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RTÉ News
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
Ray D'Arcy on raising teenagers in a "calm" household
Broadcaster and Leaving Cert dad, Ray D'Arcy, is looking forward to his annual 'Run with Ray' events around the country this month. He talks to Claire O'Mahony about the joy of radio, his children becoming teenagers and running au naturel! Running is where Ray D'Arcy finds his happy place. No surprise then that he is the driving force behind the 'Run with Ray' events taking place across the country this month. He is a relative latecomer to running, however, even though he played every other sport as a child in Kildare. His decision to do a triathlon before his 40th birthday, 20 years ago, necessitated learning how to swim, but it was the running part of the triathlon that hooked him. He hasn't looked back since, and he now runs daily, but without the accessory of music or podcasts. His wife, Jenny Kelly, introduced him to the concept of 'raw dogging', which sounds dodgy, but in this case, just means doing an activity like running without any added entertainment. "It's this thing that the younger generation are talking about now. I don't listen to anything. I run in the morning, and it's a good opportunity just to get your day in order in your head," Ray explains. "If I have a big interview on, I'll go over that, and sometimes you come up with the best stuff, just thinking it through." The broadcaster is in great form when we speak, full of book recommendations – he is clearly a prodigious reader – and bonhomie. The Kildare native has been a mainstay in media for three decades, and many of us have grown up with him, from his early days presenting the kids' TV show, The Den, and his Today FM years, through to his stint as a Rose of Tralee host and now with The Ray D'Arcy Show, which debuted on RTÉ Radio One in 2015. "I'm very lucky. I love what I do," he observes. He is equally content with life beyond the radio studio. He and Jenny were married in 2013. They have two children, Kate (18) and Tom, who turns 13 next month. What is life like in the D'Arcy household? "It's very calm," he says. "I'd say a huge part of that is because neither Jenny nor I drink. Not that we were big drinkers, but it has brought a calm into our life that you can only experience when you do it. Drink for a lot of reasons, even if you don't drink that much, just brings spikes in moods." Their daughter Kate is doing her Leaving Cert this month and the family is rowing in to support her. "I was talking to a guy recently and he described having somebody in Leaving Cert as playing that winter Olympic sport, where you push the thing down and then everybody paves the way in front of it [curling]. It's like that and we're happy to do that. We're there for whatever she wants. I still have nightmares about my Leaving Cert, all these years later. Now, I don't share that with Kate…" He continues: "Jenny and I are best friends and companions and husband and wife, and we've two healthy children and they're lovely. We're very lucky and we appreciate that." He acknowledges that his children's lives and his experience of growing up are different for a lot of reasons. "One of them is that I came from a family of nine, and now we have two children. We lived in a council house, a very small house, so it was completely different. As a father, you want to give your kids everything, yet you want to pass on some of your own values, which is probably an impossible task, but you do try." Is he a strict dad? "No, but you'd have to ask my children. They'd say that we are stricter than their friends' parents. Now look, we're not. We've encountered strictness. We're not strict. We're very relaxed, and we're here for them. Obviously, there are rules, and all households have them. But we've often said, we're not laissez-faire and we're not dictatorial. We're somewhere in the middle." As a family, they are keen on outdoor pursuits – sea swimming is a favourite, and Kate plays GAA and hockey, while Tom plays basketball and hockey. "Everyone has their own interests and they can exist independently of each other, which is a healthy thing," he says. Naturally, as his children get older, there has been a divergence of paths. "Kate's been a teenager for five years, so she went off and did her own thing. And we're going to lose Tom soon now because he's hitting 13 next month. You can just see it – I asked him for a hug the other day on the couch, and he wasn't up for it. The same evening, his mother asked for a hug, but she got one." Although he has presented a daily radio show for 25 years, he admits that he still gets nervous on occasion. "The ones that I get most nervous about are the ones that you feel you owe the people involved, that you feel you have to do a good job for them," he says. "They're mostly not well-known people who have decided, for whatever reason, to tell you their story. Oftentimes, it's a heart-breaking story, and you feel then under pressure not to mess it up." The pressure, one can imagine, is to make a show that navigates the line between being informative and entertaining, and on a daily basis. "I suppose most programmes eventually, unless