Raymond Foley (born 21 September 1980) is an Irish television host and radio presenter. Having worked at

Dublin's 98FM 98FM is a local radio station in Dublin, Ireland, operated by Bauer Media Audio Ireland, under a sound broadcasting contract from the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland. The station broadcasts on the 98.1 MHz FM frequency. 98FM's broadca ...

and SPIN 1038 early in his career, Foley moved to Today FM in 2004. In 2006, he moved to midday and presented ''The Ray Foley Show'', with sidekick JP Gilbourne and Adelle McDonnell. He hosted the breakfast slot on 98FM from October 2012 until December 2015. He also hosts TV dating show '' Take Me Out'' on TV3. On Friday 12 October 2012, Foley and JP announced on the show that both of them would be transferring to Today FM's sister station 98FM to present the breakfast show. They both have expressed how difficult the decision was for them, due to their fondness of their workmates and friends in Today FM.

Early career

Following an entry in the ''DJ For a Day'' competition on 2FM (on Tony Fenton's ''Hotline'' show) in 1997, Foley got a taste for broadcasting. This led to him beginning his studies as a journalist in

Dublin Institute of Technology Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT, ga, Institiúid Teicneolaíochta Bhaile Átha Cliath) was a major third-level institution in Dublin, Ireland. On 1 January 2019 DIT was dissolved and its functions were transferred to the Technological Un ...

, from which he graduated in October 2004 While there he started working at

East Coast FM East Coast FM (formerly known as BLB, Horizon FM, then East Coast Radio) is an Irish local radio station broadcasting from Bray, County Wicklow under a sound broadcasting contract from the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland The station operate ...

, and thence moved to 98FM and as a newsreader on Lite FM, before moving to SPIN 1038, "to get re-acquainted with presenting again". While there, he presented ''The Zoo Crew'' with Clionadh O'Leary on week nights.

Today FM career

In 2004, at the age of 23, Foley moved to Today FM and began presenting late night show, ''The Blast'', from 22:00 to 00:00, Monday to Thursday, with his college friend, JP Gilbourne, from

Dundalk Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is h ...

. Foley and JP regularly filled-in for Ray D'Arcy, Tony Fenton and

Tom Dunne Thomas Dunne is an Irish radio broadcaster with Newstalk, and a singer/songwriter with the band Something Happens. Prior to joining Newstalk, Dunne worked on Today FM, presenting his very successful and hugely popular radio program, "Pet Soun ...

during this time. When the radio schedule was changed in 2006, Foley moved to a midday slot, which was vacated by Tony Fenton. Foley was disciplined by Irish authorities when he broadcast the

Lily Allen Lily Rose Beatrice Allen (born 2 May 1985) is an English singer-songwriter and actress. She is the daughter of actor Keith Allen and film producer Alison Owen. Her music career began in 2005 when she made some of her vocal recordings publi ...

song "Fuck You Very Much" on lunchtime radio in 2008.

Today FM afternoon show (2006–2012)

For 6 years Foley broadcast during the 12:00 to 14:30 time slot on Today FM, directly after ''

The Ray D'Arcy Show ''The Ray D'Arcy Show'' is the title given to two differing versions of a radio programme hosted by Ray D'Arcy, originally broadcast on Irish commercial radio station Today FM from the late 1990s until 2014 before transferring in February 2015 t ...

''. The

tagline In entertainment, a tagline (alternatively spelled tag line) is a short text which serves to clarify a thought for, or is designed with a form of, dramatic effect. Many tagline slogans are reiterated phrases associated with an individual, so ...

for the show was "Just a bit of fun for your lunchtime, nothing too serious". The show consisted of taking calls from listeners on random topics, chart music and some regular spots, along with the National Lunchtime News from 12:45 to 13:00. Sometimes contributors included

Ann Gleeson Ann Gleeson is an Irish radio personality who has presented, produced and featured on numerous Today FM shows. She is from Nenagh. Early life Gleeson is the youngest of nine children, she has seven brothers and one sister. She was born and rais ...

, Alan Metcalfe (''Funky Phone Boy Al'') and reviewer Eoghan Doherty (''Nordy Eoghan'').

Essential Rock Anthems

In 2009, Foley and JP presented ''The Essential Rock Anthems'' in "The Essential..." slot on Sunday Nights 19:00 – 20:00. This was so popular, that they presented two further shows, which then became a regular almost monthly feature of the slot. In November 2009, ''Ray Foley and JP's Essential Rock Anthems'' CD was launched, a two-CD collection, including tracks from artists such as

Meat Loaf Michael Lee Aday (born Marvin Lee Aday; September 27, 1947 – January 20, 2022), known professionally as Meat Loaf, was an American rock singer and actor. He was noted for his powerful, wide-ranging voice and theatrical live shows. He is on t ...

Therapy? Therapy? are a Northern Irish rock band from Larne, formed in 1989 by guitarist-vocalist Andy Cairns and drummer-vocalist Fyfe Ewing. Therapy? recorded their first demo with Cairns filling in on bass guitar. To complete the lineup, the band r ...

Pixies A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas aro ...

Thin Lizzy Thin Lizzy are an Irish hard rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. Their music reflects a wide range of influences, including blues, soul music, psychedelic rock and traditional Irish folk music, but is generally classified as hard rock or some ...

Whitesnake Whitesnake are an English hard rock band formed in London in 1978. The group was originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their own entit ...

Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock band formed in London in 1975 by Lemmy (lead vocals, bass), Larry Wallis (guitar) and Lucas Fox (drums). Lemmy was also the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band are often considered a precu ...

