RTÉ Entertainment, Information, Education And Escapism For All The Family During Level 5 Restrictions #AtHomeWithRTÉ

• The Den  
• The Late Late Toy Show  
• After School Hub 
• New Halloween and midterm shows for kids 
• An Post Irish Book Awards  
• The Late Late Show 
• Deirdre O’Kane Talks Funny  
• John Delaney documentary 
• Callan’s Kicks  
• Fair City  
• New US Dramas  
• Dermot Bannon’s Incredible Homes  
• DIY SOS 
• The Sunday Game  
• The History Show  
• The Book Show  
• The Black and Irish Podcast  
• An Teach seo Againne 
• Cloch le Cairn  
• Podcasts 
• RTÉ Player Boxsets  
• and much more …  

RTÉ is offering something for everyone with a huge range of new programmes as well as much-loved familiar favourites over the coming six weeks. As the nation enters Level 5 restrictions, RTÉ will provide lots of laughs, nostalgia, drama, and arts, as well as the highs and lows of all the sporting action. RTÉ will continue to inform the nation through its trusted news and currents affairs coverage as part of delivering a fully comprehensive public service.  

The return of The Den will bring some nostalgia and fun into the dark evenings as Zig and Zag, Dustin and Ray get the gang back together on Sunday evenings from 8 November at 6.30 pm. Comedian Deirdre O’Kane hosts a brand-new show Deirdre O’Kane Talks Funny, while Amy Huberman’s comedy-drama Finding Joy continues its second series. RTÉ Player hosts brand-new comedy series Seriously, Sinead! starring writer and comedian Sinead Quinlan. Oliver Callan brings his unique brand of satire every Friday on RTÉ Radio 1 with Callan’s Kicks, which is also available as a hugely popular podcast.   

No matter what restrictions the nation faces, nothing can stop the biggest television night of the year as The Late Late Toy Show returns on Friday 27th November. Host Ryan Tubridy has promised a Toy Show like no other, with plans already well underway to deliver the 2020 edition of the annual TV extravaganza. The whole family can participate in the build-up early this year with another chance to enjoy The Late Late Toy Show Singalong show with fond memories including The Cup Song, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Hit the Diff, The Greatest Showman, Old Town Road and last year’s Frozen extravaganza. The Late Late Show continues to entertain every Friday night with top-class interviews, stories of the week, and stunning musical performances. Guests this Friday night include Matthew McConaughey and Bruce Springsteen and on Friday, November 6th, a Late Late Show special will showcase Irish businesses affected by the lockdown in a bid to encourage Irish consumers to support local in the run-up to Christmas.

Quality drama will keep viewers intrigued, including the brand-new series Dead Still which premiers the night after Halloween. Set in Dublin in the 1800s, it features Irish actor Michael Smiley in the lead role as a renowned memorial photographer who is drawn into a series of apparent murders. Acclaimed legal drama The Split, written and created by Abi Morgan,returns for a second series, while season three of US drama Yellowstone starring Kevin Costner returns. There are plenty of Box Set-binge opportunities available on the RTÉ player, with The West Wing, The Fall (starring Jamie Doran), The Hour (starring Dominic West) and One Tree Hill all coming to the Player over the coming weeks. Closer to home, there’s more drama as Fair City continues after five months off-air: can Dean Dowling find love at last and can Paul Brennan ever change?   

Viewers will be inspired by the wonderful sense of community and generosity in DIY SOS and by the creativity of architect and designer Róisín Murphy and builder Peter Finn in the new series of Home Rescue as they makeover Irish homes. More home inspiration will come from the showcase of jaw-dropping houses from around the world in Dermot Bannon’s Incredible Homes. On the RTÉ Player, a new seriescalled From the Same Cloth shows dressmaker and stylist Karen O’Mahony from Rag Order turn the most treasured pieces of clothing into timeless memories of loved ones. Presented live across three nights by Liz Bonnin – with Professor Luke O’Neill – Future Island looks at the future of cities, homes, offices, food, tech, sport and recreation and ponders how Ireland might adapt in a post-pandemic ‘tomorrow’s world’. Maura, Daithi, and Sinead will be with you every day on The Today Show live from our Cork studios giving you the best of everything from cooking, fashion, gossip, and Irish culture. 

The country may be under level 5 restrictions, but the nation can still feel the spark of sporting passion with RTÉ as we bring you live GAA, rugby, soccer and horse racing. The Sunday Game returns with live GAA Championship action from across the country including the All-Ireland Camogie quarterfinals and semi-finals. Irish Language commentary for the Games will be available on RTÉ’s news channel. Rugby fans can enjoy the Guinness series of autumn Internationals with Ireland’s ties against England, Wales and Georgia, as well as the Women’s Six Nations fixtures with France and Italy. In soccer RTÉ Sport will bring viewers the Irish women’s crucial Euro 2022 qualifiers against Ukraine and Germany, the climax of the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division race, the Extra.ie FAI Cup semi-finals and of course the UEFA Champions League live. The highlight of the pre-Christmas racing calendar in Ireland the Fairyhouse Winter Festival will also be live on RTÉ.

Commemorating the centenary of Bloody Sunday, RTÉ will broadcast the tv documentary The Bloodied Field, a contemporary and cinematic re-appraisal of the events in Croke Park based on Michael Foley’s e-book, as well as the Bloody Sunday Anniversary GAA Match. Also marking this important anniversary, RTÉ Radio 1 will have dedicated special programmes by Sunday Miscellany and The History Show along with ​a special episode of the Documentary on One on 14th November and a new specially-themed podcast. 

