RTÉ's Oliver Callan adds 25,000 listeners to show, according to JNLR survey

Irish Examiner

15-05-2025

Oliver Callan was the big winner in the latest radio listenership figures, adding 25,000 in the space of a year to his weekday show on RTÉ Radio 1.
The Joint National Listenership Survey (JNLR) report suggested that 3.94m people in Ireland are listening to radio every week which is the highest weekly listenership ever recorded, as 90% of all adults are tuning in.
More than two million people are tuning into RTÉ radio with Morning Ireland the most listened to show in the country with 471,000 listeners, up 2,000 on the previous year.
The show that follows it, Oliver Callan, has 355,000 listeners while Today with Claire Byrne has 348,000 listeners each day, up 7,000 year-on-year.
Meanwhile, as he prepares for retirement, Joe Duffy can be satisfied as Liveline added 6,000 listeners year-on-year to add up to a listenership of 307,000.
Brendan O'Connor has 369,000 listeners.
On the weekend, Brendan O'Connor on Saturday also added listeners by the thousands, up 14,000 on Sundays year-on-year to 369,000.
Patricia Monahan, director of audio at RTÉ, said: 'RTÉ 2FM retains its position as the most-listened-to by 15–34-year-olds, now reaching 714,000 listeners every week.
'RTÉ lyric fm builds on a consistent period of growth, reaching 320,000 listeners every week. RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta also sees an increase in its share of audience now reaching 97,000 listeners every week as it continues to play a crucial role in supporting our language and culture.'
Top 20 shows
RTÉ enjoys 17 of the top 20 most-listened to programmes in the country, with Pat Kenny on Newstalk, The Ian Dempsey Breakfast Show and Dave Moore on Today FM also making the top 20.
Ian Dempsey has 204,000 listeners to his morning show while Dave Moore has an audience of 193,000.
'It's no surprise that one of Ireland's most loved broadcasters continues to dominate mornings,' Today FM's managing editor of music and entertainment James Brownlow said.
'Even in a challenging market, the Today FM team's ability to deliver big for its partners and audiences is unique.'
Although Pat Kenny makes the top 20, his show has lost 5,000 listeners year on year with 224,000 tuning in. There was better news for Kieran Cuddihy as the Hard Shoulder added 5,000 listeners to 153,000.
Newstalk also singled out Off The Ball and The Anton Savage Show at weekends as recording growth.
'Both Saturday and Sunday are proving audience winners throughout the day,' its managing editor Eric Moylan said.
Elsewhere in the survey, it found 20% of 15-34 year olds are doing their radio listening through a connected device with a smart speaker.
Furthermore, over 70% of people listening to radio in Ireland tune into independent local, regional or national stations.
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