2FM: where did it all go wrong?

Dickie10

in the early 2000s i regularly listened to 2fm but around 2004 started on today fm when i tried to go back to 2fm to see what it was like i couldnt believe the changes, i think when they tried to become too dublin centered it all went very wrong for them , i couldnt abhore that jim jim and colm pair that jumped ship from fm104 they really didnt seem to have a clue of life outsid eof the M50. very ignorant fools that completely finished me with 2fm. bad an all as hector was at least he could relate to dublin, munster, the west and midlands equally and was in the main a cheerful charecter. Then 2fn started chopping and changing presenters and schedules every 6 months all in al i think they really are a poor excuse for a national radio station

ronanc1000

My brief opinion. There's many but I've cut to the chase here with 2fm.

Hector's sacking - numbers shown it had a huge following. Find someone that listens to Breakfast Republic. Chronic Radio from them

Things I think are very, very odd.

Rick O Shea, Colm Hayes, Will Leahy, Ruth & Paddy, Larry Gogan all moved to weekends!?


I can understand a few changes. But I am curious if O Shea & Hayes choose weekends? I think not. The former are better than Eoghan and Tracy imo. Thought Ricks show had the best listership. Really liked Hayes & Al Poter at Drivetime too. Again I wonder why the big guns got drooped essentially.

Finally, The Nicky Byrne show... Don't get me starred.


What does everyone think? Too much dramatic change in the space of 5 years.

purplecow1977

As soon as Colm Hayes took over from Will Leahy, I stopped listening & moved to Matt Cooper. I was surprised recently upon flicking to 2FM that Colm Hayes doesn't even do that show anymore! That Eoghan fella isn't much better. I don't get to listen to Will Leahy's show at the weekend but really enjoyed his Drivetime show during the week. I don't listen to 2FM in the mornings either - I listen to Ian Dempsey.

Avatar MIA

Montrose would pay a pretty penny to those that could lay out a plan that would turn around 2fm.

Personally I think it needs to be laid to rest. It serves no state function.

Senna

2fm lost me a long time ago, but the wife was a listener till about a year ago and they even lost her. They seem to be targeting the 18-25 demographic and competing with the likes of i102 and whatever the Dublin version of it is.
It's really a pity, there's a gulf between 2fm and Radio1, which I'm sure TodayFM and Newstalk are only too delighted to cater for.

Rock Lesnar

Stopped listening when Gerry Ryan died, i liked his show and then just never switched stations when he was over, Laziness more then anything else, Gogan and then Gareth O'Callaghan was after him, if memory is right, wasn't a fan of them but just listened anyway.

Actually heard Nicky Byrnes show during last week i think it was and it wasn't good at all

ghostdancer

deciding they want to be "youth" station but playing sh1t MOR stuff for most of the day with presenters yapping on about subjects for the 30+ age group.

bbability

There's a big panic on at RTE. Suddenly someone realised that there average listener to any of their radio platforms was over 30. The youth of today did not have to rely on the state broadcaster to inform them of 1st world music and news. Some marketing guru/consultant (probably Australian) decided to advise RTE to change strategy get the youth back to the brand. Take a look at the presenters on RTE 2 TV, RTE TEN and they are now pushing this younger brand and presenters into RTE 2FM in some way shape or form. They are not thinking short term but very long term. They had to do something or RTE was in serious trouble down the line. Just look at Eircom and Meteor as brands. Eircom's core residential customer base average age was grey haired. Along came Meteor and it was specifically targeted at young users of mobile phones. They were thinking long term targeting the next generation and this is exactly what RTE are doing.
I don't agree with the business plan of destroying 2FM. It was handled all wrong. They could have rolled out more digital platforms and gradually changed things as time moved on but the person in charge decided to bring in the wrecking ball and start from scratch.
RTE are happy to let the likes of 4FM and Nova play the music of old. Its a silly decision but they have really hurt and annoyed listeners around the country with the sweeping changes at 2fm. Tracey Clifford is just one example of the barbaric decisions at Montrose. Rick O Shea should have never been moved away from weekday radio. I know more and more people switching to the BBC for shows. Not only are people turning away for RTE they are turning away to other countries for radio programmes because they feel the market is not catering for them in Ireland. Graham Norton on a Saturday morning is a typical example.
Anyway 2fm is long gone from my presets and favourites and because I'm over 35 I don't think they are really bothered.

jimmyw

Do you all not know why this station is still in existence? They have to keep employing Lottie Ryan don't you know :-( O:)

mikeym

Theres too much crap talk between the presenters and its pure Bull.