A range of new documentaries, series and podcasts will give an insight into Irish life from lots of different aspects. A new documentary will examine John Delaney’s time in charge of the FAI. The inspirational My Uni Life follows seven students who are managing to attend university against the odds, overcoming significant challenges ranging from disabilities to socially disadvantaged backgrounds. The brand-new weekly podcast The Black and Irish Podcast on rte.ie, Spotify and Apple podcasts will be presented by the faces behind The Black and Irish Instagram account, highlighting and celebrating the struggles and successes of the Black Irish community. A new popular social history series, The Way We Were takes an entertaining, nostalgic look at how we used to work, shop, and holiday. 

We have lots for kids on RTÉ2, RTÉjr, and RTÉ Player too. Airing across midterm, Blasts From The Past (starting RTÉ2 Monday at 4 pm) is a new comedy-drama series for children aged 8 to12 that pokes irreverent fun at the whole tapestry of Irish history. It features Emily Blast, a trainee time traveller whose mission is to recover historical objects that have gone missing. Also airing across midterm is My Story (RTÉ2, Monday to Thurs, 3.40pm), four unique stories offering a unique perspective from different children, including 12-year-old Dillon, an outdoor adventurer; Tajius a 12-year-old kickboxer and social media influencer; and Joseph, who sets himself a challenge to walk unaided into his 10th birthday party.  

After School Hub may be taking their mid-term next week, but that doesn’t mean you can’t catch up on ALL the fun from the first two weeks on RTÉ Player. John tells us about the Púca and shows us some of his favourite Cluichí Oiche Shamhna. Ray travels back in time to the origins of Halloween, Samhain, and how the festival actually began in Ireland. Clíona makes some spooky spider webs and shows you how to use make-up to make yourself look a bit scary for one day only! The series resumes each day on RTÉ2 at 3pm from 2nd November, with a huge range of activities in which kids can participate. Plus, you can check out our brand-new Irish sign language series After School Hub Best Bits which starts Saturday 31st October at 10am on RTÉ2. 

A new radio station has mysteriously appeared in time for Halloween – Spooky FM! Launching this Friday, 23rd October, it will be filled with werewolves, witches, evil fairies and slimy sea monsters, are you brave enough to listen? And we’ll be spooking the older kids each day at noon next week on RTÉ2 and the RTÉ Player with A Scare at Samhain. These scary stories, originally recorded for Samhain Festival, are read by Katherine Lynch & Tara Flynn.  

Home-cooking and baking take on a special importance for many during lockdown, and over the next few weeks viewers can learn new skills and feast their eyes on the culinary delights of World Young Chef of Year winner, Ireland’s Mark Moriarty in the new series Beyond the Menu and with Donal Skehan in Donal’s family food in Minutes.  

Showcasing the creativity of Irish and international artists, John Kelly returns with a new five-part series of The Works Presents focusing on one Irish artist per show including singer Lisa O’ Neill and actor Derbhle Crotty while the An Post Book Awards will celebrate the best of Irish writing talent. Radio listeners can escape to a world of literary wonder with the current series of The Poetry Programme and The Book Show broadcasting each week on RTÉ Radio 1. On November 26th, John Creedon and Ruth Smith will present The Folk Awards on Radio 1 with all the same categories and awards as 2018 and 2019. 

RTÉ Radio 1 will continue to deliver the most up to date news and analysis across the day with plenty of lighter moments to keep you entertained while RTÉ 2FM will continues support Irish artists on air, and will launch a talent competition next week to find the next upcoming, undiscovered big Irish artist to make the 2021 2FM Rising list.    

New Irish-language programming will include An Teach Seo Againne, a unique four-part Irish language observational documentary series that will transport RTÉ audiences into the homes of four single-parent and co-parent households, from across Ireland leading up to and during the current pandemic. Cloch le Carn will reflect and celebrate the lives of Jack Charlton, Brendan Bowyer and Larry Gogan. RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta will celebrate what would have been the week of the Oireachtas festival, an annual celebration of the Irish language, and culture, with interviews, live trad music, sean-nós singing, sketches and good company. Since the ongoing restrictions mean there are no opportunities to dance safely together in public, Cian Ó Cíobháin will continue with his monthly series of house parties on radio this winter with the renowned An Taobh Tuathail on RTÉ RnaG, a programme custom-designed to bring us all together via the airwaves – between his house and yours.  Each show will have its own theme and on Friday 6th November at 10 pm, the spotlight will be on one of the most uplifting and joyous dance-floor genres of them all: Italo-disco.  Sinéad, Siún and Áine will continue to entertain as Beo ar Éigean continues on RTÉ Radio 1 and on digital platforms.

And on RTÉ lyric fm, each Friday at 7pm,The Lyric Concertwith Paul Herriott will present the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra LIVE from the National Concert Hall on RTÉ lyric fm and on RTÉ Culture. On Friday 30th October, the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra and conductor Proinnsías Ó Duinn perform music by Rossini, Fauré, Mendelssohn, Schubert. Saturdays at 7pm Opera Night with Paul Herriott brings listeners some of the world’s most loved Operas, this season includes Verdi’s La Traviata, Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Rossini’s The Barber of Seville and more.

Viewers can stay well-informed throughout the next six weeks as RTÉ provides extensive results coverage across television, radio and online of the US Presidential Election, which takes place on Tuesday 3rd  November, with the counting of votes beginning immediately after ballots close on the 3rd November and continuing late into the night. RTÉ News, along with Prime Time and Claire Byrne Live will continue to deliver trusted news, in-depth analysis, and major interviews on all news stories at home and internationally.