Today FM is an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

national

commercial Commercial may refer to: * a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television) ** Radio advertisement ** Television advertisement * (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...

, 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 licence from the

Broadcasting Authority of Ireland The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) ( ga, Údarás Craolacháin na hÉireann) was established on 1 October 2009 effectively replacing the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) ( ga, Coimisiún Craolacháin na hÉireann). The BAI is ...

as far as the year 2027. The station recorded pretax profits of €7.4 million on a turnover of €19.4 million in early 2009, more than twice what it was two years previously. Today FM broadcasts from studios in Marconi House, Digges Lane,

Dublin 2 Dublin 2, also rendered as D2 and D02, is a historic List of Dublin postal districts, postal district on the Southside, Dublin, southside of Dublin, Ireland. In the 1960s, this central district became a focus for office development. More recently ...

. On 1 June 2021 Bauer Media Audio announced the completion of its acquisition of Communicorp Group in Ireland, including Today FM.

History

The first independent national radio franchise holder in the

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

was 100-102

Century Radio Century Radio, also known as ''Century 100'' and later ''Century FM'', was a short-lived national commercial radio station in the Republic of Ireland, broadcasting from 4 September 1989 to 19 November 1991. History Launch Launched at 8am on ...

, which launched in 1989 and closed down abruptly in November 1991 amid heavy financial losses. The

Independent Radio and Television Commission The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) ( ga, Údarás Craolacháin na hÉireann) was established on 1 October 2009 effectively replacing the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) ( ga, Coimisiún Craolacháin na hÉireann). The BAI is ...

did not re-advertise the contract until 1996. Radio Ireland Limited, originally owned by John McColgan and

Moya Doherty Moya Doherty (born 1957, in Pettigo, County Donegal, Ireland) is a Dublin-raised Irish entrepreneur and the producer and co-founder of ''Riverdance''. Early life Doherty was born in Pettigo, County Donegal, and raised in Dublin. She attended M ...

(and because of their involvement, dubbed "Radio

Riverdance ''Riverdance'' is a theatrical show that consists mainly of traditional Irish music and dance. With a score composed by Bill Whelan, it originated as an interval act during the Eurovision Song Contest 1994, featuring Irish dancing champions Jean ...

"), won the contract when it was advertised. In 2002,

Scottish Radio Holdings Scottish Radio Holdings (SRH) was a Scottish media company which owned 22 radio stations, and around 30 local newspapers in the United Kingdom and Ireland. History SRH had its origins in the 1970s when Glasgow was awarded the third licence for ...

plc acquired Radio Ireland Limited from its shareholders. In June 2005, an agreed takeover offer for that company was made by

Emap Ascential plc, formerly EMAP, is a British business-to-business media business specialising in exhibitions & festivals and information services. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. History Ric ...

Denis O'Brien Denis O'Brien (born 19 April 1958) is an Irish billionaire businessman, and the founder and owner of Digicel. He was listed among the World's Top 200 Billionaires in 2015 and was Ireland's richest native-born citizen for a period of several ye ...

Communicorp Bauer Media Audio Ireland (formerly Communicorp Group) is a media holding company based in Ireland, owned by Bauer Media Group. History Communicorp Group Ltd was formed by Denis O'Brien in 1989. It launched its radio operations in Ireland that ...

was the highest bidder for Emap's Irish operations when that company decided to sell its radio stations, buying

FM104 FM104 is an independent local radio station broadcast across Dublin, Ireland, on the frequency 104.4 MHz. It is operated by Capital Radio Productions Limited (unconnected with, and not to be confused with, Capital Radio plc), and is a sub ...

, Highland Radio and Today FM on 14 July 2007. In October 2007, the

Broadcasting Commission of Ireland The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) ( ga, Údarás Craolacháin na hÉireann) was established on 1 October 2009 effectively replacing the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) ( ga, Coimisiún Craolacháin na hÉireann). The BAI is ...

(BCI) approved Communicorp's proposed takeover of Today FM and Highland Radio, but not FM104. The deal was completed by January 2008. Due to a Competition Authority decision, Communicorp was required to sell-on FM104, which it did (to

UTV Media Wireless Group Limited is a radio and digital broadcasting network with headquarters in Belfast, Northern Ireland and with radio operations in the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom. It currently operates five stations in Ireland and ...

) immediately upon its acquisition. The takeover closed in April 2008. In 2008, Today FM moved their studios from their original base at 112 Upper Abbey Street,

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, across the Liffey to Marconi House in Digges Lane,

, where it shares the building with its Communicorp sister station, Newstalk. The building also housed another Communicorp station, Phantom (later TXFM), until it ceased broadcasting in October 2016. In June 2017 it was announced that the group's other Dublin-based stations, 98FM and Spin 1038, would also be moving into the same premises. The experienced broadcaster and radio programmer Tom Hardy served as the station's Director of Programming from 1998 until January 2013, when he was replaced by Martin McGuire. The position was later taken up by the station's former evening presenter Colm O'Sullivan, now of

Cork's Red FM Cork's RedFM is an Irish radio station which broadcasts to Cork and the surrounding area, and is aimed at a youth audience. The station commenced broadcasting on 16 January 2002" and was awarded Ireland's first youth radio licence. Its target ma ...