Placebo A placebo ( ) is a substance or treatment which is designed to have no therapeutic value. Common placebos include inert tablets (like sugar pills), inert injections (like Saline (medicine), saline), sham surgery, and other procedures. In general ...

, Blondie,

Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...

The Knack The Knack was an American rock band based in Los Angeles that rose to fame with its first single, "My Sharona", an international number-one hit in 1979. History Founding (1977–1978) Singer Doug Fieger was a native of Oak Park, Michigan, a no ...

Status Quo is a Latin phrase meaning the existing state of affairs, particularly with regard to social, political, religious or military issues. In the sociological sense, the ''status quo'' refers to the current state of social structure and/or values. W ...

The Jam The Jam were an English mod revival/ punk rock band formed in 1972 at Sheerwater Secondary School in Woking, Surrey. They released 18 consecutive Top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in December 198 ...

and

Journey Journey or journeying may refer to: * Travel, the movement of people between distant geographical locations ** Day's journey, a measurement of distance ** Road trip, a long-distance journey on the road Animals * Journey (horse), a thoroughbred ra ...

98FM (2012–2015)

On 12 October 2012, it was announced that Ray and JP were leaving

Today FM Today FM is an Irish national commercial FM radio station, owned and operated by Bauer Audio Ireland Limited. Broadcasting since 17 March 1997, it broadcasts mostly music, with a daily news and current affairs programme. Today FM holds a lic ...

to host the breakfast show on 98FM. Following their departure from the station, former evening presenter KC started as their replacement. On 22 December 2015 the ''Irish Independent'' reported that his 98FM show would finish up on 24 December. He has since been replaced by Steven Cooper and Luke O'Faolain.

TV3 career

Foley eventually broke into television. He became the Irish

Paddy McGuinness Patrick Joseph McGuinness (born 14 August 1973) is an English actor, comedian and television presenter. He rose to fame with the help of Peter Kay, who invited him to appear in his programmes ''That Peter Kay Thing'', '' Phoenix Nights'' and ''M ...

by presenting ''Take Me Out''.

Seán Munsanje Seán Munsanje (born 10 July 1981) is an Irish television presenter from Dublin. He has presented shows for several channels in his native country, including Raidió Teilifís Éireann, Channel 6 and, most recently, TV3. On 11 August 2009, he ...

from ''

Xposé ''Xposé'' is an entertainment, fashion and beauty programme that aired on Irish television from 2007 to 2019. It was broadcast every Friday at 18:00 on Virgin Media One. It ran for a 3-day week at 20:00 on Virgin Media Two (previously known ...

'' took him shopping to style him for the job. He was also mentioned in relation to ''

The Apprentice ''The Apprentice'' is a Reality competition, reality talent game show franchise originally aired in 2004 in the United States. Created by U.S.-based British producer Mark Burnett, the show depicts contestants from around the country with variou ...

''.

Awards

Foley won a Meteor Music Award for ''Best National DJ'' in

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

and again in

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

. Foley celebrated winning the 2008 award by singing a version of

's "

Don't Stop Believin' "Don't Stop Believin' is a song by American rock band Journey. It was released in October 1981 as the second single from the group's seventh studio album, ''Escape'' (1981), released through Columbia Records. "Don't Stop Believin'" shares writ ...

", and in 2009 with the theme tune to TV's ''

Home and Away ''Home and Away'' (often abbreviated as ''H&A'') is an Australian television soap opera. It was created by Alan Bateman and commenced broadcast on the Seven Network on 17 January 1988. Bateman came up with the concept of the show during a trip ...

'' as part of his acceptance speech. In 2008 he launched a successful daily campaign to dethrone namesake Ray D'Arcy. Foley achieved the prestigious PPI Radio Awards ''Music Broadcaster of the Year Award'' in 2009 and 2010. Also in 2009 Foley and JP won the award for ''Best Specialist Music Programme'' for their Sunday evening show, ''The Essential Rock Anthems with Ray & JP''. , - ,

, , Ray Foley , , Best Irish DJ at the Meteor Awards , , , - ,

, , Ray Foley , , Best Irish DJ at the Meteor Awards , , , - , 2009 , , Ray Foley , , Music Broadcaster of the Year Award at the PPI Irish Radio Awards , , , - , 2009 , , Ray Foley and JP , , Best Specialist Music Programme at the PPI Irish Radio Awards , , , - ,

, , Ray Foley , , Best Irish DJ at the Meteor Awards , , , - , 2011 , , Ray Foley , , Music Broadcaster of the Year at the PPI Irish Radio Awards , , , - , 2012 , , Ray Foley , , Music Broadcaster of the Year at the PPI Irish Radio Awards , , , - , 2012 , , Ray Foley , , General Music Programme at the PPI Irish Radio Awards , , , - , 2013 , , Ray Foley , , Music Broadcaster of the Year at the PPI Irish Radio Awards , , , -

Personal life

Foley married his girlfriend,

RTÉ 2fm (RTÉ) (; Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the national broadcaster of Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on television, radio and online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, while ...

newsreader, Kate Carolan in 2007. They met while they both worked on SPIN 1038. He proposed to Kate on O'Connell Street in Dublin City Centre and spent their honeymoon attending the Oxegen Music Festival. On Monday 2 April 2012, Ray announced on-air that Kate had given birth to their first child, a boy, Matthew, on 1 April 2012. Ray announced the birth of their second child, Andrew in June 2014.

References

External links

Ray Foley's blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Foley, Ray 1980 births Living people Dublin's 98FM presenters Alumni of Dublin Institute of Technology East Coast FM presenters Irish DJs Irish game show hosts SPIN 1038 presenters Today FM presenters Virgin Media Television (Ireland) presenters People from Ballina, County Mayo Electronic dance music DJs