they're current affairs or news programmes, they evolve around the person who's presenting them, their strengths and weaknesses and their interests. If not, it doesn't work because the person who's presenting it needs to feel strongly about things and be interested in things, or else it'll show," he says. "In the early days, it was very much about finding my feet. I'd come from children's television. I was an adult, but probably hadn't really given a lot of thought to a lot of the stuff I should have because I didn't have to. Then radio allowed me to, because I had to form my own opinions about things rather than borrow somebody else's. It happened organically, and the format of the programme wasn't prescriptive when we started; it allowed us to do everything. We found that people were sharing their lives with us, and they trusted us. Now, we don't do as much as I'd like to for various reasons. But that was very encouraging." A key moment came in 2008, when the then Minister for Health, Mary Harney, said that the government wouldn't fund the HPV vaccine programme for 12-year-old girls, which would help prevent cervical cancer, because of the state of the national finances. "We got an email from a guy who had lost his wife to cervical cancer, and now his daughter was coming of age to get the HPV vaccine, and he couldn't afford it. Then it became something, and we encouraged it, which we probably shouldn't have done, but we encouraged people to send emails to the Department of Health. At the time, the technology wasn't great, so we completely closed down their system. But this came from seeing an injustice, and then somebody putting a human face to that injustice. Then, when the listeners heard that, they went with it." The role of a broadcaster is inherently performative, and no matter what's going on behind the scenes, there's a responsibility to the audience. "One day, I was having a bad day, and I got on and I said it. Then a radio reviewer took me up on it at the end of the week. I'd say anybody who knows me half well would know if I'm not having a good day. But you have to do what you do. You have to be professional. "I remember the late Larry Gogan told me in his latter years that they put one of those heart monitors on him for 24 hours. When he went back in for the results, the doctor said, 'This is when you seem to be most relaxed. What are you doing in those hours?' It was when he was on air when his heart rate was lowest. In a way, there's a bit of an escape in that you have to concentrate on what you are doing when you are on air. You can't be thinking about things that might be going on in your life." Of course, one part of life that Ray welcomes is running, and his enthusiasm for this year's 'Run with Ray' is clear. The campaign to get both runners and non-runners to do a 5km distance kicks off on June 16, with events in Cork, Waterford, Kilkenny, Drogheda and Dublin. It's been going on and off for 14 years, initially with Today FM, before coming with Ray to RTÉ, with Covid putting a temporary halt to everyone's canter. When 'Run with Ray' started, there were few opportunities for people to do 5 Ks. "At the time," he recalls, "I loved running and I was talking about it, boring myself talking about it on air. I thought, how could you encourage people? And I thought, well, maybe 10K is a bit too much for people. The other thing was to bring the run to them. That was the idea that we would go into your town and we would set up a 5K, so you'd have no excuses." Times have changed, with more people getting the benefits of running, with Ireland one of the leading lights in the global parkrun phenomenon. "Now it's more of a social event," he says. "It's a chance for us to meet some of our listeners. It's a chance for us to get out to the regions in the Roadcaster, which is always good fun. It's an adventure and there's good energy about it."
Irish Examiner
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Culture That Made Me: Paula MacSweeney of Today FM picks her touchstones
Born in 1985, Paula MacSweeney grew up in Piltown, Co Kilkenny. In 2012, she started on air with Today FM, initially doing daily showbiz reports on the Ian Dempsey Breakfast Show and later presenting her own programmes, including the early breakfast show. In 2022, she began hosting the radio station's evening show, 7pm-10pm, Monday to Thursday. She also presents a Sunday night rock music show on Today FM. See: A Woman's Heart I remember my mam bought A Woman's Heart. Every household had a copy of it in 1992. As a family, we used to hop in the car – eight of us going on holiday with my granddad, so nine of us in a car; you wouldn't be allowed to do it now – and we used to drive to France, children literally hanging out the windows. We had that album on tape. I remember listening to it constantly. I knew every word from those holidays. Even though it wasn't meant for a six-year-old girl, it had a real impact on me. I loved it. I rediscovered it on Spotify a couple of years ago, and it's just beautiful. Take That I was a huge Take That fan. My first ever album was Take That & Party. Santy brought it for me – that's how young I was. I was about seven. I absolutely loved it, and I loved Take That