2016 was a special year for Ireland, for our athletes and our artists. It was a year of change and challenge in public life, here and across the globe. And, for RTÉ too, it was a year of intense variety and many noteworthy achievements. This booklet tells the story of those achievements and challenges, those of others, which we strove to reflect and do justice to, and our own. Thank you for being there. Dee ForbesDirector-General, RTÉ

Bliain speisialta ab ea 2016 d’Éirinn, dár lúthchleasaithe agus dár n-ealaíontóirí. Bliain na n-athruithe is na ndúshlán a bhí ann sa saol poiblí, anseo in Éirinn agus ar fud an domhain. Maidir le RTÉ, ba bliain í ina raibh éagsúlachtaí go leor, chomh maith le gaiscí móra bheith bainte amach freisin.

Scéal na ngaiscí is na ndúshlán sin atá sa leabhrán seo; ár ngaiscí féin agus gaiscí daoine eile, agus súil againn go bhfuil an scéal sin curtha i láthair go cóir agus go ceart. Go raibh maith agaibh as a bheith ann. Dee ForbesPríomh-Stiúrthóir RTÉ

Message from the Director-General

Teachtaireacht ón bPríomh-Stiúrthóir

they competedRTÉ broadcast over 280 hours of Rio 2016 coverage on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player with all 3,250 hours of competition available in full and on RTÉ.ie.

you voted

Over 1.1 million people tuned in to the RTÉ One Prime Time Leaders’ Debate; people from 66 countries worldwide logged on to RTÉ Player International to watch the programme.

you supported

An average of 1.26m viewers watched Ireland’s defeat to France on RTÉ2 as the Republic of Ireland bowed out of UEFA EURO 2016.

they triumphed

RTÉ Sport broadcast over 30 hours of live and highlights coverage of the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, representing a seven-fold increase on its coverage of the Games in 2012.

you danced15,000 people crowded into the Dublin Castle Courtyard for a three-hour live spectacular with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and RTÉ Radio 1. Culture Night with RTÉ was in partnership with Ireland 2016, the OPW and DCC.

RTÉ aired the first-ever documentary filmed entirely in 4K on iPhone in 2016.

In April, RTÉ hosted a group of young ‘Digital Champions’ to experience new technologies and explore future digital possibilities for RTÉ.

In 2016, the RTÉ Player app achieved over 2 million downloads across iOS and Android mobile and tablet devices.

RTÉ broadcast 8,760 hours of Irish-language radio content on RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta.

did you know...

we commemoratedOver 1.1 million people tuned in to the live transmission of the Easter Sunday State commemorations at some point during the five-hour broadcast, which was presented by Bryan Dobson, Eileen Dunne, Aine Lawlor, Cathal Mac Coille, John Bowman and Mary Kennedy.

you celebrated

Widespread critical and audience acclaim greeted RTÉ One’s spectacular Centenary on Easter Monday in the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre, featuring a cast of over 600 performers, including 21 choirs.

you commemoratedEvery County has a Story saw RTÉ produce a one-minute-long film for every single county in Ireland, in association with Ireland 2016.

you sang

1,100 singers joined the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra and conductor David Brophy for an open-air free concert at Collins Barracks, featuring a new work by composer Shaun Davey and writer Paul Muldoon, broadcast live on RTÉ One and RTÉ lyric fm.

Over 700,000 people attended RTÉ Reflecting the Rising in partnership with Ireland 2016, Easter Monday in Dublin city, making it the largest civic event in the history of the State.

we celebrated

RTÉ Radio 1’s The Dawn Chorus won the prestigious Rose D’Or Award for Innovation.

The Composing the Island season presented 29 concerts of orchestral, choral, instrumental, song and chamber music by Irish composers written between 1916 and 2016.

RTÉ radio programmes won 34 awards at the 2016 New York Festivals.

RTÉjr Radio, Ireland’s only radio station for children, won Station of the Year at the 2016 Celtic Media Festival.

did you know...

we ploughed

Over 100,000 people visited the RTÉ set at the National Ploughing Championships, enjoying live radio, television, weather and children’s content.

RTÉ’s Irish-language commentary service for the All-Ireland hurling and football finals was available on more platforms than ever before in 2016.

they won

The RTÉ News live online tracker kept audiences up-to-date through the night and into the early morning as the US Election result surprised the world.

you watched

Photo: Conor McCabe

we won

RTÉ received the 25th Anniversary Special Award from Allianz Business to Arts in recognition of its long-term contribution to the development, support and promotion of the arts during the 25-year history of the awards.

The RTÉ Concert Orchestra and RTÉ 2fm came together at Electric Picnic and 3Arena for two sell-out gigs that stunned audiences and drew massive critical praise.

you rocked

Ireland’s most popular soap Fair City celebrated its 4,000th episode in 2016. The series continues to be hugely popular with audiences, attracting an average audience of 421,000 four times a week.

you watched

we investi gated

RTÉ Investigates revealed serious levels of deception and mis-management at one of Ireland’s leading charities, Console.

