Your Public Service Media Do Mheáin Seirbhíse Poiblí

To Whom it Concerns, on this Friday night’s Late Late Show…
 
Oscar Winner Brenda Fricker will chat with Ryan about the series Holding, working on her memoir and how her dog Juno is giving her a run for her money.
 
Mrs Brown’s Boys actress Fiona O’Carroll and former Miss Ireland Pamela Uba will speak about why they wanted to face their fears in signing up to be part of this year’s Ultimate Hell Week: The Professionals.
 
It’s rugby for the Tik-Tok generation, Ryan will meet the Irish Rugby Sevens squad who created history last weekend when they beat Australia to win bronze at the World Cup in Cape Town.
 
Renowned baker and owner of 2210 Patisserie, Una Leonard will tell Ryan about how discovering a love of baking helped to save her life after she hit rock bottom which led to her creating a hugely successful business and landing a book deal. 
 
Historian Michael B. Barry and photographer John O’Byrne will showcase their new book, The Irish Civil War in Colour. By showing a series of colourised photographs from the new book, Michael and John will tell the story of the complicated conflict that was The Irish Civil War.
 
Plus, we head to Mullingar for music this week for the return of The Academic performing Don’t take it Personally.

RTÉ One documentary The War at Home shares remarkable stories of people fighting the War on Ukraine from Ireland 

The War at Home, a brand new TV documentary which captures the Irish response to the crisis in Ukraine is set to air on RTÉ One and RTE Player, Monday 19th September at 9.35pm. This moving, inspiring and engaging documentary offers a human insight into the first-hand experiences of those who have been displaced, the continuing generosity of the Irish people and the challenges that lie ahead. It also follows the experiences of Ukrainians forced to travel to Ireland, as they and the already established Ukrainian community here watch the destruction of their motherland unfold from a distance of 3,000km.

The documentary charts this period of turmoil from the invasion back in February to the continuing crisis which has seen over 40,000 refugees enter the country, and follows nine Ukrainian and Irish individuals who each share their remarkable stories and experiences.

Some of the interviewees include Grace Kennedy, a law tutor at the University of Galway, who left her job at the beginning of the war and has since raised over €70,000 and organised aid, transport and support. To date, she has brought over 5,000 Ukrainians to Ireland safely and into homes with the help of bus driver Aidan Geraghty from Roscommon. A number of the refugees who Grace and Aidan helped to bring home also share their experiences of arriving and settling into new homes in Ireland.

Luba Healy, a Ukrainian woman living in Trim who drove over 3,000km from Meath to Ukraine after finally persuading her 99-year-old grandmother and 70-year-old mother to leave the war-torn country for safety shares their emotional story.

Anatoliy Prymakov, a Ukrainian-Irish man describes putting his life on hold to run the Ukrainian Crisis Centre in Dublin, while Kildare-based volunteer Rose Marie Hayden gave up her job as a solicitor to volunteer with the Irish Red Cross in Maynooth university, where Ukrainian refugees are being housed.

Anton Krasun, a Ukrainian living in Dublin, talks about his role in the development of the ‘Call Russia’ initiative, an international campaign that urges Russian speakers to help change Putin’s narrative by cold calling 40 million Russians with information about the war in Ukraine.

The War at Home will air on Monday 19th September at 9.35pm on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player. 

WINNERS TO BE ANNOUNCED AT SPECIAL LIVE EVENT AND LIVE ON RTÉ RADIO 1 ON FRIDAY 21st OCTOBER 

INFO: www.rte.ie/writing  

TICKETS: https://www.paviliontheatre.ie/events/view/rte-arena-live  

FOLLOW: #rteshortstory 

Ten exciting new stories have been shortlisted for the RTÉ Short Story Competition in honour of Francis MacManus 2022, from more than 1,700 entries, RTÉ announces today.   

The stories, selected by judges, writers Lisa McInerney, Ferdia McAnna and Éilis Ní Dhuibhne are (in alphabetical order, by title):  

• A Nice Cup of Tea by Bernard Crowley 
• Big Why, Little Why by Brendan Killeen 
• Cherries by Sara Keating 
• Cnámharlach Uaigneach by Nicola Crean 
• Fire Starter by Alan McCormick 
• Fishing for Pike by Antoinette McCarthy 
• Scrappage by Aingeala Flannery 
• Strawberry Season by Doreen Finn 
• The Big House of Nora Toad by Rachel Hynes 
• The Coast of Africa by Julie Cruickshank 

Details on the authors and their shortlisted stories, and our judges, are included below.  

All 10 stories will be broadcast and podcast in a season of new writing as part of Late Date on RTÉ Radio 1, weeknights at 11.20pm, from Monday 10th October to Thursday 20th October inclusive (except for Saturday 15th October).  

The winning story along with the two other prizewinning stories selected by this year’s judges will be announced at a special RTÉ Radio 1 Arena RTÉ Short Story Special live event in the Pavillion Theatre Dun Laoghaire at 7pm on Friday 21st October and broadcast live on RTÉ Radio 1 as part of an Arena special programme. 

The RTÉ Radio 1 Arena live event will see host, Seán Rocks and this year’s judges, Lisa McInerney, Ferdia MacAnna and Éilis Ní Dhuibhne discuss the art of the short story, review the stories on the shortlist of this year’s RTÉ Short Story Competition in honour of Francis MacManus, and announce their overall winners, with live music and performances from leading actors. 

