The Irish TV News Thread

I thought I might as well start up a thread about TV news in Ireland, for the Northern and Southern Stations, so any comments in the threads on the main forum can be brought over here.

To start with, will RTE be revamping their news to coincide with the RTE TWO revamp/rumoured switched to widescreen? If 16:9 will become the standard picture format from Donnybrook, will the news output form part of the switch?

And any word of a new look UTV Live in the near future or will that be on the cards for next year?

And have there been any additions to the UTV Live on-screen reporting team yet?

RTE only revamped the news last year so unlikely to happen again thought the credits are more suited to a business report.

I didn't like the RTE news revamp last year from the few brief clips I'd seen - the set looked too wooden but at least it wasn't a BBC rip-off for a change!

I regularly watch RTE News online, and I think it is ok. Because there are no separate tv regions in Ireland (the republic) most stories are Irish. They don't cover much world news - that's the only thing that lets it down.

I actually quite like the set and presentation. The titles are a bit weird, but the music is nice.

A few queries:

Has Neil Brittain moved to the UTV weather department? I'm sure I remember Frank Mitchell mentioning on UTV Live once that they were training Neil to become a weather presenter after one of his reports... additionally, will this bring about an update to UTV's weather graphics, and is it the tragic end of Frankie's 11 years of legendary weather forecasts? Goodbye to the Weather Watching camera, that's goodbye to the Weather Watching camera...

And has my old classmate Michelle Napier (ex-DTR/Cool FM newsreader) started reporting on UTV Live ? And has she done any PTCs yet?

And not strictly TV, but have there been any new additions to the news presenter line ups on Radio Ulster, Downtown/Cool FM, City Beat or the Q network stations?

So how did BBC NI and UTV cover the build up to the Wales v NI World Cup Qualifier?

Is it safe for me to place my bets that:

BBC NI had a live OB from Millennium Stadium with either Jackie Fullerton or Stephen Watson on Newsline 6.30 , with interviews etc., and perhaps a live or ISDN'd report on the 10.30 bulletin?

UTV sent Graham Little over to do a pre-match report for tonight's UTV Live at 6 and won't despatch another report with highlights etc. until tomorrow's UTV 1250 and 1800 bulletins... I bet Audra will have some kind of highlights at 2250. Of the match that is, not in her hair, assuming she is actually on duty tonight

Please tell...

UTV's Julie O'Connor.

Worst voice on television (even worse than June Sarpong). Every single line that she speaks has precisely the same intonation, finishing on the same annoying drop.

Please, someone have a word with her.

I might have gone to school with Julie O'Connor's younger brother...

Wasn't she and Claire McCollum supposed to heading off for a few months to do some charity hike? They were on UTV Live talking about it around May and said they were in training, yet up until the end of July both hadn't disappeared off-screen for a considerable length of time.

The award for most general general thread goes to...

This thread covers so many areas which probably each deserve their own thread - the reason this new forum exists.

Brekkie Boy:
"The award for most general general thread goes to...

This thread covers so many areas which probably each deserve their own thread - the reason this new forum exists."

Can I accept the award?

I thought it was going OK so far, to be honest, I started it because I might live and work in England now but I still want to know what the news is like back home...

Also, considering the amount of Irish posters on TV Forum, there isn't any point in having new threads for every single thing, as there simply aren't enough posts to fill them up. They would disappear.

A round of applause to both BBC NI and UTV for their coverage of the NI game in Cardiff and of the supporters who spurred the team on, against all the odds (and the mad Italian referee).

I was there and the both stations did just about as much justice as you could to a great trip.

I'm sure the fact that Stephen Watson and the loveable Logie clearly enjoyed themselves had absolutely nothing to do with the positive coverage.

Polls apart from the doom and gloom of BBC Wales and HTV, sorry, ITV1 Wales. Cheer-up, folks, you got a draw against us!