RTÉ 2fm
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| RTÉ 2fm | |
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| Broadcast area | National -  Ireland |
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| Frequency | 90-92 MHz Digital terrestrial television DAB |
| First air date | May 31, 1979 |
| Format | Popular music |
| Owner | Radio Telefís Éireann |
| Website | www.rte.ie/2fm |
RTÉ 2fm, or 2FM as it is commonly referred to, is RTÉ's second national radio station. It broadcasts popular music programming aimed at a young audience.
RTÉ Radio 2, as it was originally known, began broadcasting on May 31, 1979[1]. "Like Clockwork" by the Boomtown Rats was the first song on air, played by Larry Gogan. It was developed as a response by RTÉ to the pirate radio craze sweeping Dublin and the country. Its original slogan was "Radio 2 Comin'atcha" and as well as broadcasting popular music, it carried a number of other musical strands as well as news and current affairs. Its original broadcast frequencies were 612 kHz MW (until 2004) and later, 90-92 MHz FM. Original DJs included Larry Gogan, who moved over from RTÉ Radio 1, Mark Cagney, Michael McNamara, Declan Meehan, Vincent Hanley, Ronan Collins, Gerry Ryan and Dave Fanning.
An all-music, mostly rock, sister station of 2FM, "RTÉ 2XM", operates on the RTÉ DAB Multiplex.
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[edit] History of 2FM
In 1988 after many years presenting a nightly music show called 'Lights out' for around 6 years previously "The Gerry Ryan Show", a morning topical radio show, began broadcasts. Not long afterwards, RTÉ began radical changes to Radio 2's format. Most non-pop music programming was dropped. The station was rebranded as "2FM" in 1988. At this stage the basic schedule for the next decade or so was put in place: Ian Dempsey, Gerry Ryan, Larry Gogan, Garreth O'Callaghan, Tony Fenton, and Dave Fanning were staples of this period. Many of these presenters have stayed with 2FM over the years while others have moved to competitors stations.
2FM in this era was at its most popular. Its mobile broadcasting unit, the Roadcaster, made regular trips nationwide, and 2FM organised live events throughout Ireland, such as the "Beat on the Street" and "Lark in the Park". New bands would often get their "big break" by being featured on the Dave Fanning Show. Gerry Ryan's radio show became a national institution.
However by 2000, this schedule was looking very stale. In addition, 2FM suffered the high profile departure of Ian Dempsey to independent national radio station, 100-102 Today FM. Both Today FM and the emerging Independent Local Radio sector had eroded 2FM's once unassailable listenership base. Today FM continues to sign up disillusioned 2FM staff, with Tony Fenton being the most recent departure, in September 2004.
In 2000, John Clarke, a new Controller of 2FM, was brought in to sort out the station. He rebranded 2FM with a new blue and red logo (as "RTÉ 2fm") and re-arranged the schedule. Ryan Tubridy was poached from RTÉ Radio 1 to present "The Full Irish" breakfast programme. Though in 2005 he returned to Radio 1, being replaced by Ruth Scott and Rick O'Shea who in turn were replaced after 5 months by Marty Whelan in September 2005. DJ Mark McCabe arrived to present a dance music show at weekends. Later, more changes saw Larry Gogan being moved from his lunchtime slot to "drive time". A news programme, Newsbeat, was added to the schedules in response to criticisms that RTÉ 2fm was not fulfilling its remit as a public service broadcaster. Newer alternative DJs such as Canadian Jenny Huston, Dan Hegarty and Kerbdog front-man Cormac Battle have also joined the line-up in recent years.
On 12 January 2007 RTÉ announced another revamp of 2fm, with the axing of Marty Whelan's show and Larry Gogan's move to the weekend. The presenters of FM104's The Strawberry Alarm Clock moved to the station, as FM104 will continue to broadcast its breakfast show under the latter title the 2FM version is known as the Colm and Jim-Jim Breakfast Show (initially referred to in pre-publicity as the 2FM Alarm Clock, however the name was changed after FM104 threathened legal action). During this 2007 revamp Will Leahy formerly of the Saturday Show was promoted to the weekday Drivetime slot, which broadcasts from the RTÉ Limerick studios. This leaves Gerry Ryan the only original Radio 2 presenter to retain a weekday programme with the station. The new schedule launched on 5 March 2007.
RTÉ 2FM like RTÉ Radio 1 technically broadcasts 24 hours a day however programming from 2:00am until 6:00am most days is replays of programmes done earlier on RTÉ 2FM along with live news updates on the hour.
