Latest JNLR RTÉ Radio Listenership figures released

Thursday, 16 May 2024 13:03

RTÉ’s radio services reach over two million adults* or 48% of the adult population every week
RTÉ holds 17 of the top 20 radio programmes broadcasting in Ireland
RTÉ Radio 1 remains the only station with a weekly reach of over one million** listeners with gains of +53,000 YoY
RTÉ 2FM weekly reach increases by +77,000 YoY to 764,000
RTÉ lyric FM has 316,000 listeners on a weekly basis increasing by +22,000 YoY

Since this time last year, 53,000 additional listeners are tuning into RTÉ Radio 1 across the week, weekly listenership to RTÉ 2FM has increased by 77,000, and RTÉ lyric FM – which recently celebrated its 25^th Anniversary – has an additional 22,000 listeners based on this time last year.

Commenting on the latest figures, RTÉ Deputy Director General Adrian Lynch said: “RTÉ radio services are continuing to connect with over 2 million Irish people each week across RTÉ Radio 1, with increases in weekly reach across RTÉ 2FM and RTÉ lyric fm demonstrating the ongoing power of radio and importance of public service broadcasting on the airwaves for Irish audiences. RTÉ radio services are a trusted source for news, sport, entertainment and music across Ireland, and the result of ongoing hard work and dedication of the radio production teams at RTÉ. As the media landscape continues to evolve, radio is steadfast in connecting with Irish audiences at home and abroad.”

RTÉ Radio 1

RTÉ Radio 1 reaches 888,000 listeners on a weekday (+43,000 YoY).

Morning Ireland remains Ireland’s most listened to radio programme with 469,000 listeners this book (+32,000 YoY).
The Oliver Callan Show is Ireland’s third most listened to weekday programme, with 330,000 listeners each day.
Today with Claire Byrne, from 10am-12noon Monday to Friday, continues to see 341,000 listeners tuning in every weekday.
The Louise Duffy Show has 218,000 listeners (+4,000 BoB) tuning in for great music.
News at One has 301,000 listeners (+2,000 YoY).
Liveline with Joe Duffy has a listenership of 301,000.
The Ray D’Arcy Show weekday afternoons on RTÉ Radio 1 has 181,000 listeners.
Drivetime has 220,000 listeners tuning in every evening.
Countrywide has 255,000 listeners (+21,000 BoB) on Saturday mornings.
Playback on Saturday has 339,000 listeners (+9,000 BoB)
The Business on Saturday mornings has 324,000 listeners (+11,000 BoB).
The Brendan O’Connor Show on Saturday has 352,000 listeners (+10,000 BoB), with 355,000 listeners now tuning in on Sunday (+12,000 BoB).
Saturday with Colm Ó Mongáin has 242,000 listeners (+20,000 BoB).
Saturday Sport/Doc On One from 2-6pm on RTÉ Radio 1 has 213,000 listeners (+9,000 BoB) and Sunday Sport has 213,000 listeners (+3,000 BoB).
Sunday with Miriam has 304,000 listeners (+12,000 BoB).

Peter Woods, Head of RTÉ Radio 1 said: “A resilient book for RTÉ Radio 1 with ten out of the top ten most listened to programmes in the country, seventeen out of the top twenty, 671,000 listeners between nine and twelve every weekday and our weekends growing incrementally. A tribute as always to our presenters and the hard work of our exceptional production teams and to the enduring support of our listeners.”

RTÉ 2FM

2FM Breakfast with Doireann, Donncha, and Carl has 143,000 listeners tuning in on weekday mornings.
Jennifer Zamparelli on 2FM has 135,000 listeners to her 9-12pm show.
Tracy Clifford has 121,000 listeners enjoying great music each lunchtime (+8,000 BoB).
Drive It with The 2 Johnnies continues to entertain listeners across the country in the afternoons with 151,000 listeners (+1,000 BoB).
Game On has 37,000 listeners tuning in weeknights for sports chat (+5,000 BoB)
Laura Fox from 9am-12noon has 129,000 listeners on Saturdays (+8,000 BoB) and 120,000 on Sunday (+5,000 BoB)
Roz and Emma on 2FM from 12-3pm have 124,000 listeners on Saturdays and 97,000 listeners on Sundays.

Dan Healy, Head of RTÉ Radio Strategy and RTÉ 2FM, said: “2FM continues to increase its audiences with a growing share of 15- to 34-year-olds. This was a great book for Tracy Clifford with strong growth both book-on-book and year-on-year. The 2 Johnnies and the breakfast show continue to consolidate recent audience gains. Doireann leaves 2FM Breakfast in great shape, and Laura Fox continues to grow her show across weekends. It is great to have an exceptionally talented team both on and off air and I am confident that 2FM will continue to perform well for the rest of the year.”

RTÉ lyric fm 

Marty in the Morning has 54,000 listeners tuning in every weekday morning.
Niall Carroll’s Classical Drivetime has 46,000 listeners weekdays.
Liz Nolan’s The Full Score / Aedín in the Afternoon (Friday) have 44,000 listeners.
Lorcan Murray’s Classic Drive makes the afternoon sound better for 56,000 listeners.
Aedín Gormley’s Movies and Musicals every Saturday afternoon has 58,000 listeners (+4,000)
Evonne Ferguson’s Daybreak has 43,000 listeners (+6,000 BoB) on Saturday mornings.
The Hamilton Scores with George Hamilton has 44,000 listeners on both Saturdays and Sundays.
Sunday Afternoon with Simon Delaney/Seán Rocks on Sunday have 50,000 listeners (+8,000 BoB)
Opera Night with Paul Herriott enjoys 33,000 listeners (+4,000 BoB and +14,000 YoY)

Sinéad Wylde, Head of RTÉ lyric fm said: “RTÉ lyric fm is committed to bringing a world of music to listeners, be it classical, traditional, jazz, film and musicals. Having recently celebrated our 25th birthday on 1 May we know that the station has become a cherished companion to many loyal listeners over the years and from this book we are delighted to welcome 22,000 new listeners who come to RTÉ lyric to listen to great music.
Weekends have been particularly strong in this book with gains for programmes on both Saturdays and Sundays. Our growing audience numbers reinforce the fact that RTÉ lyric fm has a valued place in the lives of Irish audiences where music has a unifying energy and where we hope what we do makes life sound better.”

Notes:
* 2,023,000 Adults 15+
** 1,400,000 Adults 15+
In sourcing the current dataset (covering the period April 2023 – March 2024), and relevant comparable periods, the following wording should be used:

Book-on-Book (BoB) = Source: JNLR/ Ipsos MRBI 2024-1 vs. 2023-4.
Year-on-year (YoY) = Source: JNLR/Ipsos MRBI 2024-1 vs. 2023-1.