Today FM schedule changes

ford fiesta

Jim O'Neill and Declan Meehan gone...

http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/radio/the-coronas-danny-oreilly-announced-as-new-host-of-today-fm-34807322.html

Mr Snow

Jim O’Neill be a big loss I used to like him in the eveings in my option he was the best radio show on a sunday on today fm. hope it is not the last we hear of jim o neill

Declan Meehan I never got chance to hear him on today fm but his east coast fm show is quite good.

4 band radio

Today Fm must use the same consultants that 2fm use, this was very clear when they axed classic gold sunday within a month of irelands biggest jukebox being axed from 2fm

ford fiesta

looks like that new head of today hasn't a clue, how old is he...30?

what is happening phil cawley friday night 80s?

taking on a lead singer of a band and axing established presenters is never a wise move.

ThisRegard

****ing Hector.

I'll be bringing the craic

porsche boy

I see that fool Hector got himself another show. He must be really good at doing something.... shame it's not presenting.

_feedback_

Jim O'Neill has been one of my favorite voices on Irish radio ... shame to see him go. I preferred "Classic Gold Sunday" to his newer show.

Replacing the experience radio presenters with "names" like Neil Delamere, Hector and Danny O'Reilly seems to be the way it is going unfortunately.

Ronan Raver77

Jim O'Neill great voice always enjoyed hearing him..Recent interview http://castaway.media/738am/tag/jim-oneill/

Declan A Walsh

There is certainly a bit of a shake-up in their weekend schedule.

I would make one small correction to the article - the station started broadcasting on March 17th 1997 (as Radio Ireland), so Declan Meehan is not quite with them 20 years. That said, it will be a big change not seeing his name on that weekend schedule. The same, or similar, applies to Jim O'Neill. We know Declan's main gig is with East Coast FM, as it has been for many years - about 25 years. But what's happening with Jim?

Why are they taking on that guy from the Coronas? Today FM already have Neil Delamere. This whole celebrity presenter gig must be very frustrating for up and coming broadcasters looking for their big break.

It is interesting to see that Kelly-Anne Byrne has been given an extra slot and that her fellow TXFM presenter Nadine O'Regan has her Songs in the Key of Life program moved to Today FM. I presume the latter will be leaving TXFM as that was the only program she presented on it.

I also see that Alison Curtis is getting an extra slot. Like the other two above, she is an ex-Phantom presenter.

4 band radio

Phil cawley is now the last man standing from the radio ireland era

VincePP

Jim O'Neill and Declan Meehan are yesterday presenters - they were presenting when I was working in radio 30 years ago.

Whilst some people don't like change, its necessary or you die. That was 2fm's problem - they stuck with presenters for far too long, especially Larry Gogan, had tubs on the wrong station and tried to target a far too wide an audience and that just won't work.

Sometimes us listeners grow out of a station - I'm in the radio 1 / newstalk bracket these days - lyric aint too far away

Declan A Walsh

4 band radio wrote: »

Phil cawley is now the last man standing from the radio ireland era

Phil Cawley will indeed be the only presenter left from Radio Ireland, but he will not be the only broadcaster left from that period as sportscaster Paul Collins goes back to that era too. Phil was there from the start and Paul was there within a month if not the start.

AFAIK Phil and Paul, after Declan Meehan leaves, will also be the only broadcasters left from the very start of the renamed Today FM. It is interesting to note that the next longest broadcaster on Today FM will be Ian Dempsey

soc160

From Radio Today...


"Hector O’ Heochagain, who is currently covering for Ian Dempsey on Today FM, will join the weekend schedule in August with ‘Hector’s Sunday Sitting Room’ – a 3 hour show from 4-7pm."


Ah **** off...

Oscar Bravo

Jim O’Neill’s last show will be on Sunday, June 26.

vince

I use to listen to todayfm all the time. Now I only listen to jim o niel on sundays best guy on there. So thats me gone now pity. Maybe 4fm could give him weekend slots be great.

JoeA3

Must say I'm not a fan of Jim O'Neill on the radio these days. He just sounds out of place... It's almost a certainty that the next track he plays will be one from U2 / Thin Lizzy and that gets tiresome after a while. That said, he has a great voice and I think his voiceovers and jingles on the original Today FM were their best jingles package to date!

I just can't understand the appeal of Alison "EJ" "Twitter" "501012" Curtis at all. I'd have Hector any day of the week and that's saying something.