For tickets: https://www.paviliontheatre.ie/events/view/rte-arena-live 

This year, the top prize has increased to €5,000, while the second and third placed writers will receive €4,000 and €3,000 respectively. A further seven runners-up will receive €250 each. 

Leading up to the RTÉ Radio 1 Arena Special, in addition to the broadcast of the stories of Late Debate, the shortlisted stories will all be made available to read on www.rte.ie/culture from Monday 10th October.  

Judge for the second year running, Lisa McInerney said: “What an invigorating and entertaining process deciding on our shortlist for the 2022 RTÉ Short Story Competition in honour of Francis MacManus. I was really pleased with how the writers approached the brief—it was clear they had thought about this being a story for radio, and so we were delighted to find a host of strong characters, dynamic dialogue and vibrant settings. Our shortlist exemplifies the liveliness, wit, empathy and imagination possible in the short story, and we’re really excited to share it.” 

Judge Ferdia MacAnna said: “What a privilege to dive headlong into new work by so many talented writers. These stories take snapshots of modern Ireland in two distinct categories: nuanced evocations of an unsettled country where people struggle to carry on and make sense of their lives in the midst of loss, grief and family dysfunction, and visions of quirky, surreal, bizarre, occasionally hallucinogenic landscapes where anything can happen – and does – and absolutely nothing is predictable. The writers deliver with fearlessness, wry wit, insight, humour and originality as well as imaginative storytelling.” 

Judge Éilis Ní Dhuibhne said: “It was a true pleasure to read the stories. I was impressed by the original ideas and imagination, the mastery of the craft of composition, and above all, the vitality of the stories. Wonderfully various, there was a great deal of humour in the submissions, light-hearted and viciously dark. Selecting the top ten was not easy. There is so much talent out there! It lifts the heart to encounter it.” 

Sarah Binchy, series producer said: “We’re delighted with the range and ambition of this year’s stories and can’t wait to share them with our listeners. It’s a particular treat after the restrictions of the past couple of years to be able to get together in person for our finale, an Arena Short Story Special live broadcast with Seán Rocks at the Pavilion Theatre in Dún Laoghaire, Co. Dublin, on Friday 21 October, where we’ll hear a flavour of the shortlisted stories in live performance, gain insights from the judges on the short story form and the judging process, meet the shortlisted writers — and find out who’s won the top prizes.” 

Set up in 1986 to honour writer and broadcaster Francis MacManus, the RTÉ Short Story Competition has been a critically important launch pad for new and emerging writers in Ireland. Past winners and shortlisted writers include Claire Keegan, Danielle McLaughlin, Anthony Glavin, Chris Binchy, Nuala O’Connor, Liz Nugent, Colin Walsh, Stephen Walsh, Austin Duffy and Sarah Gilmartin.  

For more on the RTÉ Short Story Competition, see www.rte.ie/writing.   

ABOUT THE SHORTLISTED STORIES AND THEIR AUTHORS  

Bernard Crowley 

Bernard lives in Balbriggan but is originally from Crumlin and has lived many other places in between. A father of four and a grandfather of three, he describes his work life as working part time for two months of the year (at Christmas) and reading books for the other ten. He has worn many trade hats from shop owner to addiction counsellor and has now added writer to the list. A Nice Cup of Tea is his first published short story. 

About Bernard’s story, A Nice Cup of Tea 

Bernard says: “I am very proud of this story — It is the whole of my writing career. I have dabbled in poetry all my life but never submitted to public scrutiny. A soundbite of my life would read…In the 70’s I was a pothead, in the 80s a heroin addict and in the 90s an alcoholic and I’m glad to say I just struggle with coffee now! 

“The images in the story come from the places in between. I sat down to write a story about a woman drinking a cup of tea and thinking fondly of her fisherman husband out at sea and wishing him well. But when the cup hit the wall I had to follow it. I walk the beach here every morning with the dog and I gather the sea glass as I go. I also gather the broken crockery and inspired by Dermot Healy’s beautiful poem The Travels of Sorrow I decided to investigate the broken pieces. And put them back together again.” 

Brendan Killeen 

Brendan Killeen is a journalist, writer and editor who has been living in Copenhagen for 20 years. He and his wife, Malene, have two teenage children, Noah and Ella. He works in the communications programme at the European Environment Agency. He holds a masters in Creative Writing (distinction) from Oxford University and is currently working on a collection of short stories, entitled Saga. 

About Brendan’s story, Big Why, Little Why 

Brendan says: “I was inspired to write my story, Big Why, Little Why, while on a week’s holiday in Madrid with my son Noah in October 2021. We visited the ‘Reina Sofia’ art museum and overheard a couple arguing in front of Picasso’s masterpiece Guernica. This ‘moment’ inspired me to start writing the story, which amongst other things is a reflection on how literal we have become as a society.” 

Sara Keating 

Sara Keating is a writer and cultural journalist from Dublin. Her fiction has been published in Banshee and the Dublin Review. Her story Mamó was joint runner-up in the RTÉ Short Story Competition in honour of Francis Macmanus, 2021, which was read by Ingrid Craigie, and won three medals at the New York Radio Awards. Her creative writing in 2022 has been supported by an Arts Council Agility Award and a Residency at the Pavilion Studio, Dun Laoghaire. She is working on a novel and a collection of stories. 

About Sara’s story, Cherries 

Sara says: “Cherries is about the intimacy and vulnerability of motherhood, and a mother’s love for her son.” 

