Career
He worked mainly for Radio Telefís Éireann, and was the first Irish celebrity to die from an Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome-related illness. He has been described as "Ireland"s first gay celebrity."
Hanley began presenting popular music shows on RTÉ Radio Cork in 1976. He also did stints in Dublin on RTÉ Radio One and RTÉ television, including a special on Gilbert O"Sullivan.
When the first dedicated popular station, RTÉ Radio Two (now branded 2FM), was started in 1979, he was one of its best-known DJs.
In 1981, he moved to London to work for Capital Radio. In 1984, he declined a lucrative offer to remain there and moved to New York City.
Hanley founded Green Apple Productions in 1983 with Conor McAnally, an RTÉ television producer and son of actor Ray McAnally. The company produced Montana-United States of America (Music Television United States of America), a three-hour-long music video show modelled on the new American cable channel, Music Television. Montana-United States of America was broadcast on RTÉ from 1984-1987 on Sunday afternoons.
Each block of videos was followed by a segment filmed in New York City with Hanley introducing the videos, discussing American music and culture, and interviewing a celebrity.
RTÉ described him as Europe"s first VJ (video jockey). In 1987, Hanley died shortly after his 33rd birthday. He had been visibly ill for some time, and was rumoured to have an Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome-related illness, which he denied.
This reflected the stigma then associated with the disease and with homosexuality in Ireland, which was not decriminalised until 1993.
The illness admitted by Hanley was congenital cerebral toxoplasmosis, described as an "eye disorder". He was blind in one eye by his death.
Toxoplasmosis is very rarely fatal in adults who do not have a weakened immune system. The same year, the Sunday Tribune newspaper placed Hanley at the top of a list of Irish gay icons.