4 band radio

I wonder is friday night 90s with shana and eoin being axed too ?

wnolan1992

I was never a big fan of Jim O'Neill. I remember Classic Gold Sunday used to be the radio choice every week when we'd be driving when I was younger, and at the time his music choices weren't exactly what I was into! :P

That said, I loved his style of presenting. My memory of him is that he's very much in the Tony Fenton deejay mold, and I know that style is going out of fashion, but I will always love it. Shame to see one more of those presenters move away in favour of celebrities...

4 band radio wrote: »

I wonder is friday night 90s with shana and eoin being axed too ?

That would be a shame IMO. I think they work well together. I really think if they did the show live they could gain a decent audience.

Perhaps they're swapping Friday Night 80's and 90's around?

4 band radio

I'd guess lousie duffys new evening show will be running monday-friday.

ford fiesta

Funny..

...Declan and Jim were on the original national radio 2 schedule. now they both are being axed from national radio exactly 37 years on.

ford fiesta

4 band radio wrote: »

I'd guess lousie duffys new evening show will be running monday-friday.

oh dear, her show sounds like a college radio show. dreadful stuff altogether.

Declan A Walsh

With Declan and Jim gone, Ian Dempsey will be the only person on Today FM left that goes back to radio in the '70s (pirates in his case).

flazio

I'm sad to hear Jim is going. Even though he wasn't the jingle voice for years, to me he was still THE voice of Today FM.

Alfasudcrazy

Phil Cawley announced on tonight's Friday night 80's that the show is being axed in three weeks. Sad - many's the happy Friday evening I spent in the gym with Friday night 80's on my headphones or listening to playbacks of it while out cycling. Made me feel like I was 20 again.

But of course now with digital radio we are spoiled for choice if we like 80's music. RTE Gold and the UK station Absolute 80's.

Still I enjoyed the Friday night 80's show a lot and will miss it.

Also sad to hear Jim O Neill is going - also liked his Sunday classic Gold show and his later Sunday evening show. Have been enjoying listening to Jim O Neill since the start of RTE Radio 2 back in 1979. Surely there will be a slot available for him back on RTE Gold.

ford fiesta

Alfasudcrazy wrote: »

Also sad to hear Jim O Neill is going - also liked his Sunday classic Gold show and his later Sunday evening show. Have been enjoying listening to Jim O Neill since the start of RTE Radio 2 back in 1979. Surely there will be a slot available for him back on RTE Gold.

I'd say he would want to get paid for his radio work ! - dont think RTE Gold presenters who dont already work for/in RTE get paid (Micky Mac, Al Dunne etc.)

end of the road

VincePP wrote: »

Jim O'Neill and Declan Meehan are yesterday presenters - they were presenting when I was working in radio 30 years ago.

so what? they are experienced pros and are also far from "yesterdays presenters"

VincePP wrote: »

Whilst some people don't like change, its necessary or you die.

not always correct.

VincePP wrote: »

That was 2fm's problem - they stuck with presenters for far too long, especially Larry Gogan, had tubs on the wrong station and tried to target a far too wide an audience and that just won't work.

the likes of Larry Gogan are far from the problem of 2fm. them going for 2 wide an audience is the issue. it needs to go for an older audience, or if it wants to still target a youth audience then it needs to look to the most respected pop music broadcaster in the world bbc radio one.

VincePP wrote: »

Sometimes us listeners grow out of a station - I'm in the radio 1 / newstalk bracket these days - lyric aint too far away

yes, sometimes being the most important word here. meaning only some people grow out of stations, sometimes. i'm getting the vibe that you feel you have to listen to the likes of radio one/newstalk and eventually lyric based on your age, rather then liking the content (which if that is the case it's a load of nonsense) (there is nothing wrong with some of the content on those stations either) . one should listen to something because they like it, not because they feel they have to because of their age. i'm in the audience for the likes of spin/iradio and so on yet i can't be bothered with them. for me content is king for a station, not the idea of "you must listen to a station based on your age"

buckfasterer

Wonder would Ian Dempsey ever get the boot. By god but the morning show needs a shake up. You'd just hope that they wouldn't replace him with the standard duo team that seem to be on every ****ing show going.

Padster90s

Friday Night 90s is finishing July 1st.

wnolan1992

Padster90s wrote: »

Friday Night 90s is finishing July 1st.

Ah boo-urns!

I thought they worked really well together any time I've ever heard it...

Really curious to know what they're going to put on on a Friday night now...

Padster90s

wnolan1992 wrote: »

Ah boo-urns!

I thought they worked really well together any time I've ever heard it...

Really curious to know what they're going to put on on a Friday night now...