Nicola Crean 

Máthair, múinteoir, lúthchleasaí agus rógaire í Nicola Crean as Carraig Uí Léíghin Co. Chorcaí. D’oibrigh agus thaisteal sí ar fud na cruinne ag múineadh Gaeilge agus Corpoideachas. Tá dhá théacsleabhar chomhscríofa aici don chorpoideachas ach seo an chéad ruthar tabhartha aici ar an ndomhain ficsean. 

Born, raised and returned to Carrigaline in Co. Cork, Nicola Crean has lived, worked and travelled all over the world. She loves hats and wears a lot of them, woolly and metaphorical; she is a mom, a teacher, an athlete and a messer. She has co-written two text books for Physical Education but this is her first foray into the world of fiction. 

About Nicola’s story, Cnámharlach Uaigneach 

Nicola says: “Baineann mo chuid leanaí sult as ‘one time’ ag am codlata. Tá an nós seo ag fás leo agus is as sin a d’fhás an scéal seo! Thosaigh sé mar athinsint cónáisc de na síscéalta meascaithe le na rudaí tábhachtacha a bhí ar siúl i saoil mo chuid leanaí féin; lethéídí Red Riding Hood ag bualadh le Snow White sa choill agus na heachtraí a bhíodh acu. An toradh atá ann ná ‘Cnámharlach Uaigneach’. 

“My kids always want a ‘one time’ at bedtime. Growing with them since they were tiny, this ‘one time’ has evolved. It started out as me recounting all the fairy tales I could remember, interspersed with details from their day. Then I tried to combine the stories, like Red Riding Hood meeting Goldilocks in the woods on her way to Grandma’s house. I might try to add a moral or ethical element to it, if I felt they were going through a significant phase of development in their little lives. The end result is Cnámharlach Uaigneach.” 

Alan McCormick 

Alan McCormick was born in Kenya and has lived most of his life in England, near Brighton and later in London. He has worked as a hospital porter, nurse, political researcher and actor, and was InterAct Stroke Support’s first writer in residence after winning a story competition judged by Ruth Rendell. 

He moved with his wife and daughters to Wicklow three years ago. He has been working on a memoir, and recently completed his second story collection, as well as a book of comic illustrated shorts with artist Jonny Voss. His work will be published this autumn in The Stinging Fly, Southword and Sonder. www.alanmccormickwriting.wordpress.com. 

About Alan’s story, Fire Starter 

“I suffered from a long-term illness in the late 1980s and 1990s. I tried healing, and, though I wasn’t religious I used to sometimes go to a Quaker Retreat. Once I met a quiet man in the grounds who calmly told me that he’d ‘raised his hand to fell a forest and sent lightning to set fire to the fallen trees.’ His companion at the retreat said ‘No, you didn’t, don’t talk silly.’ And the man replied, ‘Okay I didn’t,’ and then turned to me with a smile and said, ‘But you know I did, don’t you?’ 

Another time, after being in hospital, I ended up in a recuperation nursing home during the damp squib of 1999’s solar eclipse. These experiences stayed locked away for nearly two decades but when the phrase ‘Theo thinks he’s Christ’ popped into my head, I had an opening line for a story and an imaginary character ready to disrupt a familiar time and place.” 

Antoinette McCarthy 

Antoinette is a writer living in Kilkenny. Born in Oxford, she moved to Dublin at the age of eight. She has a background in psychology and community mental health services. 

This is her second time being shortlisted for the RTÉ Short Story Competition in honour of Francis MacManus. She has also been shortlisted for the Over the Edge Short Story Competition and the Lilliput Press Culture Night Short Story Competition. Her story, We Have Probably Missed the Waving, is published in this autumn’s edition of Crannóg Magazine. 

About Antoinette’s story, Fishing For Pike 

Antoinette says: “The story grew out of my experiences working with young people during the pandemic. In a world of constantly evolving risks it really highlighted for me the need for us all to keep talking.” 

Aingeala Flannery 

Aingeala Flannery is a writer, journalist, and broadcaster. In 2018, her story Kamikaze was shortlisted in the RTÉ Francis MacManus Short Story Competition. She completed an MFA in Creative Writing at UCD the following year, and was awarded a Literature Bursary by the Arts Council of Ireland in 2020 and 2021. Her debut novel The Amusements was published by Penguin Sandycove in June 2022. She lives in Dublin and is deputy publisher of The Dublin Review. Aingeala is working on her second novel. 

About Aingeala’s story, Scrappage 

Aingeala says: “Scrappage is a story about memory and loss. I’m intrigued by cast off objects, in charity shops, auctions and especially in household skips. When people bought and owned fewer things, their belongings told a story. The narrator clears out her dead parents’ house and tells their story by filling a skip with things nobody wants. When the job is done she comes across a fixture in the house that hides a family secret she cannot cast off…” 

Doreen Finn 

Doreen Finn is from Dublin. She has lived in Madrid and Los Angeles, and now resides in Churchtown. She is the author of two novels, My Buried Life, which was shortlisted for the Kate O’Brien award, and Night Swimming. Her third novel, To The End Of Love, is currently in the publishing pipeline. Doreen is a teacher, and a mother to two children. Doreen is a recipient of an Arts Council bursary, and plans to use it to write her fourth novel, which is set in 1969. 