throughout the Nineties. There was a Take That vs. Boyzone rivalry; I was always Take That. I loved the five-piece. Now that Robbie has left, and I think they're down to about three, I've kinda lost interest a little bit! Ricky Gervais Ricky Gervais. I'm a huge Ricky Gervais fan. I know he's not for everyone. Some people find him too much. People love to give out about him online. With his observations, sometimes I even find myself going, 'He's gone too far, he's gone too far,' but I still love it because dark humour is something I find very funny. Comedy's gone a bit dull, so I love when Ricky Gervais goes for it. I love the way he uses satire to critique societal norms, politics, celebrity culture. Nobody is safe. He's witty. He's clever. I love him. Britney Spears As I grew a bit older, into my teenage years, I loved Britney Spears. She came out when I was about 13 so throughout my whole teenage years – like a lot of girls who were into pop at that age – I was obsessed with Britney. Because we didn't have social media at the time – and she was being absolutely harassed by paparazzi – I was one of those buying the magazines to see what she was up to. I owned every album. I knew every word. I love her. Lily Allen I'm an enormous Lily Allen fan. I've loved her since 2004-2005 – when she was young and very new. She hasn't released music since 2018. It's been quite a while, and she only has four albums. I went to see her when she was on at Electric Picnic in 2014. I'll never forget it. She was on early in the day. It was Sunday, maybe about 6pm, so it was bright. I was waiting for her set all year. I was so excited to go and see her. She was promoting her album, Sheezus, which probably is her worst album. I'll never forget standing there with a cup of warm beer, in a field, it had been raining, and I felt the happiest I'd ever been. I'd finally got to see her live on stage, and it was magnificent. Gavin & Stacey Gavin & Stacey. I'm very passionate about Gavin & Stacey. The word play in it is clever. James Corden and Ruth Jones are phenomenal writers. The characters are so clever, so well-developed. I love the character arc as well from when they started 20 years ago to that amazing Christmas special finish. Their finale made my Christmas. Every line was perfect. It's like a warm hug on the TV. It's my go-to whenever I need a little pick-me-up. It's gorgeous TV. The Sopranos My favourite TV box set of all time is The Sopranos. It's perfect – the characters, the storylines are amazing. There are unexpected twists. Nobody was safe in that show. It explores the American dream, and what it takes to obtain that. There's nuanced exploration of stuff like identity, loyalty, the human condition. Tony Soprano is so multidimensional. He's flawed. He's brilliant. He's funny. I've probably watched it from start to finish at least 10 times in my life. Every time I watch it, I find something new that I hadn't seen or heard before. It's so entertaining. The Pillars of the Earth The best book I've read is Ken Follett's The Pillars of the Earth. He's an extraordinary writer. It's set in the twelfth century, in England during a time of political turmoil, religious strife, and the construction of a magnificent cathedral. He travelled around Europe years before writing his book to understand architecture and how these cathedrals were built. That side of the book is very detailed. Even though I didn't find that bit particularly interesting, it's so powerful. The drama is gripping. It has complex characters. It's a rich tapestry of human experience, with insight into human ambition, and the power of the church. It's brilliant historical fiction. The book had a profound effect on me. I remember finishing it thinking I want to restart it. Ian Dempsey Ian Dempsey. I loved Ian Dempsey on RTÉ 2fm. I remember, in my teens, the moment when Today FM announced, 'Look who we've poached for breakfast' and he moved to Today FM. It was such a big deal. It was huge news. Everybody was talking about it. I was a huge fan. All I ever wanted to do was work with Ian Dempsey. It was a life goal. It's funny because we've worked together now for, like, 13-14 years. He's the greatest of the greatest, and he's only getting better. There's no slowing down. Then She Was Gone I read seven Lisa Jewell books in a month about six months ago because of this book of hers, Then She Was Gone. Some of her books are better than others. Then She Was Gone is full of suspense and mystery. I couldn't put it down. It is sad, I have to say. It's a hard read at some points – because some of the best things are – but it's brilliant. The book has it all. It has amazing twists, a real page turner. The Baby Tribe I have three children aged six, four, and two. I've come out of my era of listening constantly to parenting podcasts, but The Baby Tribe is a podcast I listened to religiously for about two years. It's hosted by Professor Afif El-Khuffash, a neonatologist in the Rotunda Hospital in Dublin, and his wife, Dr Anne Doherty, who is an anaesthesiologist. It's evidence-based fun, and ways to learn about stuff. There's no opinion. It's all 'according to research', which is so reassuring. They have some good guests on it as well. It's very good.
