Eddie McGuire is a beloved Australian radio presenter, television host, journalist, and sports commentator who is known as both ‘Eddie Everywhere’ and ‘The Boy from Broady’. He’s an icon of Australian television, and he’s as Aussie as they come, with the addition of Scot Irish roots.
Eddie McGuire was born in Broadmeadows, Australia, to a Scottish father and an Irish mother. He’s in tune with his Scottish heritage, has many family members that still reside in Glasgow, and considers Celtic F.C. to be the ‘greatest team in the world’.
Let’s take a closer look at where Eddie McGuire and his family were born, and what his connection is to his Scottish heritage.
Where Was Eddie McGuire Born and Raised?
Edward Joseph McGuire was born on 29 October 1964 to parents Edward McGuire Sr. and his wife Birdie Brennan, in Broadmeadows. He and his three siblings — Frank, Evelyn, and Brigette — were raised in Broadmeadows.
Broadmeadows is a suburb of Victoria and is just a 9.9-mile stone’s throw from Melbourne’s central business district. The area was once home to a bustling manufacturing industry, but that simmered down over time and today it’s mainly a residential area.
Growing up, Eddie loved watching television, hanging out at the local BMX track, and watching horse races and football matches. The children attended St. Dominic’s School and would return home at lunchtime to share a meal with their mother every day.
Eddie and his older brother Frank were awarded scholarships to St Kilda’s Christian Brothers’ College. The young boy from Broady got his first job at the age of 13 while a student at the school, acting as a stats compiler and a runner for ‘The Herald’.
He would work at ‘The Herald’ for five years before becoming a cadet sports reporter ‘Network 10’ in 1982, and then a sports host for ‘Nine Network’ in 1993. As they say, the rest is history.
Who Are Eddie McGuire’s Parents?
Eddie’s father, Eddie Sr., was born in Hamilton Lanarkshire, Glasgow, Scotland, and his mother Birdie — whose real name was Bridget — was born in County Roscommon, Ireland.
Birdie was taken out of school when she was 14 years old and was made to take care of her siblings and work on her father’s farm. Eddie Sr. began working as a ‘pit pony’ in a Scottish lowland coal mine when he was thirteen
Eddie Sr. and Birdie met and fell in love at Butlins Holiday Camp, where she was working as a waitress and he as a toolmaker. The marriage of Birdie and Eddie Sr. defied the 1801 ‘Act of Union’ which prevented Scottish and Irish people from marrying.
The pair moved to England and had a daughter named Evelyn, and then moved back to Scotland and had a son named Frank. In search of better opportunities for themselves and their children, the young family boarded the ‘Castel Felice’ in 1958 and moved to Port Melbourne.
What Connection Does Eddie McGuire Have to His Scottish Heritage?
Unfortunately, Eddie hasn’t always connected to his Scottish heritage properly and has often made inappropriate jokes about Scottish stereotypes.
In December of 2017, while working as a host on ‘Millionaire Hot Seat’, Eddie found himself in hot water when he made a contestant who had Scottish and Jewish parents the butt of his joke.
Upon learning about their heritage, Eddie told the contestant “So you have a Jewish father and a Scottish mother…I reckon it would have been hard getting pocket money from them!”.
What was meant as a joke was taken as an insult that perpetuates unfounded stigmas against both groups of people. The anti-semitic and anti-Scottish comment made headlines, and Eddie found himself having to defend himself.
After declaring that he had many Jewish friends, the star cleared up the confusion to News.com by saying, “It was about Scottish people, of which I am one. It was a joke aimed at myself and my family. We had a laugh, we moved on.”
This was the first time Eddie had publicly identified as Scottish, and the timing of it was poor, to say the least.
When Eddie was confused with a different Eddie McGuire and ended up incorrectly being put in a line-up to speak at an Anti-EU campaign, the star admitted that while he will not be “speaking in Glasgow in the near future” he has “plenty of cousins in Glasgow, and we all remain keen followers of Celtic”.