About Doreen’s story, Strawberry Season 

Doreen says: “This story grew from a conversation with a friend who was going camping in France and taking the family dog along. It was written in one draft on the closing day of the competition!” 

Rachel Hynes 

Rachel Hynes is from Newport in Co. Tipperary and lives in the Tipperary countryside with her partner and daughter. She works as a post-primary teacher of English at Coláiste Mhuire Co-Ed in Thurles, Co. Tipperary. Rachel graduated with a PhD in literature and dress history from the University of Limerick in 2019. She was editor-in-chief of The Ogham Stone, University of Limerick’s literary lournal during her PhD candidacy. She is working on a novel. 

About Rachel’s story, The Big House of Nora Toad 

Rachel says: “I grew up listening to women storytellers who delighted in retelling colourful piseogs and yarns. They possessed a fiercely Dickensian eye for capturing the characters of small-town Ireland. My fascination with time, haunting, Irish folklore and the lived experience of women influences this story, The Big House of Nora Toad. This piece is partly a love letter to a very dear childhood friend of mine.” 

Julie Cruickshank 

Julie Cruickshank is originally from Galway and now lives and works in Dublin. This is her second time being shortlisted for the RTÉ Short Story Competition: she was last featured in the competition in 2020, with Beneath The Trees, Where Nobody Sees, read by Cathy Belton. 

About Julie’s story, The Coast of Africa 

Julie says: “Lough na Fuaiche (Loch na Fooey), where my story is set, is on the border of Galway and Mayo. The landscape is ancient: apparently millions of years ago an ocean closed up and brought the two halves of Ireland together. The lake and its surrounds are beautiful in a bleak way, and whilst it is really peaceful, there is something both unsettling and compelling about the stillness of it all.” 

ABOUT THE JUDGES 

Éilis Ní Dhuibhne is the author of 25 books, including novels, collections of short stories, several books for children, plays and non-fiction works. She writes in Irish and English. In 2015 she was awarded the Irish PEN award for an outstanding contribution to Irish literature, and in 2016 a Hennessy Hall of Fame award for lifetime achievement. She is a member of Aosdána and President of the Folklore of Ireland Society (An Cumann le Béaloideas Éireann).  

Ferdia Mac Anna works as a novelist, film director, screenwriter and lecturer. In 1996, his novel, The Last of the High Kings, was made into a Hollywood movie starring Jared Leto, Gabriel Byrne and Christina Ricci. His latest feature film Danny Boy received an international release in January. 

Lisa McInerney is the author of three novels: The Glorious Heresies, The Blood Miracles and The Rules of Revelation. She has won the Women’s Prize for Fiction, the Desmond Elliott Prize, the RSL Encore Award and the Premio Edoardo Kihlgren for European literature. Her work has featured in Winter Papers, The Stinging Fly, Granta, The Guardian, Le Monde, Vogue CS, The Irish Times, BBC Radio 4 and numerous anthologies. She is published in 11 languages. 

7pm, RTÉ One and RTÉ Player, Friday 23rd September 

Presented by RTÉ, in association with the Arts Council 

This Culture Night, presenter Annie MacManus will host a very special evening of music, theatre, dance and spoken word live from the edge of Lough Boora in County Offaly. This Culture Night celebration of Ireland’s unique boglands is presented by RTÉ, in association with the Arts Council.

Live from Bord na Móna’s Lough Boora Discovery Park, right in the heart of Ireland, the RTÉ Concert Orchestra will be joined by a range of artists across the evening including local artists and friends Tolü Makay and Felispeaks who have come together in a unique celebration of their shared heritage along with the Music Generation Offaly/Westmeath choir; songwriter, musician and one of Ireland’s top electronic music producers Elaine Mai is joined by MayKay, Loah, Sinead White and Ailbhe Reddy in a TV first; celebrated East Clare violin master Martin Hayes will lift the roof on the Lough Boora venue with his unique interpretation of traditional tunes while Cork singer-songwriter Jack O’Rourke promises to bring us gently into the autumn sunset with Neil Young’s ‘Harvest Moon’ which turns 30 this year.

From the west coast, Susan O’Neill brings us a Culture Night performance from Galway’s Claddagh Basin while Damien Dempsey performs Peat Bog Soldiers on location at Lough Boora Discovery Park – a symbol of resistance that has become a universal anti-war anthem made popular by Pete Seeger and our own Luke Kelly. Damien brings his heart and soul to this performance in a song for peace.

Also at Lough Boora, the premiere of a specially commissioned dance work: ‘It’s All up in the Air on Bogland’ Rhona Byrne in collaboration with Laura Murphy while, along the Claddagh Basin in Galway Fíbín Sa Taibhdhearc premiere their surreal and satirical pocket opera ‘Raic’ by Philip Doherty – a cautionary tale that we might not be ready to listen to.

Checking in with what’s happening around the country for Culture Night – Jessie Buckley visits artist Pat Curran at the Matt Talbot Community Trust in Ballyfermot where he’s preparing for his Culture Night Exhibition; composer Eamon O’Malley takes us on a live musical and heritage trail through the streets and lanes of Clonmel where the Clonmel Song Cycle will encounter local historical characters; Colm Tóibín heads to Heuston Station to check out the Art’s Council’s Read Mór Book Gifting scheme and we go live to Dublin’s Spencer Dock where Evelyn O’Rourke will capture the atmosphere in the Capital on Culture Night.

