RTÉ Radio 1 Press Pack Week 9 (28 February – 6 March)

RTÉ RADIO 1 HIGHLIGHTS
WEEK 9
Saturday 28 February – Friday 6 March 2009

Highlights
Conversations with Eamon Dunphy: John Montague
Saturday Sport: Six Nations: Ireland V England
The RTÉ Radio 1 Music Collection: Tanqueray – Johnnie Johnson

New Series
The RTÉ Radio 1 Music Collection: The Best of Irish Country Music

*Highlight*
CONVERSATIONS WITH EAMON DUNPHY
High achievers from the worlds of arts, politics, business, science and sport talk to Eamon Dunphy about their lives, passions and the music which inspires them.
Eamon’s guest this morning is John Montague on the occasion of the poet’s 80th birthday.
Presenter: Eamon Dunphy
Producer: Sarah Binchy
RTÉ Radio 1, Saturday 28 February, 9.10am

FIANNA FÁIL ARD FHEIS
Reports, discussion and analysis from Citywest in Dublin.
Presented by John Bowman
Producer: Donal O’Herlihy
RTÉ Radio 1, Saturday 28 February, 1.05pm

*Highlight*
SATURDAY SPORT with John Kenny and Andrew O’Connor
Rugby: Six Nations: Ireland v England (KO 5.30pm)
Commentator: Michael Corcoran
RTÉ Radio Sport has full coverage and top quality analysis of all of Ireland’s RBS 6 Nations matches with commentary from Michael Corcoran and former Irish international Donal Lenihan, as well as reports from every other RBS 6 Nations match. Emmet Byrne, David Humphreys, Victor Costello, John Kelly and Conor McGuinness will also be on hand to provide expert analysis, insight and reaction. All of RTÉ Radio’s commentary will be streamed live on www.rte.ie worldwide on FM, LW252 and DAB.
Racing: Navan
Soccer: English and Scottish Premier Leagues
Producer: Robbie Irwin
RTÉ Radio 1, Saturday 28 February, 2.01pm

FIANNA FÁIL ARD FHEIS
The Leader’s Address by An Taoiseach Brian Cowen , T.D. from Citywest in Dublin.
Presented by John Bowman
Producer: Donal O’Herlihy
RTÉ Radio 1, Saturday 28 February, 8.30pm

CEILI HOUSE
The National Concert Hall in Dublin is the venue for tonight’s Céilí House and the performers are from the Meitheal Orchestra who perform with, among others, fiddle player Zoe Conway.
Presenter: Kieran Hanrahan
Producer: Peter Browne
RTÉ Radio 1, Saturday 28 February, 9.02pm

SUNDAY SPORT with Con Murphy and Jacqui Hurley
G.A.A.: National Hurling League Round 3
Racing: Leopardstown and Clonmel
Athletics National Cross Country Championship
Soccer: Carling Cup Final
Producer: Gary Moran
RTÉ Radio 1, Sunday 1 March, 2.00pm

*New Series*
DOCUMENTARY ON ONE
FACTORY LIVES
A six part series on factory closures in Ireland taking one example from each decade and examining the causes for the collapse against a backdrop of economic development in this country.
This week Paddy O’Gorman tells the story of the closure, in 1953, of Locke’s Distillery in Kilbeggan, Co. Westmeath.
Producer: Paddy O’Gorman
RTÉ Radio 1, Sunday 1 March, 7.02pm
(Repeated on 2 March)
(First broadcast on 1 October 2003)
(See press release below)

THE FRANCIS MACMANUS SHORT STORY COMPETITION
A selection of past winners of the Francis MacManus Short Story Competition
FOR SCRAP by Gavin Corbett
Read by Enda Oates
Producer: Seamus Hosey
RTÉ Radio 1, Sunday 1 March, 7.45pm
(Repeated on 2 March)
(Repeat)

SUNDAY PLAYHOUSE
THE ROUGH FIELD by John Montague
A new recording to celebrate the poet’s 80th birthday.
The Rough Field was published first in 1972 and is now recognised as a classic piece of contemporary Irish writing.
This meditation on Ulster is some of the author’s finest work. The historical and personal, autobiographical and mythological, blend in a magnificent exploration of his own and his people’s inheritance.
Producer: Aidan Mathews
RTÉ Radio 1, Sunday 1 March, 8.02pm

STAGECRAFT
A programme on sound – the aural art of the theatre, from a series broadcast last year in which we heard the voices of theatre designers, directors and producers talk about the world that a play inhabits.
Producer: Cathryn Brennan
RTÉ Radio 1, Sunday 1 March, 9.30pm
(Repeat)