. Adelle Nolan took over the role in 2016 and it is now held by Phil Manzor, formally of Spin 1038 and Spin South West. On Tuesday 1 June 2021 Bauer Media Audio announced the completion of its acquisition of Communicorp Group in Ireland, including Today FM.

Broadcast history

The station went on air, originally known as Radio Ireland, on St. Patrick's Day, 17 March 1997. At first, the station was a mixed network, airing much talk programming and various types of music. However, following six months of disastrous ratings, and with a listenership of just 1%, the station was revamped, and on 1 January 1998 became 100-102 Today FM. The station axed almost all of its programming and changed its music policy entirely.

Eamon Dunphy Eamon Martin Dunphy (born 3 August 1945) is an Irish media personality, journalist, broadcaster, author, sports pundit and former professional association football, footballer. He grew up playing football for several youth teams including Stella ...

's co-host (Anne-Marie Hourihan) was axed, with him being heavily promoted as a solo act and

Ian Dempsey Ian Dempsey (born 16 January 1961) is an Irish presenter of television and breakfast radio. He is the long-running presenter of the breakfast show on Today FM, self-titled ''The Ian Dempsey Breakfast Show'', which runs from 6-9 am each weekday. ...

and Ray D'Arcy were poached from arch-rivals RTÉ. The IRTC went along with the schedule changes, though in a statement soon after the relaunch said it was not entirely satisfied with the new schedule. However, within three months, the station's listenership had almost doubled. Today FM reshuffled its daytime schedule in 2004, reducing ''The Ian Dempsey Breakfast Show'' to add an extra hour to ''The Ray D'Arcy Show'' so that it could compete directly with rival, ''

The Gerry Ryan Show ''The Gerry Ryan Show'' (often referred to as ''The Ryan Show'', ''The G. Ryan Show'' or ''GRS'') was RTÉ 2fm's mid-morning radio show. Presented by Gerry Ryan until hours before his sudden death, it was launched in March 1988 and ran from n ...

''. Philip Cawley's afternoon show was reduced and Tony Fenton was given a lunchtime show. In April 2006, Ray D'Arcy conducted an interview with comedian

Des Bishop Desmond Bishop (born 12 November 1975) is an American-Irish comedian. He was brought up in New York and moved to Ireland at the age of 14. He primarily resides there. Approach to comedy Bishop's comedy has covered social issues, such as poverty ...

. Bishop joked about being

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

. D'Arcy asked Bishop to provide an "exclusive". Bishop said, "I'm gay... I'm not, but hey!" D'Arcy said, "You're very comfortable with your sexuality?" Bishop said, "Me and

Derek Mooney Derek James Mooney (born 4 March 1967) is an Irish radio and television presenter, as well as a radio producer. Until January 2015 he presented a weekday afternoon programme called '' Mooney'' on RTÉ Radio 1. He is the current executive produce ...

are doing a show". The audience laughed. D'Arcy moved to a commercial break before, he said, Bishop "

outs In baseball, an out occurs when the umpire rules a batter or baserunner out. When a batter or runner is out, they lose their ability to score a run and must return to the dugout until their next turn at bat. When three outs are recorded in a ha ...

anyone else". The incident provoked much commentary in the media, with the '' Sunday Independent'' observing "Instantly, the Irish-American comedian was the villain of the piece and Derek was all over the front page", while Ray D'Arcy was also criticised for his choice of words. On 29 February 2008, Matt Cooper's '' The Last Word'' was the final show to be presented from the old studios. The first show to be presented from the new Digges Lane studio was ''Friday Night 80s'' with Phil Cawley from 19:00. The first song played was "

Welcome to the Pleasuredome ''Welcome to the Pleasuredome'' is the debut studio album by English synth-pop band Frankie Goes to Hollywood, first released on 29 October 1984 by ZTT Records. Originally issued as a vinyl double album, it was assured of a UK chart entry at n ...

" by

Frankie Goes to Hollywood Frankie Goes to Hollywood were an English synth-pop band formed in Liverpool in 1980. The group's best-known line-up comprised Holly Johnson (vocals), Paul Rutherford (backing vocals), Peter Gill (drums, percussion), Mark O'Toole (bass guit ...

