Rugby's biggest pundit and one of the biggest names in Irish Media, 3-time winner of the British Chambers of Commerce 'Best Individual Speaker' award, Hook's appearance at a Dublin Chamber of Commerce breakfast brought the highest attendance in the history of the event.
In less than a decade George Hook has become one of the biggest names in Irish media. His meteoric rise at a time of life when he himself suggests, that “he should be consulting an undertaker” has rarely been equalled in broadcasting history in Ireland.
In 1997 he became a fixture on RTE’s television rugby panel with Tom McGurk and Brent Pope and quickly established himself as a fearless but knowledgeable critic of the game. His humour, addiction to historical references and command of language propelled the rugby analysis to the realm of cult status. Major rugby occasions now see RTE outscore their competitors, BBC and ITV, by 5:1
“You can add Thomond Park to Fatima, Knock and Lourdes. The lame will come here and walk, they'll be selling water here, because this defies logic." - George Hook after Munster’s historic defeat of Gloucester 33-6 in the European Cup
For The Sunday Independent George performs a similar role in print journalism to that of television and straddles the two mediums with ease.
"Would you pass on our sincere thanks to George, on behalf of Bord Gáis Energy and ourselves here in PSG Communications, for taking part in the Bord Gáis Energy Conference yesterday. The panel discussion was one of the highlights of the day and Bord Gáis couldn’t have been happier with how the segment went, so we wanted to thank George for his key participation in it." - Ann Marie Lowry / Senior Account Executive, PSG Plus Corporate Communications & Reputation Management (Oct 2016)
"Everything went great on Friday. My thanks to George he was entertaining and captivating. The lads listened to what he had to say and he got the Cork rebel spirit and "can do" attitude going. Tell him not to mind running for President he should run for Taoiseach !!" - Colette Brosnahan, Heineken Ireland
"So far Gerry Adams trails behind the Chamber of Commerce's most popular breakfast guest; rugby commentator and broadcaster, George Hook." - Mark Hennessy, Political Correspondant of the Irish Times
“God bless Hookie-speak, c'est magnifique, Hookie-speak” - Philip Reid of the Irish Times
“Hook's emotive and highly personal style of broadcasting is seen as his biggest selling point. His style is avuncular and he also shows a refreshing ability to admit either being wrong or not knowing the answer” - Stephen McMahon of the Sunday Business Post
“I tuned into The Right Hook expecting an overdose of Hooky-to-Popey-to-Wardy rugger-type chat but instead, Hook, as usual, was all empathetic banter across a broad range of subjects with a good line-up of guests” - Bernice Harrison, Radio Critic of the Irish Times
“…he has a voice like a melon in a food mixer” - Shane Hegarty, TV Critic of the Irish Times
“So far, Gerry Adams trails behind the Chamber of Commerce's most popular breakfast guest, rugby commentator and broadcaster, George Hook” - Mark Hennessy, Political Correspondent of the Irish Times
