JNLR listening figures – Ryan Tubridy’s old RTÉ slot loses 4,000 listeners as Morning Ireland enjoys bumper increase

Last month, the state broadcaster announced that comedian Oliver Callan would take over the slot permanently, after filling in on rotation with other well-known names including Brendan Courtney and Shay Byrne.

Despite the drop in listenership, the number of people tuning in stands at 343,000, making it the second most listened to show on Irish radio.

Almost all programmes on RTÉ Radio 1 saw an increase in listenership in the fourth quarter of last year.

Morning Ireland is still the most listened to programme in the country, with 486,000 listeners – an increase of 23,000 book on book.

It was also good news for Miriam O’Callaghan, whose Sunday radio show increased listeners to 292,000, a jump of 20,000.

The figures for Brendan O’Connor’s Sunday show also increased. The show is now listened to by 343,000, a rise of 20,000 since the last JNLRs.

O’Connor’s Saturday show recorded an increase of 7,000 listeners, bringing the number to 342,000.

Back to weekdays and Today with Claire Byrne has 10,000 more listeners than the last figures release, with 341,000 people tuning in.

Louise Duffy, Joe Duffy and Ray D’Arcy all had small changes to their listenership. Louise Duffy’s midday music slot recorded an increase of 1,000, as did Liveline. Joe Duffy’s listenership now stands at 303,000.

Drivetime, hosted by Sarah McInerney and Cormac Ó hEadhra, had 221,000 listeners, up 2,000.

Countrywide and Playback saw an increase of 21,000 and 14,000, respectively, while The Business, presented by Richard Curran, gained 19,000 listeners and brought its listenership to 313,000.

Today's News in 90 seconds - 8th February 2024

The increase in listenership wasn’t felt over on RTÉ 2FM, however, with many of the station’s weekday offerings seeing either no change or a reduction in listenership. There was a drop of 3,000 listeners to 146,000 for 2FM Breakfast, presented by Doireann Garrihy, Donncha O'Callaghan and Carl Mullan.

Jennifer Zamparelli and Tracy Clifford had no change in their listenership – 136,000 listeners tune in to Zamparelli and 113,000 to Clifford.

Drive It with The 2 Johnnies recorded a small drop of 1,000 listeners to bring it to 150,000.

There was good news for commercial stations, with an increase in listenership for many programmes.

All of Newstalk’s midweek shows increased listenership, with Pat Kenny the biggest winner. The veteran broadcaster, who presents his current affairs show from 9am-12pm, now has 216,000 listeners, up 11,000.

Newstalk Breakfast is up 5,000 and now stands at 149,000 listeners. Lunchtime Live and The Hard Shoulder increased listenership by 6,000 each with 113,000 tuning into Andrea Gilligan and 153,000 turning the dial to Kieran Cuddihy.

Moncrieff gained 5,000 listeners and now has an audience of 115,000.

Over on Today FM, the departure of presenter Dermot Whelan in August last year doesn’t seem to have affected the listenership for that slot.

Dave Moore continues to be the most listened to programme on the station, with 230,000 listeners, up 2,000, for his 9am-12pm show.

The Ian Dempsey Breakfast Show is next with 228,000 listeners, up 3,000.

The only current affairs programme on the station, The Last Word with Matt Cooper, also had an increase in listeners. The drivetime programme now has 186,000 listeners, an increase of 4,000.

Weekend Breakfast with Alison Curtis increased listeners for both Saturday and Sunday by 6,000 and 3,000, respectively. A total of 198,000 people listen in on Saturday while 169,000 tune in on Sunday.

The lunchtime slot formally hosted by broadcaster Pamela Joyce decreased in listeners by 2,000. Joyce announced in November she would be leaving the station. The slot was taken over by Louise Cantillon last month and now has a listenership of 140,000. Ray Foley, who presents his midweek show from 2-4.30pm, now has 163,000 listeners, also down 2,000.

Dublin’s Radio Nova have said they now have the second biggest market share in the city, trailing only FM104:

• FM104: 7.5pc
• Nova: 6.9pc
• Spin: 6.8pc
• Sunshine: 6.6pc
• Today FM: 6.4pc
• Q102: 5pc
• 98FM: 4.9pc

Nova’s weekly reach has increased for the seventh time in a row to 211,000, with the station’s daily reach up to 114,000.

Morning Glory with PJ Gallagher and Jim McCabe is at 54,000 listeners, the show’s highest ever figures across Dublin and the greater Dublin commuter belt.