We still can't believe the great Terry Wogan has left this mortal coil, he truly was a legend of broadcasting at home and in the UK and did his country, and the people of Limerick, proud.

Turns out though, like many starting off in broadcasting, Wogan had to suffer some rejection first. It's recently emerged (by RadioTimes) that the one and only Sir David Attenborough, who was the Controller of Programmes at the BBC back in 1965,  was one such person to turn him down.

At just 27-years-old, Wogan wrote to the BBC looking to be considered for work, in what we have to say, was a very charming letter. He was working with RTE at the time and said he was looking to "extend the sphere of my television activities."

Going on to say; "At 27, I am Senior Announcer with, among other duties, responsibility for programme production and presentation, and announcer training.

"While fully realising that since you are familiar with neither my name nor my work, the above litany can carry very little weight, I am hopeful that you are receptive enough of new ideas and personalities to give me the opportunity of substantiating these claims."

How well-worded is that? We'd have hired him in a heartbeat!

However, unfortunately for Terry, there was another BBC presenter working as a chief announcer at the time, a Dublin fella called Denis Tuohy, leading Attenbourough to reply;

"Thank you for your letter. I am afraid that, at the moment, we do not have any vacancy for anyone with your particular talents and experience - and as one of our chief announcers on BBC 2 is also from Dublin, we would feel, other things being equal, that we should look for someone from a different part of the country, if we were to make an additional appointment."

He did add though; "However, I will pass on your letter to the Head of Presentation and if a suitable vacancy should occur he will get in touch with you directly."

It's not bad as rejection letters go in fairness, and as it turns out, Attenborough doesn't even recall the letter. That's hardly surprising though, we're sure jobs in the BBC were in as high demand then as they are now.

He told RadioTimes; "Good Lord! He wrote asking me for work? I don’t remember this at all."

While the BBC have said that Attenborough defends his decision; "I think it was a perfectly reasonable answer. To have had two Irishmen presenting on BBC Two would have looked ridiculous.

"This is no comment whatsoever on Terry Wogan’s talents. It’s just that I couldn’t have had two Irish presenters."

It is totally a reasonable explanation, and we all know it worked out just fine for Wogan in the end, who went on to be offered a job presenting Midday Spin on the BBC Light Programme in 1966, which would lead him to his massively popular BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show.

Still though, gas that two such legends of broadcasting had an interaction like this back in the day, 'ey?