Amal Fahmy: cheerio to ‘The Queen of Words’

CAIRO – 8 April 2018: Veteran Egyptian radio presenter Amal Fahmy died on Sunday at 92 years old. Fahmy was one of the female pioneers in the field of radio presenting. Throughout her career that extended for more than 40 years she succeeded with her melodious voice to build a strong rapport with both Egyptian and Arab listeners.

Who is Amal Fahmy?

The renowned radio presenter, dubbed “The queen of words", was born in Egypt in 1926. She graduated from Faculty of Literature, Arabic language department in 1951 that is why she was famous for her excellent Arabic language and her clear pronunciation.

Fahmy was the first to include the riddles series in the Egyptian radio. She presented more than one radio program, the most famous of which is her iconic “Ala el Nasya” (Around the corner). In this program, Fahmy used to make random and natural interviews with ordinary Egyptian citizens, as her strong belief was that media must both talk with people and about them.

"I believe that honesty, innovation and credibility were the only factors that constituted the success of the program; I did not compliment or hypocrite anyone; my only goal was presenting the truth to my listeners," recounted Fahmy in her last interview with El Watan Newspaper.

“Ala el Nasya” program achieved booming success; it was for many years the favorite radio program for most Egyptians. Fahmy said that she used to receive more than 400 letters daily from the program's listeners, expressing their strong admiration.

Fahmy topped the Egyptian radio presenters for more than 40 years; her name was added in Guinness Book of Records because her program “Ala el Nasya” continued for more than 50 years. Fahmy presented other programs such as a cultural program named “Hawl el Alam” (Around the World) and another program entitled “Fe Khedmetak” (At your Service). Fahmy became the first female to head “Iza'at al Sharq al Awsat” (The Middle East Radio) in 1964.

Throughout her long radio presenting career Fahmy interviewed a notable number of public figures in multiple fields; culture, art, sports and politics. She interviewed the members of the Revolutionary Command Council of July Revolution that arose in Egypt in 1952 and was headed by late Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser; she also interviewed famous Russian astronaut Yuri Gagarin, famous Egyptian journalists Mostafa Amin and Ali Amin, Late King Hussein of Jordan, late former Algerian President Ahmed bin Bella, Algerian nationalist Djamila Bouhired, famed Egyptian singer Abdel Halim Hafez, late former Egyptian President Mohamed Anwar el-Sadat, among others.

Fahmy described her strong love and loyalty for her job, saying “I love the radio microphone; I always kiss it and deal with it as a loyal friend whom I love and respect; I chose not to have children in order not to get distracted and totally focus on my job; the love of millions of Egyptians is enough for me.’’