Nationality Irish | Occupation Broadcaster | |
 | ||
Books Creating Space: The Education of a Broadcaster Alma maters Trinity College, Dublin, University College Dublin, Harvard University | ||
Andy O’Mahony is an Irish broadcast journalist who worked for RTÉ (Raidio Telefís Éireann) from 1961 to 2013. He was one of the network's first television news anchors, and thereafter was a radio and television host of various long-running series. He also made radio and television programmes for BBC between 1977 and 1988, including a number of television arts documentaries for BBC2.
Contents
- Background education and research interests
- Early career with the Bank of Ireland
- Broadcasting career with RT
- Radio
- Television
- Publications
- References
The programmes he was most closely identified with over the years consisted of a number of book-based radio series for RTÉ. Series such as Books and Company, Off The Shelf and Dialogue provided a regular forum for the discussion of ideas in economics, politics and culture. From 1988 to 2000, he presented The Sunday Show, a current affairs talk show for RTÉ Radio 1. He earned four Jacob's Radio awards.
A lifelong book collector, he donated his personal library in February 2015 to the Glucksman Library at the University of Limerick. This collection of over 7000 volumes reflects the donor's various interests, ranging from philosophy, religion and literature to economics, politics and the history of ideas.
His autobiographical memoir Creating Space: The Education of a Broadcaster was published by the Liffey Press in 2016.
Background, education and research interests
Born in Clonmel, County Tipperary in 1934, he was educated locally by the Christian Brothers, and in Limerick by the Redemptorists, who taught him Latin and Greek. At the Royal Irish Academy of Music in Dublin he was a student of the English baritone, Dennis Noble. He graduated in Commerce from Trinity College, Dublin and in Philosophy and Logic from University College, Dublin. He has a PhD in Psychology from Trinity College Dublin and was a Visiting Fellow in the Department of Philosophy at Harvard University
Early career with the Bank of Ireland
After a year’s clerking with Clonmel Foods Ltd, in Co. Tipperary in 1952/1953, he worked for the Bank of Ireland from 1954 to 1961. During his last year in banking, he was also a part-time announcer/newsreader with Raidio Éireann.
Broadcasting career with RTÉ
In November 1961 he joined Raidio Éireann as a radio announcer/ newsreader. Two years later he became a news anchor with Ireland’s new television service, Telefís Éireann (later RTÉ). In that first decade of broadcasting, he also presented arts and music programmes on radio. In 1972, he quit radio and television news to concentrate on feature programmes and pursue academic research interests.
Radio
His many radio series included Focus, Music and Musicians, Opera and the Singer (1968-1972), Involvement (1972-1973), Lookaround (1972-1978), Beckett at 70 (1976), Inside Europe (1978-1979), Bookweek (1980-1982), Introspect (1982) Books and Company (1985-1988), The Sunday Show, (1988-2000) Na Taoisigh (2001), 30 Years in the European Union (2002), Off The Shelf and Dialogue (1978-2013).
Television
His television work included The Course of Irish History (1966); National commentary for Our World (1967); Over the Barricades (1975); Predicting the Future (1979); Opening of the National Concert Hall in Dublin (1981); Wednesday Plus (1983); Crosscurrents (1985); High Profile (1986/1987); Guest Host on The Late Late Show in 1989; 20/20: Predicting the Future (1999).
Radio
Various arts documentaries for BBC Northern Ireland from 1977-1987, including profiles of Brian Friel, Sean O’Faolain, Benedict Kiely and Richard Condon; documentary about religion for Radio 4 in 1986.
Television
For BBC, Northern Ireland, a six-part series, Widows of Writers (1977). Lifetimes, (1978-1986) a studio interview series with writers, artists and scholars, including Seamus Heaney and Seamus Deane. Also, for the BBC Gallery series, conversations with the novelist William Trevor and the classical scholar, E.R. Dodds.
For BBC2, documentary profiles of the playwright, Seán O'Casey (1980), the tenor, John McCormack (1984), and the inventor, Harry Ferguson (1984). Studio interview with writer, Christabel Bielenberg about life in 1930’s Germany (1987).