Performers

DancersVanessa GuevaraYanys GonzalesMonica Munoz MarinEmma O’KaneRenako Mc DonaldMatteus SzcerekDon King RongavillaRyan O’NeillJonathon MitchellJack WebbRobert JacksonThomas SprattTarik ShebaniDiarmaid O’MearaSibéal DavittEmma O’SullivanSamantha HarveyEamonn Moloney

AerialistsChantal Mc CormickSianna BruceKathryn CooleyLee ClaydenRonan BradyMáire Dee

ActorsShane o ReillyWill IrvineEoin LynchEric O’BrienTiernan KearnsJed MurrayClare BarrettMark FitzgeraldJack WalshAdeyanju Prince Ezekiel Isikalu

Centenary Choir ListAIB Choral SocietyBorúCabinteely Gospel ChoirCIE Male Voice ChoirCÓRus Choir Dublin, Wicklow and KildareFrascati SingersGarda Síochána Male Voice ChoirGlasnevin Musical SocietyJohnstown/Killiney Active Retirement- Association ChoirThe Mellow TonicsNTMA Workplace ChoirRathmines and Rathgar Musical SocietyRTÉ Staff ChoirSkerries Community ChoirSongs in the Key of DThe Firhouse SingersThe High School ChoirThe Line-UpThe Revenue ChoirThe Riverside SingersWest Dublin Campus Prison Officers Choir

MusicRTÉ Concert Orchestra

Audience ResearchersSorcha O’BeirneAisling Foley

Archive ResearcherJudy Murray

Broadcast Co-ordinatorJoann Bradish

Production Co-ordinatorGráinne Ní Fhiannachta

Assistant ProducerNeasa McLaughlin

Associate DirectorJohn Comiskey

DirectorAlan Byrne

ProducerNiamh Ní Churnáin

Creator & Executive ProducerCilian Fennell

Centenary (credits)

Production Crew

Music SupervisorDermot McEvoy

Musical DirectorsJoe CsibiGavin Murphy

Choir Co-ordinatorRoisín Savage

ChoreographerDavid Bolger

Seo Linn ChoreographerStuart O’Connor

Theatre Stage ManagerClive Welsh

Production ManagerBrendan McLoughlin

Historical AdvisorDr. P.J. Matthews

VT InsertsSouth Wind BlowsTyrone Productions

EFP CamerasDavid Perry

VT EditorClare Killane

DubbingPatrick J Doyle Jnr

Outside Broadcast FacilitiesTVM

Unit ManagerKeith Brock

OB Co-OrdinatorHelen Arnold

Technical SupervisorEric Murphy

Vision EngineersRoger FrewBrendan Connell

UplinkDavy Ebbs

Rigging SupervisorPhilip Hayes

AutocueDiarmuid O’Grady

Costume DesignerSinéad Cuthbert O’Connor

Costume SupervisorKatie Crowley

Make-upJennifer McGovern

Viz OperatorVince Murray

VT Operator/EVSJoe Hannafin

Stage ManagersFiona HurleyAnne McCoyAmy Burke

Floor ManagersCiarán McDonoughAoife KennedyAlan CahillKim Burrowes

Vision MixerNiamh Bhreathnach

Camera SupervisorNoel Vaughan

Sound SupervisorColm Flynn

PAJohn Vickers

Audio SupervisorTim Martin

Graphic DesignAlan Dunne

Production DesignerFiona Cunningham

Art DirectorNoel McEntee

High Resolution DesignerPeter Canning

Lighting ProgrammerAlex Passmore

Media Server ProgrammerLuis PovedaSimon Pugsley

Graphic Content Creation Cosmo AVPierre-Yves ToulotDavid MathiasRodolfo Saavedra

Lighting GafferRichard Gorrod

LED Screens Co-ordinatorIan Henderson

Vision SupervisorLuke Chantrell

Follow Spot SupervisorFodhla O’Brien

Press OfficerRayna Connery

Programme Department AssistantLorna O’Sullivan

RTÉ Executive ProducerSeán MacGiolla Phadraig

RTÉ Series ProducerJean Devlin

RTÉ Assistant ProducerRoisín O’Brien

AntrimJean Devlin

ArmaghDarina Clancy Jean Devlin

CarlowColm Bairéad

CavanMatthew Kirrane

ClareRuth Meehan

CorkTraolach Ó Buachalla

DerryRuth Meehan

DonegalRuth Meehan

DownColm Bairéad

DublinHeather Thornton Sarah Colgan

FermanaghDarina ClancyJean Devlin

GalwayTraolach Ó Buachalla

KerryBonnie Dempsey

KildareRuth Meehan

KilkennyBonnie Dempsey

LaoisColm Bairéad

LeitrimMatthew Kirrane

LimerickHeather Thornton Sarah Colgan

LongfordColm Bairéad

LouthMatthew Kirrane

MayoColm Bairéad

MeathMatthew Kirrane

MonaghanHeather Thornton Sarah Colgan

OffalyRuth Meehan

RoscommonRuth Meehan

SligoHeather Thornton Sarah Colgan

TipperaryBonnie Dempsey

TyroneBonnie Dempsey

WaterfordBonnie Dempsey

WestmeathBonnie Dempsey

WexfordRuth Meehan

WicklowRuth Meehan

Every County has a Story(credits)

Counties & Directors