[edit] Criticism
RTÉ 2fm still faces criticism that for a youth station, many of its DJs have been there for a very long time. Larry Gogan, Gerry Ryan and Dave Fanning have worked with the station since the beginning. Many other DJs have spent the best part of twenty years with the station.
The station has also been criticised for its constant changing of the schedule and is known not to keep stuck to a particular schedule for very long. This leaves listeners sometimes wanting to turn into a particular DJ only to find out that they have been moved to a new timeslot. The latest "reinvention" took place on July 31, 2006 to coincide with the departure of Dave Fanning to weeknights on RTE Radio 1. He will however present a pre-recorded music show on Sunday evenings from 19:00 - 21:00 on RTÉ 2fm.[citation needed]
Nevertheless, RTÉ 2fm remains the most popular music-driven station in Ireland.[citation needed]
RTÉ 2fm is the only RTÉ broadcast station which is entirely commercially funded, receiving no contributions from the television licence.[citation needed]
It has also been criticised for not playing enough contemporary Irish music.[citation needed]
[edit] Weekday DJ's
Jim Nugent and Colm Hayes (2007 - present) Colm and Jim-Jim Breakfast Show
Affectionately known as Colm and JimJim, Colm and Jim Jim moved their Strawberry Alarm Clock from FM104 in 2007 to host the new 2fm Breakfast Show in place of Marty in the Morning. The show began on March 5 2007, with Colm & Jim Jim continuing their popular style of morning radio on a national stage. Famous for their chat, sketches and prank calls the duo have had many successes in the ratings and at the PPI Radio Awards where they have won a total of seven awards. Jim-Jim's songs including "I'm Mick McCarthy's Baby", "Engerland Are S**t" and '[Who's Yer Sexy Joe?]]"[1] are among some of the most popular mp3 emails in recent years.
Gerry Ryan (1988 - present) The Gerry Ryan Show
The Gerry Ryan Show, began in 1988, and quickly became one of Ireland's most popular radio programmes. In 1990, Ryan won a Jacob's Award for the show. In recent years, listenership figures for The Gerry Ryan Show have declined somewhat, but the most recent JNLR statistics of August and November 2007 show that he has reversed that trend and increased his listenership.[1]
Nikki Hayes[2] (2003 - present) The All Request Lunch
Nikki Hayes (born May 6, 1979) joined 2fm in November 2003 when John Clarke, the Head of 2fm, called her and asked her to cover The Sunday Cruise, Aidan Leonard's show, for 8 weeks. From that short experience came her own slot during the weekends. When Rick O'Shea moved to present his now defunct breakfast show with Ruth Scott, Nikki replaced him and in doing so was given her own weekday show which was broadcast from Monday until Thursday from 20:00 until 22:00. She has since moved to a new weekday show 'The All Request Lunch' which broadcasts from 12.00 until 14:00.
Rick O'Shea[3] (2001 - present) Breakfast with Rick and Ruth and The Rick O'Shea Show
Rick has presented a number of different shows on the station since his arrival in 2001. At the beginning of his career he presented a night-time show before being moved to an earlier slot from 20:00 until 22:00 in January 2003. At one point this was the most listened to night-time show in the country. Having moved from night-time radio in 2004 to the breakfast show, which he co-presented with Ruth Scott for two years. He currently broadcasts a weekday afternoon slot from 14:00 until 17:00. Rick is a keen blogger [4].
Will Leahy[5] (1999 - present) The Saturday Show and The Will Leahy Show
Will Leahy is a native of Limerick and is a practicing solicitor. Will is the former presenter of the extremely successful Saturday Show which was broadcast from RTÉ Limerick from 12:00 until 15:00. A popular feature of the show was "Beat the Sports Guy" whose theme tune is a parody of "Rock the Casbah". Phone-in contestants attempt to guess which sports star Andrew O'Connor is talking about after receiving a number of clues. They can also ask questions with "yes" or "no" answers. When a negative answer is reached, the contestant is disqualified and another contestant is invited on air until they have finally "beat the sports guy".
Will was also joined on The Saturday Show by Astrid, billed as the "resident agony aunt" on the official website but she's also "more controversial than that". She hails from Sweden and was previously an in-demand porn-star who regularly produced top quality top shelf adult films. The requests to bring back the RTÉ 2fm studio webcam poured in as Astrid recalled her "acting" days in Sweden. DJ Gary was born in West Dublin and came to RTÉ 2fm on a work experience programme in the summer of 1999, which led to him staying a little longer than originally planned. He was prize co-ordinator for The Saturday Show and he also presents a 21st birthday request slot.
