Henry Winkler Escapes Hotel Fire, Immediately Gives Incognito News Interview
Happy Days star Henry Winkler narrowly escaped a hotel fire in Ireland—and gave a lively incognito interview to local outlet RTE News just moments later without identifying himself. Winkler is in town to promote his memoir, Being Henry: The Fonz and Beyond.
Winkler was awoken around 10:30 a.m. local time on Wednesday morning at Dublin’s Shelbourne hotel by a noise which he assumed was an alarm clock. "I thought somebody had set the alarm before we got there, like another guest,” the Barry Emmy winner recalled.
“And finally I went into another room and it was still buzzing, so I called downstairs and the woman said in a very calm voice 'Yes, we're all evacuating. You must evacuate right now,' and I left."
Winkler told the outlet that he and his wife had only arrived in Dublin the previous night, and had been looking forward to a long lie-in after their tiring journey.
“We came last night. Our plane was delayed in London for about three and a half hours. This morning, we got up and evacuated!” Winkler told reporters. “And, uh, it was an amazing adventure right here in Dublin.”
Despite his tiring trip, Winkler seemed to be in high spirits as fire crews cleared the hotel and summarily dealt with the small blaze, which was confined to one room. After the Dublin Fire Brigade completed their duties, Winkler was photographed shaking their hands and holding an emphatic conversation with them.
Henry Winkler, best known as TV's ‘The Fonz’ was a guest at The Shelbourne and was seen thanking members of @DubFireBrigade for their work.
— Eleanor Burnhill (@ElMcM) June 12, 2024
He said he was woken by what he thought was an alarm clock this morning, when he realised it was the fire alarm going off @rtenews pic.twitter.com/WNWZOvhKag
“You know what? How wonderful,” Winkler said of the first responders. “Firemen are some of my favorite human beings—firemen and firewomen. They run in when other people are running out."
Firefighters were able to contain the blaze, which they believe started in the roof space above a sixth floor room, with minimal damage to the historic structure, built in 1824.
It’s unclear if Winkler and his wife had to move hotels after Wednesday’s incident, but the episode didn’t seem to damper the star’s enthusiasm whatsoever. “I cannot wait to see the rest of Dublin,” Winkler enthused at the end of his interview.