Ann Marie Power, Group Head Arts and Culture, RTÉ said: “We are delighted that our participation in Culture Night this year has a fresh look and feel, featuring a vibrant show on RTÉ One television that’s live from Lough Boora in the heart of the midlands. It will be brimming with talented artists performing alongside the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and we’ve found a way to weave in a flavour of just a few of the many activities taking place on Culture Night in other parts of the country. It’s our contribution to a ‘live’ Culture Night that looks all set to live up to its ‘One Night for All’ billing!” 

Arts Council Director, Maureen Kennelly said: “Our partnership with RTÉ is really important. For people at home who can’t get out and about, it means that they can feel part of the depth and breadth of artistic and cultural expression in Ireland today. Coming live from Lough Boora in Offaly, in the heart of the country, with its amazing Sculpture Park is inspired; the local audience and national viewers are in for a real treat.” 

Ger Breen, Head of Land and Habitats, Bord na Móna said; “Bord na Móna’s focus is on delivering climate solutions and Lough Boora is a wonderful showcase of what we are achieving in rehabilitating our peatlands for future generations. We are delighted to bring the beauty of Lough Boora to a national audience, while at the same time celebrating the talents of the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and the many performers taking part in Culture Night.” 

Photograph by Martyn V Harris

RTÉ today announced that Gavin Maloney has been appointed as Associate Principal Conductor of the RTÉ Concert Orchestra for the next three years.

Gavin Maloney’s first appearances as Associate Principal Conductor will be conducting the RTÉ Concert Orchestra for a preview screening of The Irish Civil War – Episode 2 in Cork Opera House on Tuesday 13 September, and conducting the RTÉ CO and guests in a special Culture Night performance in Lough Boora bog, Co. Offaly on Friday 23 September, live on RTÉ One. He will conduct the “RTÉ Concert Orchestra Presents” October Bank Holiday Monday programme on RTÉ Radio 1 and the annual Sunday Miscellany RTE CO Christmas concert on 1 December at the NCH. Next St Patrick’s weekend, he conducts the first live collaboration between the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and Moving Hearts, 17 and 18 March at Bord Gáis Energy Theatre.

Gavin Maloney is one of Ireland’s foremost musicians, at home in the worlds of classical, contemporary and popular music. He has a track record of success with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra across a range of genres and media. To give a flavour, highlights of their work together include Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake with Ballet Ireland, described by The Irish Times as ‘the indefatigable RTÉ Concert Orchestra, dynamically conducted by Gavin Maloney’; a gala concert celebrating 25 years of University Concert Hall, Limerick; a concert in the RTÉ Concert Orchestra Winter Sessions on RTÉ One filmed during Covid, New Music Dublin festival in 2022 and The Songs of Leonard Cohen, in 2020 and 2022. Earlier this month he conducted the RTÉ CO in the world première of Room with live score at the NCH.

After training at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester and the Mozarteum, Salzburg, at the age of 21 Gavin successfully competed for the position of Assistant Conductor of the then RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra. He has conducted all the leading orchestras and ensembles in Ireland as well as conducting in Germany, France, Italy, and the UK.

His distinguished collaborations with classical artists include Gabriela Montero, Tara Erraught, Barry Douglas, Ailish Tynan, John O’Conor, Chloë Hanslip and Hugh Tinney. In the NCH International Concert Series in 2017, he appeared with Maxim Vengerov, who has described him as ‘a great maestro’. Popular artists Gavin has collaborated with include Declan O’Rourke, Lisa Hannigan, Wallis Bird, Loah, Mick Flannery, Phelim Drew, Jess Kavanagh and Denise Chaila. He has worked with traditional musicians such as Liam O’Flynn, Paddy Moloney, Zoë Conway and Iarla Ó Lionáird.

Gavin has for several years been bringing Irish music to new audiences, including conducting the world premiere of Bill Whelan’s Linen and Lace with soloist Sir James Galway in 2014. He made a major contribution to Composing the Island in 2016, an RTÉ/NCH festival exploring a century of Irish music and in 2019 he conducted RTÉ lyric fm’s 20th Birthday Gala celebration.

Gavin’s recordings on the NMC and RTÉ lyric fm labels have earned critical acclaim, including that of Gramophone magazine and his concerts have been broadcast by the BBC, RTÉ, the European Broadcasting Union, Shanghai East Radio, and radio stations in North America and Australia.

Gavin Maloney said: “I’m very pleased to assume the position of Associate Principal Conductor of the RTÉ Concert Orchestra. I have for some time enjoyed a close association with these wonderful musicians. This is an exciting moment to take on this role, and I relish the prospect of working with orchestra and management at a time of great change and opportunity in the world of orchestral music. I look forward to connecting with audiences new and old in the coming years, and experiencing the magic of music together.”

LIVE RTÉ NEWS & WEATHER, LIVE RTÉ RADIO 1, 2FM, RnaG AND LYRIC FM FAVOURITES AND MUCH MORE

Visit the RTÉ Stand: Block 1 | Row 18 | Stand 288 (nearest Gate 1)

WATCH our promo: https://youtu.be/fJECCSY9SbY

The National Ploughing Championships, or ‘The Ploughing’, will return to Ratheniska, Co Laois, from Tuesday 20th September to Thursday 22nd September and RTÉ will be there over three full days with an action-packed schedule of live programmes, live musical performances, live RTÉ News and Weather bulletins, chances to meet with well-known presenters, and plenty of prizes. Nationwide on RTÉ One (7pm) brings two shows to viewers on Monday 19th and Wednesday 21st September.