Dickie10

yes just listened their one day and colm hayes and jim nugent talking crap evn rick oshea, there middle aged men trying to do a youth radio station very strange scenario. im not sure if rte know what their age demograpghic even is. but on the whole they rlly need to go and get presenters under 35 who dont talk to much maybe a few slots of just one presenter so this will cut down on jibber jabber. play what spin 1038 and iradio play usual nightclub chart stuff, not soing what 98fm had a tradition of doing and playing songs that wrre hits 8-12 years ago, loads of marron five and poor coldplay and u2 stuff. maybe even a few playslsits from british radio stations of early 90s indie/britpop, this niche is rarely used on irish radio stations yet if you are in a nightclub in Britain you will prob here a good bit of oasis,blur, spice girls or manic street preachers etc. basically stop playing the same songs on each sho one after the other. any of these options would help and not be getting hung up on the big star signing presnter. i dont think comedians work very well as radio prenters they can come across as alan partridge -esque. better to be semi audio invisible or fairly neutral

Gaygooner

2fm went for a younger Market and you are no longer in their demographic- it's quite simple

Dickie10

maybe but i dont think its working to well for them as not many of this market are tuning in

DublinWriter

bbability wrote: »

the person in charge decided to bring in the wrecking ball and start from scratch.

It seems to be a lame attempt to copy Mathew Bannister's infamous cull of the dinosaurs at BBC Radio 1 in the 90's that lead to a loss of 5 million listeners.

The difference between then and now is The Internet. Do teeny-boppers still even listen to radio? If so, are they even a lucrative demographic to sell advertising slots for anymore?

I think 2FM should have gone in the opposite direction. Look at the rise of Nova. Montrose are obsessed with ad revenue and us olds buy a more diverse range of stuff.

Rolllo

I very rarely listen but it does seem like they play music geared to 15-20 year olds and then all the ads are for insurance and home appliances.

ronanc1000

I forgot to add, I'm only 20 and hate the change at 2fm. That being said maybe I am mature for my years as I listen to talk radio mainly and nothing Music driven. I have Spotify for that.

Skid X

ronanc1000 wrote: »

Hector's sacking - numbers shown it had a huge following. Find someone that listens to Breakfast Republic. Chronic Radio from them

Hector never had good numbers in that show. He was given long enough.

Not saying Breakfast Republic is any good, but Hector got even worse numbers than previous shows in his slot.

Stealthfins

I'm in my 40's now,but remember 2fm since I was a kid.
That good old Larry Gogan show,it even had a sing along with his name in it during the show it went like lareeee goooogaaan.
The fm sound was great,the Tony Fenton hotline was also great,along with other presenters.

Men and women djs alike,with great voices for radio,not this Americanized hybridization of a d4 poshy mutation you hear today.

My favourite dj was a Limerick man Michael McNamara,or Mickey Mac.

He presented the dance show,he had a really good voice for radio,that almost bassy husky sound that boomed across the airwaves.
He now works on RTE Gold and Clare Fm,when I told a few friends I heard him on Clare Fm they started to tune in.

He does a good show,spinning all kinds of music from pop,old school dance,indie and country.

Today 2fm is more like Spin Fm

alias no.9

mikeym wrote: »

Theres too much crap talk between the presenters and its pure Bull.

I think they're modelling themselves on BBC Radio 1 which is full of ****e talk between presenters too

flutered

i am an oldie with a youthfull outlook, i tried morning 2fm a couple of months ago, what i heard seemed to be a guy and a girl shouting at each other between bad music, so back to the interweb with me

ronanc1000

Skid X wrote: »

Hector never had good numbers in that show. He was given long enough.

Not saying Breakfast Republic is any good, but Hector got even worse numbers than previous shows in his slot.