They're a good team, they'll resurface somewhere! Electronic/Techno maybe? It's it only stuff not on Today FM. Suppose we'll hear all the disco music is going tomorrow night

wnolan1992

Padster90s wrote: »

They're a good team, they'll resurface somewhere! Electronic/Techno maybe? It's it only stuff not on Today FM. Suppose we'll hear all the disco music is going tomorrow night

That's the reason I listen to Today FM on a Friday night though. After 9 most of the stations are gone to dance/electro, Today FM were offering something different with 80's and 90's stuff.

I understand the decision I guess, it's just a shame to lose Friday Night 80's which was a show I grew up with, and 90's which I'd really come to enjoy.

Utah

Do radio stations ever take what their listeners think into account? Genuine question

ahnowbrowncow

I'll really miss the Friday night 80s and 90s shows.

Hope they don't go the 2fm, iradio and spin 103.8 route with airheads reading out celebrity gossip as news.

wnolan1992

Utah wrote: »

Do radio stations ever take what their listeners think into account? Genuine question

That's probably what they are doing tbh. I'd imagine Friday Night 80's is either declining or stagnating in listeners and they want to freshen it up.

If they're going down the route of having Louise Monday to Friday (taking the 7-9pm hours of Friday Night 80's), maybe Paul McLoone will go Monday to Friday too, or maybe they'll go with a Top 40 chart show, or electro/dance music.

As much as I love Friday Night 80's, I get why they might want to change after so long.

Trebor176

The "celeb" route seems to be the way certain stations are going now. These are unlikely to have any previous radio experience, but bosses obviously feel that a "big" name will appeal greatly to the station. It doesn't always work, though.

Friday Night 80s and Friday Night 90s will be big losses for those that enjoy the older music. I felt that Shauna And Eoin have worked well together, and I have enjoyed listening to them.

It looks like Sunday evenings will be good. I'm delighted that Kelly Anne Byrne is getting a Sunday slot to, so I can enjoy The Beat Goes On for an extra few hours Kelly Anne herself is great to listen to. Though, I haven't heard her much on TXFM, as I don't tend to tune into the station.

I did hear some of the breakfast show recently, and having not heard it in at least a couple of years, little had changed, and it explained why I had to switch off back then. Don't get me wrong, Ian is an excellent broadcaster, but the show needs a big revamp.

Declan A Walsh

Padster90s wrote: »

They're a good team, they'll resurface somewhere! Electronic/Techno maybe? It's it only stuff not on Today FM. Suppose we'll hear all the disco music is going tomorrow night

Presumably, you are talking about The Beat Goes On presented by Kelly-Anne Byrne. Quite the opposite actually, if you look at the article referred to! As Trebor176 says in his post, she is getting an extra show on Sundays. Ever since she was given a weekday show on TXFM and this show on Saturdays, it was clear to me that Communicorp saw her as a presenter for the future.

Trebor176

Declan A Walsh wrote: »

Presumably, you are talking about The Beat Goes On presented by Kelly-Anne Byrne. Quite the opposite actually, if you look at the article referred to! As Trebor176 says in his post, she is getting an extra show on Sundays. Ever since she was given a weekday show on TXFM and this show on Saturdays, it was clear to me that Communicorp saw her as a presenter for the future.

She's an excellent presenter, who is clearly passionate about music, and knows a good bit about it. It's evident in the way she does her links. An example of her passion for the music is when Prince died. She was battling a bad chest infection, but felt it was important to do her show anyway, as she was a big Prince fan. So, the whole show was dedicated to him.

jimmyw

Id say Phil is not too pleased with the changes, he more or less gave the impression of that view last night on the show.

What if the new setup does not live up to expectations?


This is what happens when Ray left, it went to pot..........:P

Declan A Walsh

Trebor176 wrote: »

She's an excellent presenter, who is clearly passionate about music, and knows a good bit about it. It's evident in the way she does her links. An example of her passion for the music is when Prince died. She was battling a bad chest infection, but felt it was important to do her show anyway, as she was a big Prince fan. So, the whole show was dedicated to him.

The evening that it was announced that Prince had died Kelly-Anne Byrne devoted her whole show on TXFM to his music as well.

As I said in my first post, as per the article, Nadine O'Regan's Songs in the Key of Life will move from TXFM to Today FM. I wonder will there be more moves from TXFM to Today FM to come yet?

monkeysnapper

jimmyw wrote: »

Id say Phil is not too pleased with the changes, he more or less gave the impression of that view last night on the show.

What if the new setup does not live up to expectations?


This is what happens when Ray left, it went to pot..........:P

Yes I was listening , he sounded very annoyed it was going.

He said his new show was anthem's and on a bit later .

Poor Phil is slowly getting pushed out . I think he's a great DJ .