>>>RTÉ SCHEDULE 

Tuesday 20th September
07:00 – 09:00 | Morning Ireland live broadcast on RTE Radio 1
10:30 – 11:30 | Cuisle RnaG50 live music celebrating Irish traditional music (See notes below)
12:30 – 13:00 | Meet 2FM Breakfast’s Doireann, Donncha and Carl in person
15:00 – 16:30 | The Ray D’Arcy Show live broadcast on RTE Radio 1

Wednesday 21st September
08:00 – 09:00 | Adhmhaidin live broadcast on RTÉ RnaG
10:00 – 12:00 | Marty in the Morning live broadcast on RTE lyric fm (special Ploughing time​​)
15:00 – 18:00 | The Drive with The 2 Johnnies live broadcast on RTE 2FM

Thursday 22nd September
13:45 – 15:00 | Liveline’s Funny Thursday live broadcast on RTÉ Radio 1

>>>RTÉ NEWS & WEATHER LIVE

RTÉ ONE’S Six One will broadcast live on Tuesday 20th and there will be live RTÉ News reports over the three days.

RTÉ Weather will also broadcast live from the Ploughing every day with Nuala Carey, Trevor Keegan, Gerry Murphy, Linda Hughes, and Michelle Dillon. Watch our lunchtime weather bulletins live on RTÉ One at 13.25 and our afternoon bulletin at 15.40

PRESENT THE WEATHER: And if you want to present the weather, our RTE weather team will give you a chance between our live TV bulletins with the help of cameras, autocue and weather graphics.

>>>AND THERE’s MORE

In addition to the schedule above, RTÉ is marking the return of ‘The Ploughing’ with some new additions to the schedule.

URC TV at The Ploughing
Not only is there an exclusive discount for URC TV packages on offer but you can get your photo taken with the URC trophy, meet some of the URC players and enter the draw to win some brilliant URC TV prizes, including a signed jersey, URC match tickets and URC TV access passes.

Toy Show The Musical Box Office at The Ploughing – with discount and Tayto Popcorn!
The magic of Toy Show The Musical is coming to the Convention Centre Dublin this Christmas, and you can buy your tickets – with an exclusive 10% discount – at a special box office at the RTÉ stand. In addition to the discount there will be free Tayto popcorn for visitors (while stocks last!). There’s also a chance to win family tickets and an overnight stay at a top Dublin hotel if you fancy jumping into the specially created moon and taking a pic. #toyshowmusical

RTÉ Shop
Pop by the RTÉ Shop, and chat to the Saorview support team, who’ll be giving you a chance to win a TV with thanks to Euronics.

Ireland on The Box presented by RTÉ and the National Library of Ireland
As we celebrate 60 years of television in Ireland, the Ireland on The Box area offers visitors the chance to take a photo at the “Magic Door” and enjoy some of the TV highlights.

RTÉ Guide Photobooths
The latest issue of the RTÉ Guide will be on sale with the ever-popular RTÉ Guide Cover Star Photobooths. Buy an RTÉ Guide and walk away with a great read and a photo of you on the cover.

Make sure to stay up to date with RTÉ at ‘The Ploughing’ across Twitter (@RTE) or Facebook/Instagram (@Explorerte).using #rteploughing.

RTÉ Nationwide

Nationwide on RTÉ One (7pm) brings two shows to viewers about the Ploughing Championships 2022:

• On Monday 19^th September Blathnaid Ní Chofaigh looks ahead to the National Ploughing Championships to find out about the planning, preparation and build up to Europe’s largest farming event and we take the opportunity to visit some tourist sites in the county.
• On Wednesday 21^st Anne Cassin and her guest co-host, Marty Morrissey meet the participants, visitors, Irish and International competitors, exhibitors, the farmers at the National and World Ploughing Championships.  

ABOUT CUISLE RnaG50

RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta is celebrating fifty years on air this year, and as part of the year-long celebrations they will present a special celebration of Irish traditional music during this year’s National Ploughing Championships entitled Cuisle RnaG50. Traditional music has been an integral part of RnaG’s output over the last half century, and this show will be presented by station Music Editor Neansaí Ní Choisdealbha, and conducted by renowned Tipperary accordion player Ned Kelly.  He will be joined by some of Ireland’s top traditional musicians, including Ryan Molloy, Fergal O’Neill, Clare Quinn, Keelan McGrath, Jack McGrath, William Holmes, Gary Lynch, JP Reynolds and Caitlin McGrath for a fantastic performance of pure drop traditional music.

Culture Night – the annual, all-island event that celebrates culture, creativity and the arts – returns on Friday, 23 September. As arts and cultural organisations and venues of all shapes and sizes extend their opening hours to allow increased access for the public, so too will RTÉ be opening the airwaves across the day for Culture Night on RTÉ.

Culture Night is brought to you by The Arts Council, in partnership with local authorities and cultural organisations throughout the island of Ireland. See www.culturenight.ie for more.

TELEVISION | RTÉ Player

Culture Night | Live from Lough Boora | RTÉ One & RTÉ Player | 7pm

Live from the edge of Lough Boora in County Offaly, RTÉ brings a very special Culture Night celebration of Ireland’s unique boglands to the heart of the midlands.