*New Series*
THE BEST OF IRISH COUNTRY MUSIC – MICK FLAVIN IN CONCERT
RTÉ RADIO 1 MUSIC COLLECTION
In this series, The Best of Irish Country Music, a concert recorded at the Backstage Theatre, Longford on 2 October 2008.
In June 1986 Mick Flavin recorded his first ever album in a recording studio in Athlone where he put down 10 tracks, which were to be released at Christmas of that year. This album had an unprecedented amount of success and eventually led him to recording with Harmac and Ritz Records, where he ended up recording a total of 12 albums. In 2005 Mick was been nominated for the Country Music Association Global Artist Award. This is the first time that an Irish Country Artist had been nominated for this prestigious award and is an indication of his significant contribution to Irish music.
Producer: Aidan Butler
RTÉ Radio 1, Monday 2 March, 9.02pm
(See press release attached below)

BOOK ON ONE
CHRISTY RING: HURLING’S GREATEST by Tim Horgan
Christy Ring from Cloyne, Co. Cork, is regarded as the greatest hurler of all time. He won eight senior All-Ireland medals and 18 Railway Cup medals in his 24 year career before retiring from inter-county hurling aged 43. He always tried to do the impossible and against him no game was won until the final whistle. His mastery of the skills of hurling was equalled only by his dedication to Cork. Tim Horgan traces Christy’s playing career with its many highlights and captures his unique charisma that excited and attracted people to him. He pays due respect to Christy’s opponents and the drab conditions in which all lived and played. Included are Ben Kiely’s reports on Christy playing at the opening of Casement Park, Belfast, in 1953, and a fascinating interview before the 1953 All-Ireland. It is a lively, affectionate account of Christy Ring’s lifelong commitment to hurling, embellished with many previously unpublished photos, memories of great players, personalities and glorious games won and lost.
Read by Paschal Scott
Producer: Aidan Stanley
RTÉ Radio 1, Monday 2 – Friday 5 March, 11.13pm

ROOTS FREEWAY
THE RTÉ RADIO 1 MUSIC COLLECTION
Niall Toner presents the best roots country music, bluegrass, country rock, western swing, Cajun and hardcore music.
Producer: Aidan Butler
RTÉ Radio 1, Tuesday 3 March, 9.02pm

THE ROLLING WAVE
THE RTÉ RADIO 1 MUSIC COLLECTION
Gaelic singer Catriona Watt hails from the Isle of Lewis where from a very young age she was taught songs by her grandmother, Chrissie, who lives on the Island of Great Bernera. She won the BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year award held in Glasgow in 2007. Since then she has performed at music festivals in Canada, Norway, Denmark, Belgium, Germany, and Ireland and has made several television appearances. The highlight of Catriona’s year so far has been the release of her debut album, Cadal Cuain which has received a series of very good reviews. This performance was recorded by RTÉ Radio at the 28th annual EBU Folk Festival which was held in Cork in autumn of 2007.
Presented and produced by Peter Browne.
RTÉ Radio 1, Wednesday 4 March, 9.02pm

*Highlight*
TANQUERAY – JOHNNIE JOHNSON
THE RTÉ RADIO 1 MUSIC COLLECTION
A profile of one of the founding fathers of Rock and Roll, Johnnie Johnson was a huge influence on the likes of Chuck Berry, Keith Richards and Eric Clapton.
From the RTÉ Radio Archives we can hear the late piano giant in conversation with Marcus Connaughton about his life and music.
Producer: Marcus Connaughton
RTÉ Radio 1, Thursday 5 March, 9.02pm

PROISEIS NA PLANDALA
Tosnaíodh ar Phlandáil Uladh 400 bliain ó shin. Tugann stairithe na tréimhse sin léargas dúinn ar chúiseanna, cuir i bhfeidhm agus oidhreacht na Plandála. Labhraíonn Nicholas Canny, Mícheál Ó Síochrú agus Brian Mac Cuarta le Cathal Póirtéir.
To mark the 400th anniversary of the Plantation of Ulster, leading historians of the period examine the causes, implementation and results of the project. Nicholas Canny, Mícheál Ó Síochrú and Brian Mac Cuarta bring various perspectives to bear on the plantation period from the Flight of the Earls to the 1641 Rebellion.
Producer Cathal Póirtéir
RTÉ Radio 1, Friday 6 March, 8.02pm

THOMAS DAVIS LECTURES – CREATING THE DÁIL
To commemorate the 90th anniversary of the First Dáil we are re-broadcasting a ten part Thomas Davis Lecture series entitled Creating the Dáil first broadcast in 1994.
Programme 8: The Dáil, the Army and the War of Independence presented by Eunan O’Halpin.
The consulting editor on the series was Brian Farrell
Producer: Michael Littleton
RTÉ Radio 1, Friday 6 March, 8.30pm
(First broadcast 1994)

TRANSMISSIONS
THE RTÉ RADIO 1 MUSIC COLLECTION
Tom Sherlock explores the way folk and traditional music from around the world has common threads with our own traditional music.
Tonight, Tom looks at the links between Scandinavian and Irish music.
Producer: Aidan Butler
RTÉ Radio 1, Friday 6 March, 9.02pm

Further Information:
Jack Fox, (01) 208 2452, jack.fox@rte.ie
Sandra Byrne, (01) 208 2506/ 087 249 3048, sandra.byrne@rte.ie
Sarah Martin, (01) 208 2312/ 087 750 1850, sarah.martin@rte.ie

RTÉ Radio

RTÉ RADIO 1’S DOC ON ONE REVISITS IRELAND’S CLOSED FACTORIES

At 7.02pm on Sunday 1 March RTÉ Radio 1’s Documentary on One brings back the 2003 mini-series Factory Lives which looks at the impact of the closure of some of the country’s biggest factories.

