# Ray Cordeiro

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{{Short description|Hong Kong broadcaster and DJ (1924–2023)}}
{{Use Hong Kong English|date=January 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2023}}
{{For|the Cuban baseball coach|Reinaldo Cordeiro (baseball)}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Ray Cordeiro
| honorific_suffix      = {{postnom|country=HKG|MBE|SBS|size=100%}}
| image              = China Coast Jazzmen with Ray Cordeiro 2008 (cropped).jpeg
| caption            = Cordeiro in 2008
| birth_name         = Reinaldo Maria Cordeiro
| birth_date         = {{Birth date|1924|12|12|df=y}}
| birth_place        = [Wan Chai](/source/Wan_Chai), Hong Kong<!-- DO NOT LINK, see [MOS:GEOLINK](/source/MOS%3AGEOLINK) for further guidance -->
| death_date         = {{Death date and age|2023|01|13|1924|12|12|df=y}}
| death_place        = [Ma Liu Shui](/source/Ma_Liu_Shui), Hong Kong<!-- DO NOT LINK, see [MOS:GEOLINK](/source/MOS%3AGEOLINK) for further guidance -->
| other_names        = Uncle Ray
| occupation         = {{hlist|Broadcaster|disc jockey|actor}}
| website            = {{Official URL}}
| module             = {{Infobox Chinese|child=yes|order=ts
| c = 郭利民
| y = gwok leih màhn
| j = {{Jpingauto|Gwok3 Lei6 Man4}}
}}
}}

'''Reinaldo Maria Cordeiro''' {{Post-nominals|country=HKG|MBE|SBS}} ({{Lang-zh|c=|s=|t=郭利民|order=ts}};<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://hd.stheadline.com/news/columns/0/20180223/648231/|title=Executive日記——長壽DJ停播疑雲 Uncle Ray動人舊歌|work=頭條日報 Headline Daily|access-date=1 June 2018|language=zh-HK}}</ref> 12 December 1924 – 13 January 2023), known professionally as '''Uncle Ray''', was a Hong Kong broadcaster, disc jockey and actor.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/arts-music/article/1006141/record|title=For the record|date=8 July 2012|work=South China Morning Post|access-date=22 May 2018}}</ref> He was known for hosting ''All the Way with Ray'' on [RTHK Radio 3](/source/RTHK_Radio_3) from 1970 to 2021, which was the longest-running radio programme in Hong Kong. He was named "The World's Most Durable DJ" in 2000 by the [Guinness Book of World Records](/source/Guinness_Book_of_World_Records).<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/community/article/2123885/bittersweet-93rd-birthday-veteran-hong-kong-dj-uncle-ray-he|title=Bittersweet 93rd birthday for DJ 'Uncle Ray' as he mourns Mona Fong|work=South China Morning Post|access-date=22 May 2018|language=en}}</ref>

== Early life and career ==
Born Reinaldo Maria Cordeiro in [Wan Chai](/source/Wan_Chai), Hong Kong,<!-- DO NOT LINK, see [MOS:GEOLINK](/source/MOS%3AGEOLINK) for further guidance --> on 12 December 1924, Uncle Ray was one of six siblings.<ref name="rthk_20230113_i">{{cite news |title=Uncle Ray Cordeiro, 1924–2023 |work=RTHK News |url=https://news.rthk.hk/rthk/en/component/k2/1683870-20230114.htm}}</ref> His family descended from [Portuguese](/source/Portuguese_people) immigrants to China. Cordeiro's paternal grandfather was born in Shanghai and met his grandmother in the [Portuguese colony of Macau](/source/Portuguese_Macau), before moving to Hong Kong in 1868.<ref name="SCMPprofile">{{Cite web |date=4 July 2021 |title='Uncle Ray' Cordeiro, 96, on a lifetime of DJing and how he got started |url=https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/3139594/dj-uncle-ray-cordeiro-96-how-he-got-music-interviewed |access-date=14 January 2023 |website=South China Morning Post |language=en}}</ref> Cordeiro's father was born in Hong Kong while his mother immigrated from Macau to Hong Kong in the early 20th century.<ref name="SCMPprofile" /> His father abandoned the family when Cordeiro was six, leaving his mother to take on extra work to raise the family, which lived in poverty.<ref name="SCMPprofile" /> Cordeiro went to [St Francis' Canossian School](/source/St._Francis'_Canossian_School) as a child. He recalled being mocked for his [stuttering](/source/stuttering), which he eventually overcame with the help of his mother.<ref name="SCMPprofile" />

