UTV has just announced plans to launch a new Irish TV channel here. Great news! It brought Julian Simmons to the forefront of our minds, who is undoubtedly the much loved face of the channel.

Julian Simmons, news reader and continuity presenter extraordinaire, has come a long way from where he started out. His journey on the road to stardom began on a Belfast stage when he was 'discovered' and asked to interview for a news reader position in UTV. And the rest is history...

But this isn't the Julian Simmons we have come to know and love surely? Back in 1987, a 35 year old Julian was much more straight-laced in his presenting style.

Where's the personality, the pizzazz, the sass talk we love him for? Here's a little for ya.

Like all of us, he's dropped the ball on occasion but always manages to pull it back with his own unique style.

His love for Coronation Street may be undocumented but is definitely well known, in fact he can't seem to take his mind off it.

And to conclude, lots of eye rolling, sentences without endings and an over-the-top dialect. It's Julian doing what he does best...telling you whats going to happen in the episode of Coronation Street you're just about to watch.

What would we do without Julian to cheer us up of a Sunday evening? Lets hope we never find out.