Culture
09 Oct 23

Newstalk Sweep the IMRO Irish Radio Awards

Newstalk, National Station of the Year at the IMRO Radio Awards 2023 held at the Lyrath Estate Hotel. Photo by Andres Poveda.

Niamh Browne

The IMRO Radio Awards took place last week showcasing the best of the best of Irish Radio – with Kieran McGuinness of Radio Nova, Dara Quilty of Today FM and Simon Murdoch of Cork's 96FM among the big music winners...

Newstalk were the hot ticket at the 2023 IMRO Irish Radio Awards, the winners of which were announced over the weekend. Often described as the biggest event in the radio calendar, the annual awards ceremony took place at Lyrath Estate in Kilkenny. Awards were given out in over 40 categories with bronze, silver and gold up for grabs in each. Industry experts from across the island made up the adjudication panel, for an awards process that is sponsored by IMRO.

Newstalk took home the biggest number of awards, winning a total of five golds, eight silvers and four bronzes. Their haul also included the most coveted prize – that of National Station of the Year.

Other winners on the night included Clare FM, who won best local station, and Dublin's Q102, who won Podcast of the Year for their hit true crime podcast, The Kinahans.

Winning Gold for music station of the year was SPIN1038 FM, who also received silver for Irish Music Programme or Initiative for their participation in, and coverage of, Irish Music Month on SPIN. Showcasing the very best of up-and-coming Irish music talent, as well as increasing the amount of Irish music played on the 25 participating stations, Irish Music Month is a collaboration between Hot Press and the IBI, and is supported by Coimisiún na Meán.

On the music front, other notable winners included Dara Quilty, Today FM (Gold – Music and Entertainment Presenter), Simon Murdoch, Cork's 96FM (Gold – Radio DJ of the Year), The Music Tree, Radio Kerry (Gold –Specialist Music Programme) and the hugely deserving Kieran McGuinness, Radio Nova (Gold – Specialist Broadcaster of the Year).

Overall, RTE Radio 1 came in hot on the heels of NewsTalk, snaffling five golds, four silver and four bronze. However, this has been a difficult year for RTE Radio 1, having axed Ryan Tubridy's show, in June of this year, following revelations in relation to the RTE secret payment scandal.

RTE Radio 1, which is also funded by the TV license fee, has been severely hit by the crisis, with RTE's funding deficit reaching about €35 million as of September 2023. Having initially rejected the Future of Media Commission's finding that the TV license should be abolished and replaced by exchequer funding, Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, the Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Catherine Martin, has since stated that when it comes to future funding 'everything should be on the table'.

Tomorrow's Budget 2023 announcement will determine what interim funding the national broadcaster will receive.

There was also a positive return for Ulster radio stations, with BBC Radio Ulster taking home four gold medals and two bronze.

IMRO Radio Awards Committee Chairman Chris Doyle commented, “It is great to have the radio sector come together and celebrate the outstanding creativity and talent producing amazing radio in Ireland. Congratulations to all the winners.”

Chairperson of IMRO, Eleanor McEvoy, said, “The IMRO Radio Awards honour the dedicated professionals who have consistently pushed the boundaries of radio broadcasting, bringing innovation, inspiration and entertainment to their listeners. On behalf of IMRO, I would like to congratulate tonight’s winners. You have raised the bar, and your passion for radio continues to light up the lives of listeners throughout the entire country.”

Celene Craig, Broadcasting Commissioner, commented, “Coimisiún na Meán, Ireland’s new media regulator and development agency, would like to congratulate all nominees and winners this evening. An Coimisiún is delighted to celebrate the talent and innovation at work across the radio sector today and recognises that both winners and nominees tonight are an example of broadcasting expertise and experience that delivers quality programming day in and day out for listeners. We are delighted to sponsor the Awards and would like to extend our congratulations to all involved.”

Here's a bigger selection of the winners!

National Station of the Year
Gold » Newstalk

Local Station of the Year
Gold » Clare FM

Music Station of the Year
Gold » SPIN1038

Current Affairs Programme (Full Service)
Gold » The Hard Shoulder » Newstalk

Current Affairs Programme (Local / Regional)
Gold » Déise Today with Damien Tiernan » WLR FM

News Story / News Event
Gold » Creeslough – John Cooke for RTÉ Radio 1 » RTÉ

News Programme (Local / Regional)
Gold » Creeslough » Highland Radio

General Music Programme
Gold » Dave & Fionnuala » iRadio

Irish Music Programme or Initiative
Gold » iRadio’s iLoveIrish » iRadio

Specialist Music Programme
Gold » The Music Tree » Radio Kerry

Music Special / Music Event
Gold » The Belfast Mixtape » BBC Radio Ulster