Presented by Annie MacManus and featuring the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, the programme will showcase a range of special guests, including Offaly’s own Tolϋ Makay, Felispeaks, Damien Dempsey, Jack O’Rourke, Martin Hayes, Elaine Mai, Maykay, Loah, Ailbhe Reddy & Sinead White.

Highlighting the broad range of activities taking place around the country,Culture Night Live at Lough Boora will include music and theatre from the Claddagh basin in Galway, an exhibition of artist Pat Curran’s work, Colm Tóibín on a book gifting scheme taking place on the night and much more. Produced by RTÉ in association with The Arts Council.

RADIO

Arena | RTÉ Radio 1 and RTÉ Radio Player | 7pm

Arena will dive into the Culture Night Read Mór, the book sharing and reading initiative from the Arts Council in conjunction with Irish Rail and Bus Éireann. A panel of bibliophiles will share the joy of reading, delving into works of fiction, poetry and non-fiction on the subject of train and bus travel. With readings from iconic works, including District and Circle (Seamus Heaney), All Legendary Obstacles (John Montague), and Mervue Bus (Rita Ann Higgins).

Marty in the Morning | RTÉ lyric fm and RTÉ Radio Player | 7am

Marty Whelan kicks off the day’s Culture Night celebrations with his usual fine blend of music and chat. He’ll be joined live in studio by Chamber Choir Ireland in advance of their Dublin concert later that night in Windmill Lane, performing a playful programme of romantic and contemporary Irish vocal works. Marty will also celebrate the release of the remastered ‘Almost Everything’ album on Claddagh Records, featuring Patrick Kavanagh’s poetry, read by actors including Jessie Buckley and Aidan Gillen, and President Michael D. Higgins.

Lorcan Murray’s Classic Drive | RTÉ lyric fm and RTÉ Radio Player | 4pm

Lorcan will be live from the Hunt Museum for Culture Night, where he’ll bring us a varied selection of musicians and artists involved in Limerick’s rich cultural life.

Ukranian Freedom Concert | RTÉ lyric fm and RTÉ Radio Player | 7pm

This Culture Night RTÉ lyric fm will bring listeners an historic concert recorded at the National Concert Hall, Dublin, by the Ukranian Freedom Orchestra and guests. Conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson will be joined by pianist Anna Fedorova and soprano Liudmyla Monastyrska to perform works by Silvestrov, Chopin, Beethoven, and Dvorak. We’ll hear from composer Valentin Silvestrov about his music and his move to Berlin, and presenter Paul Herriott will be chatting to conductor Victoria Zhadko who recently moved to Dublin from Ukraine.

Valentin Silvestrov: Symphony No. 7

Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 2 Beethoven: Abscheulicher! Wo eilst du hin? from Fidelio Dvořák: Symphony No. 9

Culture on RTE.ie

RTÉ Culture will stream the acclaimed play Looking For America exclusively at www.rte.ie/culture – this production will be available to watch online for free for 48 hours only, from Friday, September 23rd.

Directed and co-written by Janet Moran (A Holy Show, Swing), Looking for América is the real-life story of writer and performer Federico Julián González. Following his father’s arrest by a Military Junta, at the age of five, Fede and his family were forced to flee the Salvadoran Civil war. There followed years of continuous moving throughout Latin America with his mother and brother as they sought sanctuary. In 2019, Fede and his 74-year-old mother set off on a quest through Havana to look for América. Shared memories, conflicting recollections and offline maps led them through their past. A past peopled with ghosts scattered among grand avenues, dark lanes and unnerving dead ends in the city that had taken them in, more than 30 years before. They spoke to shop-keepers, taxi drivers, old ladies and more importantly to each other. When they were about to give up, they found her.

Looking for América charts two journeys. The journey of that night in Havana looking for a Salvadoran ex-Guerilla fighter called América, and the journey of escaping the catastrophe that had engulfed his country decades before. A catastrophe whose after effects still resonate today.  Sometimes the idea of home has to be remade. And remade. And remade.

RTÉ Culture (www.rte.ie/culture)  will also feature a range of news, updates, content and items on Culture Night.

Cuirfear tús le Sceideal an Fhómhair ar RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta Dé Luain 19 Meán Fómhair, agus i measc na n-athruithe atá fógartha beidh láithreoirí nua ar thrí cinn de phríomh-chláracha an stáisiúin:

• Is iad Máirín Ní Ghadhra agus Séamus Ó Scanláin a chuirfidh Adhmhaidin i láthair
• Is í Máire Bríd Ní Chualáin an láithreoir nua don chlár Iris Aniar
• Is í Fionnuala Uí Neachtain a bheas sa chathaoir do Nuacht a hAon sa sceideal nua.

Beidh dhá chlár iomlán nua mar chuid de sceideal an fhómhair freisin. Cuirfidh Séamus Ó Scanláin Céapar na Céadaoine i láthair gach Céadaoin ag 2.05 pm, clár comhrá agus siamsaíochta, le scéalta an phobail, ceol agus go leor gáire. Dé hAoine ag 2.35 pm, cuirfidh Cárthach Bán Breathnach an clár nua Cúlchaint i láthair ina gcloisfear agallaimh le pearsaí spóirt, ach beidh siad ag comhrá leis faoin saol atá acu taobh amuigh de chúrsaí spóirt.

Chun tuilleadh eolais a fháil, cliceáil anseo.

RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta announced its autumn schedule today, which kicks off on Monday 19 September, with new presenters for three of the station’s main programmes:

• Máirín Ní Ghadhra and Séamus Ó Scanláin will present Adhmhaidin
• Máire Bríd Ní Chualáin will be the new presenter for Iris Aniar
• Fionnuala Uí Neachtain will be in the presenter’s chair for Nuacht a hAon.

Two brand new programmes will also feature in the new schedule – chat show Céapar na Céadaoine, presented by Séamus Ó Scanláin, and Cárthach Bán Breathnach will present Cúlchaint, featuring interviews with sports personalities about their lives outside of sport.

RTÉ will mark Irish Sign Language Awareness Week, from Monday 19th – Sunday 25th September,  with some special Irish Sign Language (ISL) programming and content across our services throughout the week, highlighting RTÉ’s ongoing commitment to the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Community in Ireland

***Highlights include:

>RTÉ One’s Nationwide will include ISL on Monday 19th September (7.00pm). This will also be available on RTÉ Player.

>On RTÉ 2, News2Day will feature young Deaf and Hard of Hearing contributors across the week.

>On RTÉjr and RTÉ2, a number of children’s programmes will feature ISL across the week, including an ISL version of the new series of Let’s Find Out.

Here’s what they can look forward to:

On RTÉjr
Wild Kids: Monday 19th – Friday 23rd September
The Body Brothers: Saturday 24th & Sunday 25th September
Storytime: Monday 19th – Friday 23rd September
Makers: Saturday 24th & Sunday 25th September
Let’s Find Out: Monday 19th – Friday 23rd September

On RTÉ2
Wild Kids: Saturday 17th – Friday 23rd September
The Body Brothers: Saturday 17th – Friday 23rd September
Squad Goals: Saturday 17th – Friday 23rd September
Gamer Mode: Saturday 24th and Sunday 25th September
Ace My Space:  Saturday 24th and Sunday 25th September
Let’s Find Out: Saturday 17th – Friday 23rd September

***And there’s more:

>RTÉ will also be running an ‘Online Feedback Session’ for Access users of RTÉ content, with ISL interpreters and live subtitles, on Friday 23rd of September between 10am and 12pm.  You can register here.

>RTÉ will resume ISL classes for its employees.

>RTÉ Player will feature recent RTÉ ISL programming throughout the week, including:

• Cold Case Collins
• Clear History – Series 2 (Ep 1-6 available from Monday 19th September)
• Ireland in Music
• Clodagh
• Shackleton’s Cabin
• The Tommy Tiernan Show – Series 6 (All episodes available)
• Brian Friel: Shy Man, Showman
• The Talk TV 2022 – All episodes
• Super Garden – Series 13 (All episodes)
• Faoi Bhláth – 12 episodes available by Monday 19th September
• John Connors’ Acting Academy – All episodes available
• Crimes and Confessions – All episodes available
• The Keith Barry Experience – Series 2 (All episodes available)
• Home of the Year – Series 8 (All episodes available)

This ISL content follows other ISL highlights across RTÉ:

• Last year’s Late Late Toy Show was available with ISL for the third year, and for the first time with a Deaf presenter, Sarah Jane O’Regan.
• RTÉ promoted this ISL exclusive through several videos featuring a special message from Signing Santa and The Holy Family School for the Deaf in Cabra.
• Throughout the pandemic, RTÉ provided ISL for the broadcast of essential health information from HSE briefings, in addition to al Covid announcements by An Taoiseach.
• More recently, RTÉ provided ISL interpretation for the Garda Centenary Commemoration, which was available for all viewers on the RTÉ News channel and RTÉ Player.

RTÉ’s Head of Access, Kevin Burns said, “We’re delighted to celebrate ISL Awareness Week. ISL has never been more important for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Community in Ireland and RTÉ will highlight its importance through a range of activities and content across the week.  We are building on the work started during the pandemic with Home School Hub ISL , important public health announcements and Taoiseach addresses which were broadcast live with ISL.  

RTÉ increases the range and volume of programmes it provides with ISL every year and works closely with the Deaf Community to ensure that we’re providing them with the best service we can.  A positive reflection of this engagement is the fact that this year’s Late Late Toy Show will again feature a Deaf Signer, Nationwide will broadcast on RTÉ One with ISL on Monday September 19th, and earlier this year Liveline broadcast a week of programmes featuring Deaf contributors sharing their experiences. We look forward to learning more from our Deaf and Hard of Hearing users at our Access Feedback Session during ISL Awareness Week so we can continue to develop our support of the Deaf community in Ireland”.

For more on ISL Awareness Week on RTÉ keep an eye on RTÉ’s social media channels using #ISLRTE

For more on ISL Awareness Week, visit https://reachdeafservices.ie/irish-sign-language-isl-awareness-week/

To Whom it Concerns,

UPDATE TO TONIGHT’S LATE LATE SHOW:

Ryan meets with Academy Award winners George Clooney and Julia Roberts in London to talk about their new romantic comedy ‘Ticket to Paradise’ and why they wanted to make another movie together. Ryan will also chat to them about George’s Irish ancestry and Julia’s memories of filming ‘Michael Collins’ here in Ireland. 

Amy Huberman will be on the show to talk about her new children’s book and her upcoming acting work.

Ahead of the first ever Dublin Brick Con in Ireland, we will have a few very special Lego recreations of famous Irish landmarks in-studio.

Plus, we will have a very special musical performance with Megan O’Neill singing “Lay your Head Down.”