I'll really miss Monday morning 80s . ( my listen back on dreary Mon mornings )

ford fiesta

I would say Phil's new Friday night show 'Anthems' will be voicetracked.

probably they were testing this over the past few weeks with Friday night 80's, as I don't think Phil has voicetracked a regular show on Today FM before.

tippspur

Are they all gone mad over in Today FM or what,Friday night 80s gone Saturday night 90s gone and worse of all Jim O Neil's Sunday night show gone,Jim's show is the best music show on the radio imo,it's all the kind of music I like,feck that I think I'll be tuning out of Today FM in future.

Padster90s

tippspur wrote: »

Are they all gone mad over in Today FM or what,Friday night 80s gone Saturday night 90s gone and worse of all Jim O Neil's Sunday night show gone,Jim's show is the best music show on the radio imo,it's all the kind of music I like,feck that I think I'll be tuning out of Today FM in future.

I don't get it either but I'm really glad the Beat Goes On is staying The weekend evening presenters on Today FM were genuine and interesting people, not forcing celebrity "news" at us or basing the entire show around what's trending on twitter. I don't get why stations put very little focus on weekends, its a time when they're likely to have a bigger audience actually listening and not just having the radio on for background noise at work.

sonic85

Padster90s wrote: »

Friday Night 90s is finishing July 1st.

Ah for f**k sake. The only show from Today Fm I download and listen to. What a load of crap

tickingclock

I really like Today Fm or I should say I used to really like Today FM. Phil Cawley is by far one of the better presenters. He was always very good if he was standing in for another DJ. Friday night 80's was his best show. The music was excellent. It's a shame it's not continuing.

wnolan1992

jimmyw wrote: »

This is what happens when Ray left, it went to pot..........:P

Which Ray though? :pac:


It's been weird to see Today FM struggle so much in the past few years.

For me, the station was at its best about a year before Ray Foley left.

You had Ian in the morning, a still pretty listenable Ray D'Arcy, followed by Foley, Fenton, the Last Word, KC and Paul McLoone.

Seriously, for me, that's a cracking line-up.

Then Foley left, KC took over and then left unexpectedly, Louise took over and was replaced by D&D, Tony got ill, Ray D'Arcy left - it just seems to me like they've been flailing a bit trying to find something, anything that works.

Don't get me wrong, I like Anton, D&D and Louise myself, but their shows just don't seem to be attracting the listeners. Maybe this weekend schedule change is a sign of bigger changes to come?

Two Tone

Ah no, I love Jim O'Neill.

Wonderful voice.

I love Kelly Anne's show and Nadine O'Regan is great, so at least that's something. But ah feck it I'll miss Jim.

Broadcastonfm

juat a few thoughts

- if you want to be in radio , go do something else - anything else, that's where most of our stations are heading now for talent

- just because some jocks are getting older doesn't mean they all have to go . Even in Ireland audiences are getting older and they don't always give a crap about the latest Z list celebrity crap you've read from your phone

- today fm are going to sound like 2 fm - so much for variety

- when redrawing schedule , what are today fm doing but copying the 2 fm revamp of celebs and Hector . How's that little experiment going in Montrose 🀔

denishurley

wnolan1992 wrote: »

For me, the station was at its best about a year before Ray Foley left.

You had Ian in the morning, a still pretty listenable Ray D'Arcy, followed by Foley, Fenton, the Last Word, KC and Paul McLoone.

Seriously, for me, that's a cracking line-up.

I'd go back slightly further to around 2007, when Tom Dunne was still in the 7pm slot. I know Tim Kelly wasn't great doing The Blast but Dunne was excellent where he was

ford fiesta

denishurley wrote: »

I'd go back slightly further to around 2007, when Tom Dunne was still in the 7pm slot. I know Tim Kelly wasn't great doing The Blast but Dunne was excellent where he was

Pet Sounds was a good show. When this was axed, although he was moving to Newstalk, the Indie music scene at the time was dying and was less vibrant in producing popular acts and hits. Tom may have lost interest in championing new music and his audience (many would have known him from Something Happens) probably matured and switched to John Creedon on Radio 1 or in Dublin, Phantom FM for their Indie fix. Also Tom had filled in for Ray D'arcy on many occasions, which would have helped him get the morning slot on Newstalk.

On the other hand, Dave Fannings 2FM show, from 7pm to 9 or 10pm when he returned after a spell at Radio 1, in it's final years was voicetracked and although 2FM were trying to reach a younger audience, it said a lot about the Indie music scene at the time. Incidentally, 2FM was voicetracked from 7pm nightly during the week in around 2011/2012.

unichick

Loved Jim O'Neill. I'll be tuning in Sunday. The music was the best & the man always spoke sense (unlike others) & very easy to listen to.

Hope he gets a gig elsewhere.