Cordeiro attended [St Joseph's College](/source/St_Joseph's_College%2C_Hong_Kong) shortly before [World War II](/source/World_War_II). During the war, his mother and sisters moved to Macau while Cordeiro stayed with his father, who worked with [HSBC](/source/HSBC_(Hong_Kong)) in Hong Kong. In 1943, Cordeiro joined the rest of the family living at a refugee camp in Macau.<ref name="SCMPprofile" /> A [big band](/source/big_band) performed at the camp on New Year's Eve in 1944, which developed Cordeiro's interest in the drums.<ref name="SCMPprofile" />

After the war, Cordeiro worked as a warden in [Stanley Prison](/source/Stanley_Prison). He befriended a young prisoner, but left the job after he refused to help the prisoner escape.<ref name="SCMPprofile" /> On the advice of his father, Cordeiro got a job at HSBC,  while also moonlighting as a drummer.<ref name="SCMPprofile" /> He described two jobs as a "pretty good life", though he was "bored to death working at the bank."<ref name="SCMPprofile" />

== Radio career ==
In 1949, at the age of 25, he started his broadcasting career as a scriptwriter with [Radio Rediffusion](/source/Rediffusion_Television).<ref name=":1" /> He eventually became a DJ and hosted a programme called ''Progressive Jazz''.<ref name="SCMPprofile" /> He joined [Radio Television Hong Kong](/source/Radio_Television_Hong_Kong) (then known as Radio Hong Kong) in 1960 as a [light music](/source/light_music) producer.<ref name="SCMPprofile" /> In 1970, he started the series ''All the Way with Ray'', the longest-running radio programme in Hong Kong which ran for 51 years until 15 May 2021.<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=SCED expresses sorrow over passing of Dr Reinaldo Maria Cordeiro |url=https://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/202301/14/P2023011400295.htm?fontSize=1 |access-date=14 January 2023 |publisher=Government of Hong Kong}}</ref> He had also cameoed in various Hong Kong films in the 1970s and 80s.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url=http://hkmdb.com/db/people/view.mhtml?id=19075|title=Ray Cordeiro|website=hkmdb.com|access-date=1 June 2018}}</ref>

Through the years, Cordeiro had interviewed many prominent musicians, including [the Beatles](/source/the_Beatles). He was recognised by [Elvis Presley Enterprises](/source/Elvis_Presley_Enterprises) for his lifelong contribution to Presley. He was voted top DJ in Hong Kong for four consecutive years. He was awarded an [MBE](/source/Order_of_the_British_Empire) in 1987 by [Queen Elizabeth II](/source/Elizabeth_II) in [Buckingham Palace](/source/Buckingham_Palace).<ref name=":0" />

Cordeiro received an honorary fellowship from the [Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts](/source/Hong_Kong_Academy_of_Performing_Arts) in 2012 and an honorary doctorate of Social Science from the [Chinese University of Hong Kong](/source/Chinese_University_of_Hong_Kong) in 2022.<ref name=":4">{{Cite news |title=RTHK's 'Uncle Ray' Cordeiro dies aged 98 |url=https://news.rthk.hk/rthk/en/component/k2/1683864-20230114.htm |access-date=14 January 2023 |work=RTHK News |language=en-gb}}</ref>

On 15 May 2021, Cordeiro retired at the age of 96 after hosting his final radio show, which had been running on public broadcaster RTHK since 1970.<ref name=":6">{{Cite news|date=15 May 2021|title=Hong Kong's Ray Cordeiro, 'world's most durable DJ', retires at 96|language=en-GB|publisher=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-57129010|access-date=15 May 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=Uncle Ray brings curtain down on 70-year career – RTHK|url=https://news.rthk.hk/rthk/en/component/k2/1589570-20210506.htm?|access-date=17 May 2021|work=RTHK News|publisher=RTHK|language=en-gb}}</ref>

''All the Way with Ray: My Autobiography'', a career-focused memoir by Cordeiro, was published in 2021 by Hong Kong-based Blacksmith Books.<ref>{{cite web|year=2021|title=All The Way With Ray: My Autobiography|language=en-GB|url=https://www.blacksmithbooks.com/books/all-the-way-with-ray-my-autobiography/|website=Blacksmith Books}}</ref>