. Today FM had a crucial role in the

Brian Cowen nude portraits controversy Two oil paintings depicting the then-Taoiseach of Ireland Brian Cowen in the nude were briefly displayed in Dublin art galleries in March 2009. The response of the media, politicians and the Garda Síochána (Irish police force) led to a sust ...

of March 2009, specifically

Will Hanafin William Hanafin is an Irish journalist, researcher, television producer and radio presenter from Youghal, County Cork. Hanafin was a print journalist with the '' Irish Examiner'' before working as a researcher on '' The Late Late Show''. He spen ...

and ''

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 ...

''. On 15 October 2011, Today FM confirmed Sam Smyth's Sunday radio show was being dropped. He had been presenting it for 14 years. Smyth had previously offended his bosses by commenting in a newspaper and on television about the

Moriarty Tribunal The Moriarty Tribunal, officially called the Tribunal of Inquiry into certain Payments to Politicians and Related Matters, was an Irish Tribunal of Inquiry established in 1997 into the financial affairs of politicians Charles Haughey and Michael ...

which criticised Today FM owner Denis O'Brien. Smyth said on air the next morning that he had been told not to talk about the end of his show and stopped one of his guests from talking about it too "before someone comes downstairs and pulls a wire we better move onto something else." The

National Union of Journalists The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) is a trade union for journalists in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was founded in 1907 and has 38,000 members. It is a member of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ). Structure There is ...

(NUJ) said it was concerned at the development. The ''Irish Independent'', of which Denis O'Brien is a leading shareholder, reported that Anton Savage was being lined up to replace Sam Smyth.

subsequently resigned from Today FM's sister station Newstalk, in solidarity with Smyth and because, he said, the radio station's management wanted "dissenting voices" such as Constantin Gurdgiev off the airwaves.

Current presenters and shows

2014–present changes

Ray D'Arcy hosted the weekday mid-morning slot for 15 years but abruptly left Today FM to rejoin RTÉ with immediate effect in December 2014. Alison Curtis served as an interim host until the appointment of Anton Savage who began his show, ''The Anton Savage Show'' on 26 January 2015, which now airs every Monday to Friday from 9 am to midday. Savage's previous Sunday morning show, "Savage Show" which aired every Sunday from 11 am to 1 pm ended and the slot was taken over by comedian

Neil Delamere Neil Delamere ( ; born 1979) is an Irish comedian. He is a regular on the BBC Northern Ireland television show '' The Blame Game'', and the reigning BBC Fighting Talk Champion of Champions. Early life and education Delamere is from Edenderry, ...

who now presents his own show titled "Neil Delamere's Sunday Best" which airs every Sunday from 11 am to 1 pm. On 17 August 2015, Colm O'Sullivan announced that his show ''The Mix-Up'' which had aired every Monday-Thursday 7-9 pm was ending after three years of being on-air and that O'Sullivan himself was retiring from the DJ business after nearly twenty years to take up a position as the new Programme Director of Today FM, O'Sullivan having joined Today FM in February 2013 with his show, "The Mix-Up" airing for the first time on Monday 4 February 2013. Anton Savage left the radio station on 2 December 2016 due to a disagreement with the radio station, and was replaced by Dermot Whelan and Dave Moore. On 25 January 2017, comedian Al Porter was announced, live on air, as the new host of the midday show, moving into Whelan and Moore's old slot. On 13 February 2017, Porter's show aired for the first time. However, in November 2017, after allegations of sexual misconduct made against Porter, he decided to resign from Today FM with immediate effect.

Current schedule

Today FM airs a mixture of

popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fun ...

and

news News is information about current events. This may be provided through many different Media (communication), media: word of mouth, printing, Mail, postal systems, broadcasting, Telecommunications, electronic communication, or through the tes ...

and current affairs programming. Its current schedule begins on weekdays with ''

The Ian Dempsey Breakfast Show ''The Ian Dempsey Breakfast Show'' is an Irish breakfast radio show broadcast on weekday mornings from 06:00 – 09:00 on Today FM. Presented by Ian Dempsey, it is noted for its ''Gift Grub'' feature, performed by Mario Rosenstock. It is the t ...

'', followed by '' Dermot & Dave''. Pamela Joyce presents the lunchtime show. Its afternoon co-hosts are

Ray Foley Raymond Foley (born 21 September 1980) is an Irish television host and radio presenter. Having worked at Dublin's 98FM and SPIN 1038 early in his career, Foley moved to Today FM in 2004. In 2006, he moved to midday and presented ''The Ray Fole ...

and JP Gilbourne. The early evening current affairs programme is '' The Last Word'', presented by Matt Cooper. Paula McSweeney then presents the early evening slot from 7pm to 10pm. This is followed by Ed Smith's show, which broadcasts until midnight. Weekend shows include ''Block Rockin' Beats'' on Friday evenings, a 90s dance music show hosted by Dec Pierce, followed by ''Friday Night Anthems'' presented by Jessica Maciel; Saturday and ''Sunday Breakfast'' with

Alison Curtis Alison "Ally" Curtis (born 1 November 1977 in Kingston, Ontario, Canada) is a presenter of radio on Irish radio station Today FM She currently presents her own show, "Saturday Breakfast with Alison Curtis" on Today FM which airs every Saturday ...