Well from what I remember Hector gave away many prizes like Holidays and 10k weekly. That tells a lot in itself. You have to admit though it was better than Breakfast Republic? I mean Bernard O Shea he's funny sometimes, but a grown man acting like a 5 year old he ridiculous. Sure Damian Farrelly was on the early breakfast show pre before hector and he got the sack for Lottie ryan who gets no listeners imo. Now Farrelly does 4fm breakfast with PJ which I think is great, not aimed at my age but I listen. I just think 2fm have made so many error by shafting most of their best DJ's. And I wonder why. The weekend schedule is better than the weekday imo.

AllGunsBlazing

As stated earlier, they're chasing the youth market. The funny thing is they'd probably be better off ditching the DJ altogether and just playing non-stop music.

They don't seem to understand the demograph that they're trying so hard to win back. Attention spans are growing ever shorter - and the young ones want music, not banter.

AllGunsBlazing

Also, caught a bit of Nicky Byrne's show last month. I laughed all the way through for the half an hour that I listened. At him, mind you.

He's a perfect example of how to get ahead with our state broadcaster. Be well connected.

Mr Sea Wolf

Dickie10 wrote: »

yes just listened their one day and colm hayes and jim nugent talking crap evn rick oshea, there middle aged men trying to do a youth radio station very strange scenario. im not sure if rte know what their age demograpghic even isl

I don't think you have listened to 2fm recently.

Mr Sea Wolf

For years on these boards, people were saying 2fm needed new young presenters, less housewife chat and less dinosaur djs and now that has all happened people still complain.

The Parish Priest.

2FM: where did it all go wrong? When Tubridy left the breakfast show in 2005

cml387

Yes I'm of an age when I can remember when the only pop music on Radio was Larry Gogan on a Tuesday night for an hour, and Ken's Klub on Thursday's.

That being said, I only listen to BBC Radio 2 now at home because it plays the music I like.

Where is our equivalent here? I think it could do quite well, bearing in mind we are becoming an older demographic.

Harry Palmr

I suppose RTE Gold plays that music but it's automated playout station isn't it? No actual humans or am I wrong?

cml387

Harry Palmr wrote: »

I suppose RTE Gold plays that music but it's automated playout station isn't it? No actual humans or am I wrong?

Yes I suppose it does, but without a presenter it's just Spotify without the choice.

callaway92

Where did it all go wrong?

you got older...people move on. . .

super_furry

If you listened to 2FM in the early 2000s, you're not their target audience now.

gimmick

Our work radio has been on 2FM a few weeks now and Ive been pleasantly surprised. Its not that its particular good, but it is completely inoffensive background radio.

Miles and miles better than anything Fergal Darcy has ever done or will ever do. I also did not like Dermot & Dave and their hyperactive fake laughter so am glad to not have to put up with them anymore either.

end of the road

2fm very much has a place still but it needs to target an older audience. they have the djs/presenters. no point in targeting the youth audience now as they are simply not listening and aren't going to listen.

Declan A Walsh

cml387 wrote: »

Yes I'm of an age when I can remember when the only pop music on Radio was Larry Gogan on a Tuesday night for an hour, and Ken's Klub on Thursday's.

That being said, I only listen to BBC Radio 2 now at home because it plays the music I like.

Where is our equivalent here? I think it could do quite well, bearing in mind we are becoming an older demographic.

As a few people said, RTE Gold is probably the closest match. Other than that, if you are in their coverage areas, you could try 4FM as it plays quite a lot of oldies (as well as some current stuff). If you are near Dublin, you could also try Sunshine 106.8, which is more easy-listening for the middle-aged than country - and includes a lot of oldies. Also in Dublin, you have Q102 which mixes oldies with current stuff - maybe a higher quota of chart stuff than 4FM. And, last but not least, there is Radio Nova covering Dublin and its commuter belt, playing rock music for the slightly older adult.

Clonmel1000

How do you tune in rte gold?

Declan A Walsh

Clonmel1000 wrote: »

How do you tune in rte gold?

Wikipedia actually gives all the different ways:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RT%C3%89_Gold

TheRiverman

gimmick wrote: »

Our work radio has been on 2FM a few weeks now and Ive been pleasantly surprised. Its not that its particular good, but it is completely inoffensive background radio.

Miles and miles better than anything Fergal Darcy has ever done or will ever do. I also did not like Dermot & Dave and their hyperactive fake laughter so am glad to not have to put up with them anymore either.