Since March 5 2007, Will has moved to the weekday afternoon slot. The Will Leahy Show which is broadcast from Limerick from Monday until Friday from 17:00 until 19:00. The show was launched to much success and features contributor Laura Woods who presents the TV Guide, Eamon Horan who replaced Andrew O Connor as the Sports Guy and Louise Lennox the chef. Will and the gang have had many high profile celebrity guests such as Gwen Stefani, Richard Hammond and Enrique Iglesias. The Will Leahy Show has also garnered a reputation for live music guests and are fortunate enough to have a piano in their Limerick studio. Within their first year on air, Will and his team raised over 50,000 euro for charity during the Will Leahy Cheesy Telethon Tour.
Ruth Scott Breakfast with Rick and Ruth and The More Music Drive
Ruth Scott (born April 4, 1977 having moved in 2004 to the breakfast show, which she co-presented with Rick O'Shea for two years, she has now returned to late evening radio where she will presents the Frequency from Monday to Thursday from 19:00 until 21:30. She also presents the Saturday Show, formerly presented by Will Leahy. Ruth starred in Celebrity Jigs and Reels and can also be seen on the Afternoon Show on RTÉ TV.
Damien Farrelly The Frequency
Formerly a presenter of the weekday afternoon show, he can now be heard on the Frquency from Mondays to Thursdays from 21:30 until midnight. Damien starred on Celebrity Jigs and Reels - New Years Special
Dan Hegarty[6](2003 - present) The Alternative To Sleep
A mix of genres and sounds - new, old, and completely overlooked are played every Monday to Thursday from midnight until 02:00. Also included are snippets from the archives of the RTÉ 2fm Sessions.
[edit] Weekend DJs and their shows
In June 2003 Jenny Huston began work at 2fm. She immediately made her mark with her eclectic music savvy, bringing a diverse mix of alternative rock to the ears of Irish listeners. Within months, Huston's programme had built a substantial and enthusiastic following. Since then she has earned a high amount of respect in the Irish music industry, not least for her willingness to support homegrown talent and the valuable airtime she gives to emerging Irish artists. In that short timespan she has received two nominations for Best Irish DJ at the Meteors.
The Waiting Room (2003 - present) Playing new and timeless indie, rock and pop music, this can be heard every Friday from 20:00 until 22:00. It was Jenny's very first show, originally broadcast from Monday until Thursday from 20:00 until midnight, but was then moved to Friday nights only. Irish International and Leinster rugby star Denis Hickie proved to be a hit when he stood in for Jenny while she was on holiday before the summer and so he returned to the airwaves on Friday 20 October 2006 from 20:00 until 22:00 for one night only.[8] Denis is an avid music fan with a varied taste in music and is also a regular gig goer. The Annex (2005 - present) Three hours of rock, indie and grunge anthems can be heard every Saturday from 18:00 until 21:00. The Snug (2005 - present) broadcast every Sunday evening from 19:00 until 20:00, this magazine show takes a light look at current affairs with some music thrown in too.
Michael Cahill Michael has been with 2fm since 1995 and has presented a variety of shows including The Early Show and The Big Afternoon. Michael can currently be heard on Saturday Mornings from 10:00, and according to recent JNLRs has the number 3 rated show on the station. (JNLR: Feb 2007). In 2005 Michael was also appointed as one of the stations new producer's. In the last 12 months he produced The Saturday Show, and currently produce's The Will Leahy Show.
Cormac Battle[9] The Wireless This is broadcast every Sunday from 20:00 until midnight. On Cormac's show you can hear the latest new and alternative music, including band interviews, sessions and live recordings.
Larry Gogan The Golden Hour (1991 - 2006) and also famed for his Just A Minute Quiz
One of the original 2fm DJs, Larry presented a show from Monday to Friday from 14:00 until 16:00 From March 5 2007, Larry has presented a new show on Saturday and Sunday.
[edit] Former DJs
[edit] Specials
[edit] 2fm Live
2fm Live[10] is broadcast every Saturday night from 21:00 until 22:00 and features live music from either a festival or major concert that has happened, usually in Ireland (although in January 2007 there was a show that featured Sigur Rós live from Reykjavík). It was previously broadcast every Sunday night from 23:00 until midnight, incorporated into Cormac Battle's The Wireless show. Battle's voice is still featured in the show where he narrates between songs.
