Tubridy’s old show is shedding listeners, but what we really want to know is how he’s doing away from RTÉ

Ryan Tubridy’s departure, under a cloud, was the biggest story in Irish radio of the last few years. The story since, however, has yet to be fully told. His new home on-air, Dublin’s Q102, hasn’t released this quarter’s JNLR figures for individual shows – unlike all other stations. They did herald a 26pc increase in overall weekly reach, but nothing specific to the man who left RTÉ Radio 1 last summer in the midst of the RTÉ “secret payments” scandal.

Virgin Radio UK, which simultaneously broadcasts Tubridy’s weekday morning show, also only provides general listenership in its RAJAR report, the UK’s equivalent to the JNLR figures.

To get Shakespearean about things, it’s all a little “Hamlet without the prince” – or, switching plays to Macbeth, “Banquo’s ghost at the feast”. For JNLR-watchers, something is missing.

Let’s face it, this is what most of us want to know: How’s Tubridy doing? Is he flying it? Is he happy or disappointed? Does he miss RTÉ? We’ll have to wait until the next set of figures, in autumn, for fuller evidence.

In the meantime, here’s a crumb for radio sleuths to nibble: RTÉ Radio 1, Tubridy’s erstwhile residence, has had middling-to-poor results this quarter, especially during his old weekday stomping-ground. The only show recording a book-onbook increase (up 4,000 to 218,000) is Louise Duffy’s noontime hour of music which, charming though it is, remains an outlier in Radio 1’s talkheavy schedule.

Drivetime and Claire Byrne held steady, at 220,000 and 341,000 respectively. All others fell, including The Nine O’Clock Show, the Tubridy-replacement presented by Oliver Callan. There’s nothing terribly wrong with the affable Callan as a lifestyle/magazine-type broadcaster, but the public ain’t really buying it for some reason. His was the only Radio 1 programme to lose share last February, during an otherwise-resurgent JNLRs for RTÉ’s flagship station; now it’s down a further 13,000 to 330,000.

We won’t make the obvious joke about imagining Tubridy chuckling wickedly from his Virgin Radio eyrie at this downturn in fortunes for his former employer.

Callan isn’t the only one – Radio 1 has taken a bit of a thumping overall. Morning Ireland lost 17,000 listeners, to 486,000; News At One is down 5,000 to 301,000; Liveline lost 2,000 and now stands at 301,000.

In fairness, those numbers remain ridiculously big in a country with a population of five million; you’re still looking at about one in every 10 tuning in religiously to Morning Ireland, the sort of reach for which other stations would tear your arm off.

And it should be noted that, while it’s been a bad quarter, Radio 1 increased year-on-year listenership by 43,000. It still broadcasts the 10 most-popular shows, 17 of the top 20. Most notably, its weekend output has done exceptionally well. Countrywide (up 21,000 to 255,000), Playback (up 9,000 to 339,000), The Business (up 11,000 to 324,000), Brendan O’Connor (up an average, across Saturday and Sunday, by 11,000 to 354,000), Saturday With Colm Ó Mongáin (up 20,000 to 242,000), Saturday Sport (up 9,000 to 213,000) and Sunday With Miriam (up 12,000 to 304,000) all performed superbly.

Are Radio 1 listeners sick of relentless bad news and, perhaps more importantly, the saminess of weekdays? Excepting the brief hiatus of Duffy, it’s wall-to-wall problems, disasters, arguing, temper-tantrums, apocalyptic hysteria – things to feel bad about, in short – until Arena and John Creedon arrive to soothe our nerves at 7pm.

The weekend stuff, by contrast, is far more varied, upbeat, pleasant and interesting. It’s a big, fascinating world out there, folks; try shining a light on more of it than those dismal twins called politics and economics.

Elsewhere in RTÉ, there were wins for Tracy Clifford, Game On and Laura Fox on 2FM, and Evonne Ferguson’s Daybreak, Aedín Gormley’s Movies And Musicals, and – this is a nice surprise – Opera Night With Paul Herriott on Lyric. Station newbie Simon Delaney also increased the audience by a very impressive 20pc with his easy-listening Sunday show.

The other big narrative is how well the independents have done. Newstalk’s Pat Kenny Show now stands at a record listenership of 229,000 – up 13,000 book-on-book and 55,000 in the last year – making it the most popular on commercial radio. Breakfast with Ciara Kelly and Shane Coleman also recorded an alltime high of 157,000.

The station overall is at unprecedented levels of market share (8.2pc) and weekly and daily reach (852,000 and 489,000 respectively).

Over on Today FM, Ian Dempsey retains his long-held crown as king of commercial breakfast radio – 25 years and counting – up 8,000 to 216,000. Louise Cantillon and Ray Foley also posted increases; indeed Foley now draws the station’s largest-ever audience (161,000) for that afternoon slot.

For Dave Moore, meanwhile, last August’s loss of his long-term on-air partner, Dermot Whelan, has proved no impediment to continued success. He’s at 228,000, up 16,000 on the final Dermot & Dave Show figures.

Newstalk’s big-hitters are hard news, but almost all the 2FM, Lyric and Today FM winners are pure entertainment. That’s food for thought for programmers.