With the large number of recent factory closures in Ireland Rachel English, Paddy O’Gorman, Peter Woods and Mary Owens look back over the past half-century to examine why these historical closures happened and see if we have since learnt from our mistakes. As Limerick deals with its recent 2,000 job losses in Dell, Factory Lives also looks at how such massive redundancies have affected local communities around Ireland, from the 1950s and up into this decade.

In the first programme in the series, Lockes, Paddy O’Gorman looks at the closure of Lockes Distillery in Kilbeggan in the 1950s. The following Monday, The Doc on One looks at the fire in Dundalk in the 1960s which led to the closure of Rawsons Shoe Factory – it was a portent of things to come. At that time more than 5000 people were employed in the boot factories of the North East. Today that industry is completely gone.

The recent loss of jobs in Limerick was paralleled in the 1970s with the closure of Ferenka, the major employer of the mid-west. The events which led to that closure; strikes, a divided union and the kidnapping of the Dutch industrialist Tieda Herrema were dramatic in themselves and are told again in the third documentary of the series, Peter Woods’ Ferenka.

Up until the 1980s the Castlebar Bacon Factory was an institution. It defined the town and gave focus to Castlebar’s legendary McHale Road. It was a place where cattle, sheep, pigs and even rabbits were butchered and when it closed in the country seemed to be moving in a different direction. The Price of Bacon examines how Castlebar suffered as the country was moved away from indigenous industries who relied on the places they were located for their workers and their raw-materials.

Rachel English’s programme on Digital in Galway’s closure in the 1990s defines an era. It recalls a time when we were on the cusp of something we didn’t see coming. It tells of how many of the Digital workers used their skills and what money they got to kickstart a range of enterprises, perhaps it provides a template of sorts.

In the final programme in the series Mary Owens looks at a factory closure in this decade – at the height of the Celtic Tiger. Blessed be the Fruit of the Loom follows what might be the last of the great traditional industries from Buncran to Morocco. The textile manufacturer Fruit of the Loom were the focus of employment in Inishowen and when they left they created an employment blackspot at a time when Irish employment was at its peak. It was a lesson in multi-nationalism as the t-shirt manufacturer left Buncrana for the cheaper wages in Rabat.

Tune into RTÉ Radio 1’s Documentary on One, Factory Lives, at 7.02pm from Sunday 1 March – Sunday 5 April. The Documentary on One is repeated on Mondays at 10.02pm/

Listen back to RTÉ Radio 1’s Documentary on One: www.rte.ie/radio1/doconone

Download RTÉ Radio 1’s Documentary on One: www.rte.ie/radio/podcast

Ends

Date: 12 February 2009

For further press queries please contact Jack Fox, (01) 208 2452, jack.fox@rte.ie

RTÉ Music

RTÉ RADIO 1 CELEBRATES THE BEST IN IRISH COUNTRY MUSIC

Tune in to RTÉ Radio 1 at 9.02pm on Monday 2 March as the RTÉ Radio 1 Music Collection with The Association of Irish Entertainers launches the new music series The Best of Irish Country Music.

The series will run every Monday night for nine weeks and will include live performances from some of Ireland’s top country music artists such as Tony Stephens, Mick Flavin and Foster and Allen. The performances were recorded by RTÉ Radio 1 in a variety of venues throughout Ireland and capture both the unique sound and atmosphere of the nights.

Producer of the series, Aidan Butler commented: “These fantastic performances are a great way to pay tribute to those who have entertained Irish audiences all around the country for years. Irish country music has a very unique and special sound and these concerts are a perfect example of it at its best. If you’re a fan of country music this series is simply not to be missed.”

Ireland has always had a strong Country music following with established acts such as Daniel O’Donnell and Margo playing at both home and abroad. Their international success is built on a huge Country music following within Ireland which is fed by the constant performances of such country music performers as you will hear on The Best of Irish Country Music.

Since the RTÉ Radio 1 Music Collection began it has continuously highlighted the vast amount of talent involved in Irish Country music on programmes such as New Irish Country Scene, Irish Music Legends and The Dallas Collection – all of which can be listened back to at www.rte.ie/radio1/themusiccollection/.

Tune in to The Best In Irish Country on RTÉ Radio 1 at 9.02pm on Monday 2 March – Monday 27 April 2009.

For further press queries please contact Jack Fox, (01) 208 2452, jack.fox@rte.ie