It's ok if it is quiet background radio.Some places,particularly shops seem to think that blowing the heads off staff and customers is good for sales.There is a Spar I go to quite regularly and Today FM is always on way too loud.Yesterday I went into a shop and the horrendous iRadio was blasting away like it was a Night Club instead of a shop.

Sleeper12

I was a Gerry Ryan fan. I'd tune in if they ran an hour or classic G Ryan Show.
Like previous posters I'd just leave 2fm on after GR. For me the station never recovered from his death & the huge hole left. Since then they seem to panic when listening figures are released. They they do stupid things

Ursus Horribilis

Someone mentioned BBC Radio 2. There is no equivalent here and I've sometimes wondered should there be? The two main RTE stations are at polar ends of the scale now. With the exception of John Creedon's show which I sometimes listen to in the evenings, there's feck all for a bog standard 30-40 something listener. Radio 1 is still aiming older and I guess that's the way it always has been. As we've established, 2fm and Today FM are now targeting a younger audience. So where goes the people in the middle? Yeah there's Spotify and Tune-In but I'd like to be able to turn on my radio in the car or the kitchen and not have to faff around with my phone. The Dublin stations, RTE Gold and 4fm only reach pockets of the country, whereas 2fm and Today FM can be picked up just about everywhere.

Jurgen Klopp

Must also add I stopped tuning in after Gerry Ryan died, he was a character.

I remember one fine sunny morning a housewife rang in and he asked her was she up to much and she said just hanging out the washing Gerry

"Mhmmm did you hang out many pairs of knickers?"

:pac:

The Parish Priest.

There is an national music station for the over 35s, it's called RTE Lyric Fm.. the local independent county stations are targeting the 35+ market too.

cml387

What BBC Radio 2 seems to do so well is foster a sort of community of listeners

Terry Wogan did it very well, nowadays it's the likes of Simon Mayo and Ken Bruce (I can take or leave the ginger one).

The Parish Priest.

4fm was meant to be an Irish BBC Radio 2, blame the bai for allowing Branigan & Ashmore turn it into Niall Boylan FM

IUA14

The Parish Priest. wrote: »

There is an national music station for the over 35s, it's called RTE Lyric Fm.. the local independent county stations are targeting the 35+ market too.

I would agree. You have 4FM depending on location also and in Dublin there is Q102, Sunshine, Nova etc.

cml387

IUA14 wrote: »

I would agree. You have 4FM depending on location also and in Dublin there is Q102, Sunshine, Nova etc.

Lyric FM is a classical music station for all ages.
As pointed out before 4FM is not countrywide and has a large amount of time given to hate radio.
Needless to say you are catered for if you live in Dublin:rolleyes:

IUA14

cml387 wrote: »

Lyric FM is a classical music station for all ages.
As pointed out before 4FM is not countrywide and has a large amount of time given to hate radio.
Needless to say you are catered for if you live in Dublin:rolleyes:

Depending on what you want you are serviced in most areas. Local stations, Radio 1, Lyric, 4FM (depending on location as I said) and plenty of Dublin stations that have apps too.

Ursus Horribilis

The Parish Priest. wrote: »

There is an national music station for the over 35s, it's called RTE Lyric Fm.. the local independent county stations are targeting the 35+ market too.

You're joking, right? Lyric FM is a classical music/arts radio station. I despair when I read some of the comments here on this thread. Just because someone is over 35 doesn't mean they never want to listen to a pop song again. Perhaps it's the same mentality fuelling the radio stations in this country.

My local radio station is mostly filled with chat and music aimed at an older demographic.

The Parish Priest.

well the thing is, if you are over 35 and like pop music then just listen to 2fm or Today fm

Ursus Horribilis

Not all pop music is the stuff that's in the top 40 right now. Sigh.

cml387

Ursus Horribilis wrote: »

Not all pop music is the stuff that's in the top 40 right now. Sigh.

Indeed. And pop music from the past consists of more than playing the same tracks from the "KTEL Greatest Oldie Hits Of All Time Double LP" over and over again like 4FM do.

Sleeper12

The Parish Priest. wrote:

well the thing is, if you are over 35 and like pop music then just the or Today fm

49 years old. Newstalk pat Kenny from 9am. Midday George Hook if nothing better is on the. Moving on to RTE from 1pm till 3pm.
I don't need music