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Top 10 Unbelievable Facts about Bob Geldof

Bob Geldof in 1087- Author; ‘ElLo57 at German Wikipedia-

Bob Geldof was born on October 5th, 1951 as Robert Frederick Zenon Geldof. He is an Irish singer-songwriter, actor and political activist. Geldof rose to fame in the late 1970s as the lead singer of the Irish rock band called, ‘The Boomtown Rats.’

The band achieved popularity as part of the punk rock movement. The band also had the UK number one hits.

1. Bob Geldof starred in the film, Pink Floyd-The Wall

Pink Floyd, the wall-Author; badgreeb RECORDS-

Geldof starred as ‘pink’ in Pink Floyd’s 1982 film, “Pink Floyd- The Wall.” It was a British musical psychological drama film that was based on the 1979 Pink Floyd album, “The Wall.”

The film’s screenplay was written by Pink Floyd’s vocalist and bassist, Roger Waters.

Bob played the rock star, ‘pink,’ who is driven into insanity due to the death of his father, and constructs a physical and emotional wall so as to protect himself.

2. Geldof is an anti-poverty activist in Africa

Live Aid Event-

Geldof is also widely recognized for his activism especially his anti-poverty efforts projects in Africa.

In 1984 for instance, he and Midge Ure (Scottish musician, singer-songwriter and producer), founded ‘Band-Aid,’ a charity group that was meant to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia.

The following year, they also organized the charity super concert, ‘Live Aid.’ In 2005, ‘Live 8 Concerts’ were organized.

Currently, he serves as an advisor of the ONE Campaign, which he co-founded by a fellow activist, Bono.

He is also a member of the Africa Progress Panel (APP). This is a group of 10 distinguished individuals who precisely advocate for equitable and sustainable development in Africa.

As a single father himself, he’s also been outspoken and vocal about the father’s rights movement.

3. He was nominated twice for the Nobel Peace Prize

Medal Nobel Peace Prize- Author; ProtoplasmaKid-

In 1986, Geldof was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize due to his work on Live Aid. An initiative that earned $100 million for African famine relief.

In 2006, he was also recognized for his role in the Live 8 concerts. The event was held in 2005 and watched by 3 billion people. 150 bands and 1,250 musicians also played in the name of poverty.

4. Was granted an honorary knighthood

Knighthood Symbol- Image by 13smok from

In 1986, Geldof was granted an honorary knighthood (KBE), by Queen Elizabeth II, for his charity work in Africa. Although it is just an honorary award since Geldof is an Irish citizen, He is often referred to as “Sir Bob” because of that award.

5. He is the recipient of the ‘Man of Peace’ title

Bob Geldof is also a recipient of the ‘man of peace’ title, which recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions to international social justice and peace.

This award was conceptualized in 1999 by the annual world summit of Nobel Peace Laureates in Rome.

Its main purpose is to recognize individuals from the world of culture and entertainment that have stood up for human rights and the spread of peace and solidarity.

6. Geldof was bullied

Bullying image- Image by batian lu from Pixabay

When in high school, Geldof was bullied because he was a poor rugby player and because of his middle name, Zenon. This is mentioned in his autobiography, ‘Is that it?’

7. At one point in his life, he lived with squatters

As he disclosed in his autobiography, ‘is that it,’ when he left high school, he had no hopes, no ambitions and no clue as to what he would do in life.

He failed high school and could not go to university. Running out of options, he went to England and worked on a road construction crew for a while. He then drifted to London, where he lived with a group of squatters in an abandoned building and just worked.

8. He started by being a journalist

Photo by Austin Distel on

Geldof eventually moved so as to escape London life. He found a teaching position in Spain where his lack of credentials would not be a hindrance.

As he recounts in his autobiography, the sole qualification for the job to teach English was that one knew no Spanish. After trying it out, he decided to try Canada.

In Canada, he achieved his first success by becoming a reporter and then a music editor for Vancouver’s underground newspaper that was called’ Georgia Strait.’

Due to that opportunity, he became a minor local celebrity and was sure he wanted to spend his life in Canada. He was an illegal immigrant however and to get a proper visa meant he would have to return to Ireland.

9. Bob Geldof lost his daughter

Bob Geldof’s daughter, Peaches Geldof, in 2009- Author; LGEPR-

In April 2014, Bob Geldof lost his daughter peaches Geldof, who was only 25 years old. When speaking about it, he termed it as a ‘bottomless grief’ saying, “the abyss is infinite.”

His daughter, who left behind a husband and two sons, was found dead at her home and the cause of death was ruled a heroin overdose.

Given this fact, Geldof mentioned in one of his interviews regarding the topic that he half expected it because of the way she was carrying on before her death.

The pain was however unbearable, he said, because it is not right to see your child die. Nobody should have to experience that.

10. He once wrote a song that was inspired by the San Diego shooting in 1979

On January 29th, 1979 at Grover Cleveland Elementary school in San Diego, a 16-year-old girl, Brenda Ann Spencer opened fire at children in a school playground.

She ended up killing two adults and injuring eight children and one police officer. She showed no remorse and when asked why she did it, she said, “I don’t like Mondays. This livens up the day.”

Geldof after reading the story found it strange that not liking Monday would make someone do something like that.

As explained in one of his interviews, he found the act senseless with a perfectly senseless reason for doing it and therefore he decided to write a senseless song to illustrate it. He clarified however that he wasn’t attempting to exploit a tragedy.

The song was titled, ‘I don’t like Mondays.’ A phrase Brenda Sp had used. It became a number-one single on the UK singles chart for four weeks straight during the summer of 1979.

There were however disputes between Geldof and Johnnie Fingers regarding who wrote the song. In 2019, they reached an agreement and Fingers too received a financial settlement and co-credit.

Geldof however regretted writing the song because as he put it, he “made Brenda Spencer famous.”