

This was both successful and controversial. In 1979, they gained international attention with their second UK No. 1 single in the UK with "Rat Trap", the first new wave chart-topper in Britain. In 1978, The Boomtown Rats had their first No. Returning to Ireland in 1975, he became lead singer of the Boomtown Rats, a rock group closely linked with the punk movement. He briefly guest hosted the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation children's program Switchback. After work as a slaughterman, a road navvy and pea canner in Wisbech, England, he was hired as a music journalist in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for The Georgia Straight. Geldof attended Blackrock College, where he was bullied for being a poor rugby player and for his middle name, Zenon. When Geldof was six years old, his mother Evelyn died at age 41 of a cerebral haemorrhage. His paternal grandmother, Amelia Falk, was a British Jew from London of German-Jewish descent. His paternal grandfather, Zenon Geldof, was a Belgian immigrant and a hotel chef. Geldof was born and brought up in Dún Laoghaire, Ireland, a son of Robert and Evelyn Geldof. 5.2 Freedom of Dublin and Easter Rising comments.In 2005, he received the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music. He is a recipient of the Man of Peace title which recognises individuals who have made "an outstanding contribution to international social justice and peace", among numerous other awards and nominations. Geldof was granted an honorary knighthood (KBE) by Elizabeth II in 1986 for his charity work in Africa although it is an honorary award as Geldof is an Irish citizen, he is often referred to as 'Sir Bob'. A single father, Geldof has also been outspoken for the fathers' rights movement. Geldof currently serves as an adviser to the ONE Campaign, co-founded by fellow Irish rock singer and activist Bono, and is a member of the Africa Progress Panel (APP), a group of ten distinguished individuals who advocate at the highest levels for equitable and sustainable development in Africa. They went on to organise the charity super-concert Live Aid the following year and the Live 8 concerts in 2005. In 1984, he and Midge Ure founded the charity supergroup Band Aid to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia. Geldof is widely recognised for his activism, especially anti-poverty efforts concerning Africa. As a fundraiser, Geldof organised the charity supergroup Band Aid and the concerts Live Aid and Live 8, and co-wrote " Do They Know It's Christmas?", one of the best-selling singles of all time. Geldof starred as "Pink" in Pink Floyd's 1982 film Pink Floyd – The Wall. The band had UK number one hits with his compositions " Rat Trap" and " I Don't Like Mondays".

He rose to prominence in the late 1970s as lead singer of the Irish rock band the Boomtown Rats, who achieved popularity as part of the punk rock movement. Robert Frederick Zenon Geldof KBE ( / ˈ ɡ ɛ l d ɒ f/ born 5 October 1951) is an Irish singer-songwriter, actor and political activist.