== Death ==
Cordeiro died at the [CUHK Medical Centre](/source/CUHK_Medical_Centre) in Hong Kong on 13 January 2023, aged 98.<ref name=":4" /><ref name="SCMPobit" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Frater |first=Patrick |date=14 January 2023 |title=Ray Cordeiro, 'Uncle Ray,' World's Most Durable DJ, Dies at 98 |url=https://variety.com/2023/music/news/ray-cordeiro-dead-dies-durable-hong-kong-dj-1235489637/ |access-date=14 January 2023 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref> Government officials expressed their condolences with the news of his death.<ref>{{Cite web |title=SCST expresses deep sorrow over passing of Dr Reinaldo Maria Cordeiro |url=https://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/202301/14/P2023011400260.htm?fontSize=1 |access-date=14 January 2023 |publisher=Government of Hong Kong}}</ref><ref name=":3" />

== Programmes hosted ==

=== Radio Rediffusion ===
* ''Progressive Jazz'' (1949–1960)<ref name="SCMPprofile" />
* ''Talent Time''<!--  (1950–1956) --><ref name="SCMPobit">{{Cite web |date=14 January 2023 |title='World's most durable DJ', Hong Kong's 'Uncle' Ray Cordeiro, dies at 98 |url=https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3206817/worlds-most-durable-dj-uncle-ray-cordeiro-warm-voice-late-night-hours-generations-hong-kong-dies-98 |access-date=14 January 2023 |website=[South China Morning Post](/source/South_China_Morning_Post) |language=en}}</ref>
* ''The Beginners Please''<ref name="SCMPobit" />
* ''The Diamond Music Show''<ref name="SCMPobit" />
* ''Shriro Hit Parade''<ref name="SCMPobit" />
* ''Rumpus Time'' (1950s<!--–1956 -->)<ref name="SCMPobit" />
* ''Swing and Sway with Ray'' (–1960)<ref name="SCMPprofile" />

=== RTHK ===
<!-- * ''Just For You'' (1964–1969) -->
* ''From Me To You''<!-- (1964–1969) --><ref name="SCMPobit" />
* ''Hit Parade''<!-- (1964–1969 ) --><ref name="SCMPobit" />
* ''Lucky Dip''<!-- (1964–1969) --><ref name="SCMPobit" />
* ''All the Way with Ray'' (1970 – 15 May 2021)<ref name="SCMPprofile" />
* ''Just Jazz with Uncle Ray''<ref>{{Cite web |title=RTHK Radio 4 Just Jazz with Uncle Ray |url=https://www.rthk.hk/radio/radio4/programme/just_jazz_with_uncle_ray?lang=en |access-date=14 January 2023 |publisher=RTHK |language=en}}</ref>

== Filmography ==
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"
|-
! scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Title
! scope="col" | Role
!Notes
|-
!scope="row"| 1974
| ''[Games Gamblers Play](/source/Games_Gamblers_Play)'' 
| 
|<ref name=":2" />
|-
!scope="row"| 1975
| ''Let's Rock'' 
| 
|<ref name=":2" />
|-
!scope="row"| 1975
| ''[The Last Message](/source/The_Last_Message)'' 
| Assassin, policeman
|<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" />
|-
!scope="row"|1976
|''[The Private Eyes](/source/The_Private_Eyes_(1976_film))''
|
|<ref name=":2" />
|-
!scope="row"|1981
| ''[Security Unlimited](/source/Security_Unlimited)'' 
|Horse race trickster
|<ref name=":2" />
|-
!scope="row"|1981
|''{{Ill|Job Hunter|zh|失業生}}''
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=14 January 2023 |title= |script-title=zh:著名唱片騎師Uncle Ray 離世 享年98歲 |trans-title=Famous DJ Uncle Ray has passed away at the age of 98 |url=https://www.inmediahk.net/node/%E8%91%97%E5%90%8D%E5%94%B1%E7%89%87%E9%A8%8E%E5%B8%ABuncle-ray-%E9%9B%A2%E4%B8%96-%E4%BA%AB%E5%B9%B498%E6%AD%B2 |access-date=14 January 2023 |website=[inmediahk.net](/source/inmediahk.net)}}</ref>
|-
!scope="row"|1983
|''All the Wrong Spies''
|The Jew
|<ref name=":2" />
|}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{Official website}}
* [http://www.rthk.org.hk/channel/radio3/r3/r3_90_profile.htm Radio Television Hong Kong]
* {{HKMDB name}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cordeiro, Ray}}
Category:1924 births
Category:2023 deaths
Category:20th-century Hong Kong male actors
Category:Hong Kong people of Macanese descent
Category:Hong Kong people of Portuguese descent
Category:Hong Kong radio presenters
Category:Members of the Order of the British Empire
Category:Recipients of the Silver Bauhinia Star
Category:RTHK
Category:World record holders
Category:Macanese people

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Ray Cordeiro](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Cordeiro) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Cordeiro?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.