; ''Pumped Up Kicks'', a Saturday afternoon music, sports and magazine programme with Dec Pierce; ''Saturday Hits'' with Shauna O'Reilly; and Claire Beck's ''Saturday Sound System''. Further Sunday shows are presented again by Jessica Maciel, Paula McSweeney and Claire Beck, with Ed Smith finishing the weekend with an extended show until 1am on Sunday evenings. Former presenters of Radio Ireland/Today FM include Louise Duffy, Keith "KC" Cunningham,

Philip Boucher-Hayes :''This is an article about an Irish person of note. For the similar-sounding French Canadian ice-hockey player, see Philippe Boucher.'' Philip Boucher-Hayes (born 1971) is a journalist at RTÉ. He is a news reporter, television and radio presen ...

, Mark Byrne,

Mark Cagney Mark Anthony Cagney (born 11 June 1956) is an Irish television presenter and journalist, best known for presenting '' Ireland AM'', the breakfast show on TV3 from 1999 to 2019. Early life Born in Cork, Ireland, Cagney was one of eight children ...

Enda Caldwell Enda Caldwell is an Irish radio personality and voice actor. As of 2022, he was the "drivetime host" at New York's EDM station, Pulse 87. Caldwell has also worked at radio stations elsewhere in the world, including the DRM station Radio Luxembou ...

(''Planet Hits'' and later, ''Nothin'But 90's'') Breffni Clack (Late Nite Love), Bob Conway,

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 ...

(''Pet Sounds''),

(original presenter of ''The Last Word''), Tony Fenton, Derek Flood, Declan Meehan, Bob Gallico, Nadine O'Regan, Tommy Greene, Anne-Marie Hourihan (originally Eamon Dunphy's co-host), Bill Hughes, Robbie Irwin (weekend sports programs presenter), Mark Kavanagh (dance show), Ann Marie Kelly, John Kelly, Tim Kelly, Cliff Walker, Stephen Keogh, Gerard Gogan, Dave Redmond, Tracey Lee, Nails Mahoney, Marty Miller, the late

Dermot Morgan Dermot John Morgan (31 March 1952 – 28 February 1998) was an Irish comedian and actor, best known for his role as Father Ted Crilly in the Channel 4 sitcom ''Father Ted''. Early life Morgan was born in Dublin, the son of Hilda "Holly" (née S ...

, Paddy Murray and Liam Mackey (''Murray and Mackey''), Ian Noctor (newsreader who also for a period presented ''Dad Rock''), Ed Myers, Jim O'Neill, Paul Power, Ita Ryan (''The Celtic Reel''), John Ryan (original presenter of ''The Sunday Supplement''), Donal Scannell, Jon Troy (''Between The Sheets'' - love songs), Karl Tsigdinos (''The River of Soul''),

Dave Couse Dave Couse (born 1965) is an Irish musician, producer, and radio presenter best known for being the lead singer and main songwriter with the band A House. Couse has also released three albums as a solo artist. Early career and A House Couse w ...

, Anton Savage, Ray D'Arcy,

Al Porter Al Porter (born Alan Kavanagh, 6 January 1993) is an Irish comedian, actor, and radio personality. Career Acting Porter has been acting since he was 10 years old, and has been the headline attraction in the annual Christmas Pantomime in the Olym ...

, Kelly-Anne Byrne,

Paul McLoone Paul Martin McLoone (born 11 February 1967) is an Irish musician, former radio producer, voice actor, voice-over artist and radio presenter from Derry, Northern Ireland. He is perhaps best known for being the co-creator and co-writer of the Ir ...

, Phil Cawley,

Mairead Ronan Mairead Ronan (; born 3 April 1980) is an Irish television and radio presenter. Early life Ronan was born in Finglas on the Northside of Dublin. She attended a HR Management course after leaving school, but switched to a media course at Ballyf ...

and Fergal D'arcy. The current Today FM schedule and list of shows can be foun
here

Additional Stations

On 26 March 2018, Today FM launched sister streaming-only stations that focus on music from the 1980s, 1990s, and alternative indie music: Today FM 80s, Today FM 90s and Today XM. In 2019, four more streaming stations launched - Today FM 00s, Today FM Rock Anthems, Today FM All Irish and Today FM Block Rockin' Beats. The streaming-only stations are available through the TodayFM.com website and associated app.

References

External links

Official website
{{Radio in Ireland Communicorp Mass media companies of Ireland Radio stations established in 1997 Radio stations in Northern Ireland Radio stations in the Republic of Ireland