RTÉ celebrates Irish Sign Language Awareness Week 2025
Special programmes across RTÉ television, radio and online, plus special initiatives
#ISL #IDSL #IWDP25
RTÉ is proud to once again support Irish Sign Language Awareness Week 2025, which takes place from today, Monday 22nd to Sunday 28th September and coincides with International Week of Deaf People.
RTÉ in collaboration with the Irish Deaf Society, will celebrate Irish Sign Language Awareness Week with some special Irish Sign Language (ISL) content across our platforms throughout the week, highlighting RTÉ’s ongoing commitment to the Deaf, Hard of Hearing and ISL Community in Ireland. RTÉ provides a large catalogue of ISL content throughout the year across our linear channels and on RTÉ Player.
The Deaf Flag will fly at RTÉ’s Donnybrook Campus throughout ISL Awareness Week. In addition, on Tuesday 23rd September, International Day of Sign Languages, the RTÉ sign on RTÉ’s Donnybrook campus will be illuminated in BLUE, a significant colour which symbolises Sign Languages and represents how Deaf communities cherish their own language.
Read about it here: https://www.rte.ie/learn/2025/0922/1471687-the-deaf-flag-flies-at-rte-for-isl-awareness-week/
***RTÉ HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:
DAILY: RTÉ News
RTÉ’s daily ISL News bulletin will reflect the theme of each day of ISL Awareness Week.
On RTÉ2, news2day will be visiting The Holy Family School for the Deaf where they’ll join children in a number of their activities and they’ll check out a new ISL-friendly guide for Deaf visitors to the Dublin Zoo. ISL Awareness Week will be the theme of news2day’s “Question of the Week” for schools right across the country.
RTÉ News will feature young people from the ISL community who have important/inspiring stories to tell, with additional content published on the RTÉ News social channels.
MONDAY: Arena with Rick O’Shea on RTÉ Radio 1
To mark Irish Sign Language Awareness Week, RTÉ Radio 1’s Arena, the home of arts and popular culture on RTÉ Radio 1 will make its full show available with live ISL interpretation on Monday 22nd September, from 7-8pm on the RTÉ News channel and on www.rte.ie/Arena.
Nationwide on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player (On air Friday 3rd October)
Nationwide on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player will feature a package highlighting the upcoming “Deaf Republic” production as part of the Dublin Theatre Festival. Presenter Zainab Boladale goes behind the scenes to learn more about this production.
Details can be found at https://dublintheatrefestival.ie/event/deaf-republic/
ALL WEEK: Kids and Children’s Programmes
On RTÉ Kids online (www.rte.ie/kids/), RTÉ is highlighting a range of the engaging, informative and entertaining Irish Sign Language shows for young people, including Dizzy Deliveries, Doodle Girl, Silly Sundays and Let’s Find Out.
https://www.rte.ie/kids/2025/0922/1534392-rte-kids-tv-shows-with-irish-sign-language-isl/
RTÉ2 and RTÉjr will broadcast a number of additional children’s programmes with ISL throughout the week’s schedule.
Keep an eye out on social and online for the ISL alphabet signed by the brilliant pupils at The Holy Family School for the Deaf Primary School in Dublin.
ONGOING: ON RTÉ PLAYER
RTÉ Player has curated a special Irish Sign Language rail for International Week of Deaf People 2025, to showcase available ISL content.
You can view the link here: International Week of Deaf People – RTÉ Player
Here’s a list of content for this year’s rail:
Deaf Not Dumb; Christy Brown: Self Portrait; Birdsong S1 E1; Dev: Rise and Rule; Football Families; NORAID: Irish America and the IRA; Hell For Leather – The Story of Gaelic Football; Cheap Irish Homes; Dolphins – Wonders Of The Ocean; Listen To The Land Speak; The Money List; The Tommy Tiernan Show; Build Your Own Home; ; Keys To My Life; Uncharted with Ray Goggins; Nationwide; An Ghig Mhor; Raised By The Village; Inside Penneys; PJ Gallagher – Changing My Mind S1 E1; Invasion: The Normans; Dizzy Deliveries; The Unreal; Hey Fuzzy Yellow; Funny Little Monsters; Let’s Find Out; Rory Gallagher: Calling Card; David Puttnam: The Long Way Home; Untameable; The 2 Johnnies Take On; The Full Irish Hidden Camera Show; My BodyFix; The Great House Revival; ; High Road, Low Road; Dr Cassidy’s Casebook; The Rotunda; The Hills Are Alive – A Year at Kylemore Abbey; The Irish for Sex; Seisiún; Cailíní Comhraic.
For full ISL catalogue visit RTÉ Player: https://www.rte.ie/player/
AND THERE’S MORE
On Tuesday 23rd September, International Day of Sign Languages, the RTÉ sign at the entrance to RTÉ’s Donnybrook campus will be illuminated in BLUE, a significant colour which symbolises Sign Language and represents how Deaf communities cherish their own language.
RTÉ will be welcoming the Holy Family School for the Deaf TY students to RTÉ on Wednesday 24th September for a visit to the RTÉ Newsroom, the news2day studio, RTÉ Weather and to meet the team behind RTÉ’s Access Services.
RTÉ in collaboration with The Irish Deaf Society are pleased to provide Deaf Awareness Training for RTÉ staff as part of our wider Deaf Awareness plans.
RTÉ will also continue to provide ISL classes for staff.
ENDS
For information:
Neil O’Gorman | Corporate Communications Manager, RTÉ | E: neil.ogorman@rte.ie