Metro
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
Pierce Brosnan addresses criticism of his 'offensive' accent in new TV series
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Pierce Brosnan has spoken out over the criticism he received of his Irish accent in gritty drama MobLand, sharing that he just went 'full tilt' with it. The James Bond icon returned to our screens as mobster Conrad Harrigan in Guy Ritchie's new Paramount+ drama, also starring Tom Hardy, Dame Helen Mirren and Joanne Froggatt. The 72-year-old, who was born in Ireland, is clearly having the time of his life as head of the Harrigan crime family, with the acclaimed show focusing their feud with the Stevenson crew based in London. However, many were left baffled over his choices for the Irish kingpin's accent when the first episodes dropped earlier, and branded his efforts 'offensive' on social media. Having his say on the comments in a new interview, the Drogheda-native told Radio Times: 'My own accent is very soft, Conrad's accent is a million miles away from me.' Shedding light on his inspiration for the accent, Pierce explained that it was taken from someone suggested by his dialect coach. 'I told him that I needed a Kerry accent, so he gave me the name of a man and I googled the guy and that was it,' he added. 'It was a Kerry accent and so, I just gave it full tilt.' Pierce was born in Drogheda, County Louth, before making the move to Navan in County Meath – where he lived for over a decade. He then swapped Navan for Scotland with his mother and stepfather, until they eventually settled in London. Appearing on Today FM, the star – who also appeared in Mrs Doubtfire and the hit Mamma Mia films – shared that he had been nervous about his use of an accent, as his own as 'dissipated' over the years. In fact, he voiced his concerns to director Guy, after reading some of the initial scripts, but the filmmaker told him 'not to worry' about it. 'Last summer I spoke to Guy for the first time about it and having read the five episodes he said not to worry about it,' he revealed. '[He said] 'We'll just do it 15 minutes on the day, clear your mind, we'll sort it out, don't worry about it'. 'Of course, I put the phone down and did worry about it! Five weeks later I was on the set with Tom Hardy and Guy, first day, important dialogue, important information and he just said, 'more Irish, more Irish'. 'My Irish accent has dissipated into the midst of time. It's somewhat Californian and everything. So, I asked myself, 'What kind of accent would he have?' It was Kerry.' Unfortunately, Pierce's accent hasn't translated well for those watching from home, as viewers flocked to social media to rave about the show – but call out Conrad's voice. Twitter user Mike slammed: 'Pierce Brosnan accent in #Mobland is utterly ridiculous. #Paramount.' '#Mobland is excellent…….if you have not watched it get on it now…,' Colm said. 'OK yes Pierce's fake Irish accent is silly but it's grand.' More Trending Paddy agreed: 'MobLand is a great show but Pierce Brosnans accent is possibly the worst accent since tv started,,,, 'It's like nettles in my ears every time he speaks #mobland [sic].' As Angela added: 'Pierce Brosnan's accent is the only let down #MobLand.' View More » MobLand is available to stream on Paramount+ now. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you.
The Irish Sun
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
‘We're making it work' – Virgin Media star opens up on challenges of long distance marriage to Limerick hurler
VIRGIN Media star Louise Cantillon has opened up on the "challenges" of having a long distance marriage. The popular presenter is a frequent host on both Ireland AM and The Six O'Clock Show. 2 Louise Cantillon has opened up about her relationship to her husband Credit: Instagram 2 Louise is married to Declan Hannon, who is a Limerick hurler Credit: Instagram Outside of her on-screen duties, Louise also hosts a hugely popular podcast called How to Gael and has her own show on Today FM. Outside of her life in the public eye, Louise is married to Limerick hurler Declan Hannon. Due to their wavering work commitments, the pair have a long distance marriage during the week. Both of them come from Limerick, where Declan lives full time and where Louise goes on the weekend - she lives in Dublin on weekdays. Read more on Today FM Louise and Declan have , having initially met at a local teenage disco when they were 15 and 16. They got engaged in 2020 in the picturesque setting of Slea Head beach in Dingle. The happy couple Since Louise took up her job in Today FM 18 months ago she admitted there have been "more struggles" in their relationship. MOST READ ON THE IRISH SUN Speaking to RSVP she said: "It's definitely not conventional, but we've found our rhythm. We're very motivated people and we're still really young. Ireland AM star left unimpressed after Alan Hughes makes blunder on air "We've been together since we were 18 and we've lived so much of our lives together, but now at ages 31 and 32 it feels like we're back in college again and meeting up on the weekends. "There were more struggles last year, but we don't have kids and we don't own a house just yet. "We're making it work and Declan is so supportive." Louise also admitted that when the call came from Today FM it seemed like a no brainer decision. She explained: "I wish I could say more thought went into it, I jumped at the opportunity. There's a great phrase as Gaeilge, 'Tapaigh an deis', which means jump on the opportunity, and I'm a big believer in that. HAPPY COUPLE "When a chance presents itself to take a job that so many people want to be in, you have to take it. I didn't think twice." Recently, one of Louise's Virgin Media co stars Ireland AM's Muireann O'Connell finally got the keys to her own house after a four year search. The Limerick beauty took to Instagram earlier this month to share the happy news with her fans. Muireann posed for a quick snap at the window in her stunning sitting room with the view of palm trees and other homes in the estate behind her.