2fm Live has featured music from the Oxegen, Electric Picnic and music festivals. In early 2006, acts that were featured included Kaiser Chiefs and Arcade Fire. Post summer editions have included Gnarls Barkley, Snow Patrol (live from the Heineken Green Energy Festival in Dublin Castle), The Frames (live from Electric Picnic 2006) and Razorlight (live from 2006) as well as The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys, Franz Ferdinand, Editors and Feeder all live from the previous summer's Oxegen festival. The Red Hot Chili Peppers set from Oxegen 2006 was broadcast live as it happened over the internet.
On Christmas Eve 2006 from midnight to 01:30, a special edition was broadcast of snippets taken from Oxegen 2006 which included The Who, The Magic Numbers, Damian Marley, The Feeling, Placebo and Goldfrapp. The following night the same occurred, only this time for the Electric Picnic 2006, where the list included Pet Shop Boys, Antony and the Johnsons, Sparks, The Blue Nile, Gary Numan and Basement Jaxx. On St. Stephen's night the Red Hot Chili Peppers broadcast from Oxegen was repeated while on 27 December Arctic Monkeys' Oxegen set was broadcast once again.
In 2007,2fm Live has tended to feature two bands on each hourly show. These have included The Rapture at the Electric Picnic being broadcast alongside the aforementioned Sigur Rós concert, Antony and the Johnsons from the 2006 Electric Picnic alongside The Kooks live set from Oxegen 2006 and the "Manchester special" of New Order and Elbow, both live from the Electric Picnic in 2006.
Live music is also broadcast throughout the week on other shows on the station including those of Dan Hegarty and Jenny Huston. Dan usually broadcasts live music on Thursday nights while Jenny tends to do so on Friday nights. Jenny has in recent times broadcast three songs from The Automatic's set from Oxegen, some of the Super Furry Animals set from the Electric Picnic, and highlights of David Kitt also from the Picnic. On Dan's show, recent features have included bits of Gary Numan's live set from the Electric Picnic, as well as Julie Feeney and Humanzi at the Eurosonic Festival in Groningen.
[edit] Countdown to 606
For the past six years, RTÉ 2fm have provided help for students facing the Junior Certificate and Leaving Certificate in a series of programmes that run before and throughout the examinations. Entitled Countdown to... (followed by the date that the exams commence, e.g. 606 in 2007, 706 in 2006, 806 in 2005...), the show is hosted by Gerry Ryan Show reporter, Evelyn O'Rourke.
The series provides listeners with useful study tips and daily analysis of the papers during exam time. Regular contributors include "The Maths Guru" John Brennan from the Ballinteer Institute (who lights up like a €3000 Christmas tree at the mere mention of vectors), Brian Mooney from the Institute of Guidance Counsellors, Eamon McGuire (Irish), who regularly talks about Rosie the dog and "Stair na bloody Gaeilge". Also featured are English teacher Jim Lusby, history expert Sean Delap (who used to teach presenter Evelyn), "celebrity biologist" Terry Flanagan and geography expert Michael Doran, who got lost somewhere in Spain after the geography exam on Monday June 11, Corinne Gavanda (French), Pauric McGrath (art history), Brian Wall (chemistry), Pat Doyle (physics), John Morris of the Institute of Education on Leeson Street (economics), Susanah Lopez also from Leeson Street (Spanish), Arthur Russell from Leeson Street (accountancy), Anne-Marie Twomey in Wexford (metalwork), Donal Power (who was supposed to discuss agricultural science but alas he got lost somewhere in the highlands of Scotland and hasn't been seen since).
In 2007, the series began on Monday May 28 and ran on weekday nights between 19:00 - 20:00 until Friday June 15.
On Monday June 4 while talking to Craig Doyle on Leaving Cert Memory Lane, Evelyn revealed she only got 26 points in her Leaving Certificate. Other guests to have featured in 2007 include TG4 weatherman Daithí Ó Shea, sportsreader Eamon Horan, former Miss World, Rosanna Davison, "comedian" Maeve Higgins, Paul Howard (of Ross O'Carroll-Kelly fame). Home economics expert Sandra and business expert William went to see George Michael the other night.
[edit] See Also
- BBC Radio 1 a similar radio station in the United Kingdom
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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