News

Today, Gloria Hunniford is best known throughout the U.K. as a television presenter for both the BBC and ITV, including as a panelist on Loose Women (Britain’s equivalent to The View).  But the Northern Ireland-born broadcaster and reporter began her career as a singer, first performing publicly as a child and later hosting her own radio show in Canada, on which she sang Irish songs.  Hunniford, once dubbed “Ireland’s Queen of Song,” has returned to music with frequency – from sharing bills with Roy Orbison and Tiny Tim and hosting for BBC Radio 2 to, much more recently, appearing as the Snow Leopard on The Masked Singer.  On February 21, the fine folks at Stage Door Records will bring Hunniford’s 1979 album A Taste of Hunni to CD for the first time as part of the label’s ongoing Pop series.

Hunniford debuted on records in 1969 with writer-producers Alan Hawkshaw and John Cameron’s Song for Europe entry, “Are You Ready for Love” b/w their “The Sound of Love.”  Her first full-length album, That’s How I Spell Ireland, was released in 1970.  Though Hunniford continued to perform onstage and on television during this period, she didn’t make a full-fledged return to the recording studio until the end of the decade.  A Taste of Hunni teamed her with producer-arranger Noel Kelehan, a Dublin-born pianist who conducted a whopping 29 Eurovision Song Contest entries (including five winners).  Hunniford brought her expressive pipes to such contemporary classics as Marvin Hamlisch and the Bergmans’ “The Way We Were,” Stevie Wonder’s “You Are the Sunshine of My Life,” Billy Joel’s “Just the Way You Are,” Albert Hammond and Carole Bayer Sager’s “When I Need You,” and Kris Kristofferson’s “For the Good Times.”  Hunniford and Kelehan also brought disco gloss to Burt Bacharach and Hal David’s anthem “What the World Needs Now Is Love” and Harry Warren and Mack Gordon’s oft-covered standard “The More I See You.”

Stage Door has added four bonus tracks to the CD debut of A Taste of Hunni: both sides of the 1969 “Are You Ready for Love” single; the 1988 re-recording of the album’s “Give the Children Back Their Childhood” (re-recorded by Gloria for the BBC’s Children in Need charity); and its B-side, “Who Will Help the Children.”

None other than Cliff Richard has penned the new introduction for Stage Door’s release, while Gloria comments in the press release, “When I heard this album was to be released, I can’t begin to tell you how thrilled I was. It’s a collection of ‘never to be out of fashion’ middle-of-the-road songs I played endlessly on BBC Radio 2 when I had the pleasure of a daily programme for 13 years.  So many memories are tied up in this album; I really hope you enjoy listening to it, and a huge thanks for joining me on a trip down memory lane.”  Stage Door has also added new cover artwork.

This expanded and remastered edition from one of Britain’s most beloved personalities arrives from Stage Door Pop on February 21.  It’s available now for pre-order (including directly from the label), and you’ll find links as well as the track listing below.  As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

Gloria Hunniford, A Taste of Hunni (Ritz Records RITZLP0002, 1982 – reissued Stage Door STAGE 9106, 2025) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Stage Door)

1. Give the Children Back Their Childhood
2. You Are the Sunshine of My Life
3. You Needed Me
4. Feelings
5. What the World Needs Now
6. The Way We Were
7. May Each Day
8. Just the Way You Are
9. Mysterious People
10. When I Need You
11. The More I See You
12. In the Gloaming
13. For the Good Times
14. Are You Ready for Love (Bonus Track) (Tangerine single DP 0012, 1969)
15. The Sound of Love (Bonus Track) (Tangerine single DP 0012, 1969)
16. Give the Children Back Their Childhood (1988 Version) (Bonus Track) (Ocean single OCN6, 1988)
17. Who Will Help the Children (Bonus Track) (Ocean single OCN6, 1988)​