Sunday World
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Sunday World
Ireland's rising country star aiming high after becoming radio hit
Singer and Today FM country music presenter Clodagh Lawlor says she's ready for anything and now has her sights set on a television music show. Rising star Clodagh Lawlor reveals how landing her own country music show on Today FM has given her career a massive boost — and introduced her to one of her idols. Singer and now radio presenter Clodagh, who is a native of Newmarket-on-Fergus, Co Clare, first shot to fame when she won The Late Late Show search for a country star in 2019 and landed the opportunity to tour with Nathan Carter. But she tells Magazine+ that her new Wednesday night country music show on Today FM has taken her to another level. Clodagh says: 'I just love that people know my name now and tell me 'oh, we listen to you on the radio.' 'I'm manifesting that I'll have a music show on RTE television next. That's what I'd love, something like The Kelly Clarkson Show… The Clodagh Lawlor Show. 'I have my boots on now and I said it at the start of the year that this year is going to be my year. When I was in Nashville with my mother we met a guy who was working in the Boot Barn store… we were chatting away and he said he was also a songwriter, adding: 'I just wrote a song for Tim McGraw and he's going to hopefully cut [record] it.' He said to my mam, 'When preparation meets opportunity nothing can stop ya.' Clodagh with Lainey Wilson 'You are prepared so much in your lifetime for these things to happen. Now I'm like, throw anything at me and I'll be ready because I'm finally comfortable in my own skin.' A fan of America's contemporary country music stars, Clodagh is now getting the opportunity to meet and interview them thanks to her Today FM show. 'I'm now getting to meet my idols on a huge scale,' she tells me. 'I was so excited meeting Lainey Wilson when she headlined the C2C festival in Belfast recently. They always say never meet your idols, but she was so incredible. Clodagh takes the mic at Today FM on Wednesday nights News in 90 Seconds - May 17th 'She was also so encouraging to me. Lainey herself didn't have overnight success and that's what I love as well. She said, 'Girl, I should have given up a hell of a long time ago. I'm 15 years in Nashville and I should have left after year two and I didn't.' She just kept the head down. 'She was asking me how long I was doing the radio job and I told her 'two months!' She said, 'You're a natural.' 'I was 30 at the weekend and she said, 'when I was 30 things just started to happen. I was doing a lot before that but nobody really saw me.' 'In the Irish country music scene I was trying to figure out what I really want to look like and sound like and what kind of artist I want to be. 'But I'm getting the idea of who I want to be now and that's exciting for me, that I finally know what I want to do and I know I can do it and I can sit there with the likes of Lainey Wilson and not be so starstruck that it's written all over my face. Put me in any situation now and I can do it. Country singer and Today FM country music presenter Clodagh Lawlor 'I absolutely love the radio, it's such a different side of things. I always said when I was growing up that I want to be in the entertainment business, regardless of what I do. Once it revolves around country music that's what I'd be happy with. I live, breathe and eat it. I just love it so much. 'Country music is getting so big as you know. Now nightclubs are tapping into it and playing country nights. It's so commercial nowadays that all kinds of people are now embracing it. 'I recently got my first DJ job where I'm playing country music for four hours in a nightclub. Never in my life did I think I was going to be behind the decks. I have a month to get my DJ skills in order before I do it. It's the radio that opened that door for me as well.' Despite being in a good place career-wise, Clodagh admits that she still panics about the future. 'I'm an awful panicker,' she admits. 'When I turned 30 at the weekend I was crying the whole time because it just hit me with emotion that life has to begin now. I feel so bad about it because at the same time I feel that there's nothing that can stop me really.' Clodagh has weathered many storms in her career. Her star was shining in 2019 after winning the Late Late Show search for a new country star, but then Covid shut down the live entertainment business. 'That was a shock because I was worried about people forgetting me,' she admits. 'I was only getting started, introducing myself to people and getting my name established and I was afraid that people wouldn't remember who I was when the pandemic was over. I'd only had my 15 minutes of fame on the Late Late Show the previous year. 'But, looking back today, I'm thankful that Covid actually gave me the chance to figure out the type of artist I wanted to be. I wouldn't be the type of performer I am today doing concerts and shows if it wasn't for that time. 'I found what I want to do looking back on the records Mum and Dad had at home and reliving the '90s country music with women like [American stars] Martina McBride, Faith Hill and Trisha Yearwood… and that helped me to figure out where I was going with my music.' Clodagh, who once worked as ground staff with Aer Lingus in Shannon Airport — 'I remember people like Jamie Dornan, Tommy Tiernan and Shaggy checking in' — adds that whatever happens in her career, Ireland will always be her home. 'Ireland is a beautiful country and I am so fortunate that there is a great country music scene here,' she says. Tune in to Country Hits with Clodagh Lawlor on Today FM every Wednesday from 10pm to 12am.
