant held in the Republic of Ireland each year, to celebrate the country's most beautiful women. Winners of the contest represent Ireland at the Miss World pageant. Other winners, including Roberta Brown and Siobhan McClaffey have also been delegates at rival...
contest. In 1987 Maxi presented the selection contest for Eurovision alongside Marty Whelan
Marty Whelan
Martin 'Marty' Whelan is a Jacob's Award-winning Irish radio and television personality currently working for Raidió Teilifís Éireann. Frequently seen and heard on RTÉ radio and television, he has presented a variety of shows...
.
As an actor, she has performed in Dublin's Abbey Theatre
Abbey Theatre
The Abbey Theatre , also known as the National Theatre of Ireland , is a theatre located in Dublin, Ireland. The Abbey first opened its doors to the public on 27 December 1904. Despite losing its original building to a fire in 1951, it has remained active to the present day...
and Cork Opera House
Cork Opera House
Cork Opera House is a theatre and opera house in Cork in the Republic of Ireland. It was originally built in 1855, although its existence has not been continuous; having survived the burning of much of Cork by British forces in reprisal for an ambush of a military convoy in 1920 by Irish rebels,...
. As a celebrity journalist, her favourite interviewees include Roger Moore
Roger Moore
Sir Roger George Moore KBE , is an English actor, perhaps best known for portraying British secret agent James Bond in seven films from 1973 to 1985. He also portrayed Simon Templar in the long-running British television series The Saint.-Early life:Moore was born in Stockwell, London...
, Bianca Jagger
Bianca Jagger
Bianca Jagger is a Nicaraguan-born social and human rights advocate and a former actress and model...
, Paul Young
Paul Young
Paul Antony Young is an English pop musician. Formerly the frontman of the short-lived bands Kat Kool & The Kool Cats, Streetband and Q-Tips, his following solo success as a solo recording artist turned him into a 1980s teenage pop idol...
, Gerry Adams
Gerry Adams
Gerry Adams is an Irish republican politician and Teachta Dála for the constituency of Louth. From 1983 to 1992 and from 1997 to 2011, he was an abstentionist Westminster Member of Parliament for Belfast West. He is the president of Sinn Féin, the second largest political party in Northern...
, Louis Walsh
Louis Walsh
Louis Walsh is an Irish music manager and judge on the British television talent show The X Factor.-Band manager:...
, José Carreras
José Carreras
Josep Maria Carreras i Coll , better known as José Carreras , is a Spanish Catalan tenor particularly known for his performances in the operas of Verdi and Puccini...
and Gene Pitney
Gene Pitney
Eugene Francis Alan Pitney, known as Gene Pitney , was an American singer-songwriter, musician and sound engineer. Through the mid-1960s, he enjoyed success as a recording artist on both sides of the Atlantic and was among the group of early 1960s American acts who continued to enjoy hits after the...
.
Maxi was appointed special representative for UNICEF Ireland, and one of her first public engagements was to highlight the situation is on several disaster fronts, particularly in sub-Sahara Africa.
Attending the fifth annual UNICEF International Mother's Day Lunch held in Dublin, she appealed with stories of the deprivation and disasters facing the people in AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
-ravaged Zambia
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
, where she spent two weeks.
In 2006 she continued to work as the early morning presenter on Risin' Time on RTÉ Radio 1
RTÉ Radio 1
RTÉ Radio 1 is the principal radio channel of Irish public-service broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann and is the direct descendant of Dublin radio station 2RN, which began broadcasting on a regular basis on 1 January 1926...
.In 2010 she left the show for abput 6 months because of ill health