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'People are dying to dance': Entertainment industry gears up as restrictions on live music ease

Those working in the sector have said the full return to work will not happen instantly.

AS RESTRICTIONS ON events and live performances ease from today, musicians and entertainers are already seeing an uptick in demand, but those working in the industry have warned they will need support as they try to relaunch after a year-and-a-half shutdown.

Last Tuesday Taoiseach Micheál Martin confirmed details of the next phase of reopening society, announcing that from today organised indoor events and mass gatherings will be permitted with up to 60% capacity for people who are vaccinated or who have recovered from Covid in the last six months.

Outdoor events can proceed with up to 75% capacity for vaccinated or recovered attendees and outdoor events with audiences that have mixed immunity status can go ahead with up to 50% capacity.

Audiences will still have to be fully seated at live events, including music, drama and sporting events.

While the 100-person guest limit on attendance at wedding receptions will be unchanged, restrictions on live music and dancing at these events have now been lifted.

The Taoiseach also gave the industry a date for its full reopening; from 22 October all remaining restrictions on events, live music and for the hospitality sector will lift, including the return of club nights. 

The announcement has given a pandemic-weary sector a boost, Music and Entertainment Association of Ireland (MEAI) spokesperson, Matt McGranaghan told TheJournal.

He said the industry was pleasantly surprised at the early date for indoor events and live music.

“It’s a major step, we were expecting maybe it would be the 13th or 20th of September so the fact that it was the 6th is great. For musicians who normally play in pubs – and that is a career, I always have to repeat that this is their career and their profession – they are now getting bookings and phonecalls. It may be a slow start, but it’s a start.”

McGranaghan said the return of live music to weddings was also welcome news as “a lot of employment depends on it”.

The fact that you can now have 60% capacity at theatres is also a huge step forward. I have to stress that the industry is not fully reopened until we’re at 100%, but to look at the positives I think the 60% will help ease audiences back in and get them confident with going back into a theatre or venue, rather than going straight in at 100% capacity, into a crowd. So they’ll experience that over the six or seven weeks and then once we get past 22 October that will boost the industry from then.

For pubs, there was disappointment at the government’s decision not to lift the 11.30pm curfew and to limit dancefloors to weddings, as patrons at bars still have to remain seated at their tables.

Colin Perkins, Head of Booking and Marketing for Pygmalian bar, club and restaurant in Dublin said the changes kicking in today will make “no difference for our business”.

The venue has, however, been planning the return of weekly events in the club as well as larger events in the adjoining Powerscourt Townhouse with “strong line ups of upcoming Irish talent alongside international DJ’s and producers”.

He said solutions will be introduced for extra ventilation to create a safer environment for customers.

Following the government announcement the venue shared details of a ‘special Halloween reopening party’ on 24 October, two days after the majority of restrictions lift and club nights will again be permitted. 

Perkins said the industry will need further supports as restrictions are eased and called for an end to the requirement for special exemption orders, which cost businesses €400 per night and permit the sale and consumption of alcohol on a premises beyond normal trading hours.

He said the introduction of a nightclub license would also allow more flexible opening hours and “will give a sector that has been decimated some chance of survival”.

For artists and performers, there has already been increased interest since the announcement, Garvan Rigby, director of Star DJs told The Journal.

“Things have certainly picked up. Most weddings as this stage are still for 2022 onwards and they’ve had things planned well in advance, but there have been lots of last minute enquiries for this month and next month from people who weren’t planning to have entertainment at their wedding because they couldn’t, and who now want it,” he said.

People are eager to get back out there again, people are dying to dance and I think people value more than ever having a DJ because they’ve seen what it’s like without one, not being able to dance, not being able to have proper entertainment.
I certainly see an uplift in what people in our sector could potentially earn, but it’ll take a long time to get there – I’d say we’re still looking at next year or maybe Christmas before we see it properly picking up.”

He said some venues are still trying to navigate the new rules and guidelines and his own business is tied into multiple sectors all operating on different guidance.

“We’re across three different industries – live events, weddings and bars and clubs and, for example, in a hotel you have a bar, you also have a function room that could have a wedding in and in the next room there’s a 30th birthday party and there may be differences in how they’re all managed, so we’re waiting to get a bit more clarity on that.”

Rigby said it will be vital in the coming months for the government to provide supports to the sector as businesses like his are “building back up from scratch”.

“People have moved on, staff have moved on, venues have changed, some will never reopen, DJs have moved on and retrained. As a society we’ve lost talented people in the creative sector, there’s no doubt about it. Where venues have changed ownership or management it’s like starting at square one, you have potential leads, but it’s still like launching a new business.”

Social welfare supports

MEAI spokesperson Matt McGranaghan said the government should acknowledge that workers in this sector will not instantly return to full employment and social welfare supports should reflect that.

The Pandemic Unemployment Payment rates are to be cut from tomorrow by €50 and those receiving the lower rate will be moved onto jobseekers’ allowance from the end of this month.

“The PUP is to be cut this week and what’s more worrying than that is the transition from PUP to jobseeker’s [allowance],” he said. “If that happens people will be classified as unemployed and that prevents them from engaging in self-employed work, that just doesn’t work for this sector.”

He said this will prevent workers in the industry, many of whom are self employed, from participating in the reopening as they may only be offered sporadic work until demand picks up. Until now self-employed people in receipt of the PUP have been able to earn up to €960 over eight weeks and still keep their social welfare payment.

“We’ve moved past the busy summer period now, autumn is usually a quiet period for the industry, then you’ll have Christmas but in January and February it’s quiet again so I think the government has to recognise that,” he said.

We need an individual support that finds the balance between employment opportunities and support – as employment goes up, support goes down. I think from my dealings with the Department of Social Protection and with culture as well they are working on trying to find a solution. 

The association has also launched a campaign, encouraging venues not to take advantage or performers and to pay them a fair price for their work, despite capacity limits. 

“We want this to be a positive campaign,” McGranaghan said. “We’re hoping to see musicians and artists and workers and fans of music as well as the venues getting behind it and support people as they get back to work.”

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    Mute Willie Marty
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:12 AM

    RTE should cut their losses and exit stage left.

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    Mute Brendan O'Brien
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:18 AM

    @Willie Marty: As Joni Mitchell once sang, you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.

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    Mute Rochelle Hart
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:30 AM

    @Brendan O’Brien: Hands up who misses Tubridy on TV and Radio a year on?

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    Mute and the hit's just keep coming
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:42 AM

    @Rochelle Hart: Tubirdy who ??? He had the personality of a traffic cone

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    Mute Mick Hanna
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    Jul 1st 2024, 2:41 PM

    @Brendan O’Brien: It would be missed like a dose of diarrhoea.

    47
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    Mute A D
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    Jul 1st 2024, 4:05 PM

    @Rochelle Hart: I have always disliked tubridy.
    Rte could have achieved something worthwhile with the money they wasted on him.

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    Mute Brian Hunt
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    Jul 1st 2024, 4:42 PM

    @and the hit’s just keep coming: Tubridy went into hospital last year for a personality transplant, it was a failure!

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    Mute Mary.E.
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    Jul 1st 2024, 9:09 PM

    @Rochelle Hart:
    Who ?

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    Mute S Suilleabhain
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    Jul 1st 2024, 9:15 PM

    @Rochelle Hart: not even remotely. An unapologetic coward with dirty connections. Just the tip of the iceberg.

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    Mute S Suilleabhain
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    Jul 2nd 2024, 9:05 AM

    @Brendan O’Brien: we do know what would be gone & it would be immensely satisfying. It’s not proper public service broadcasting. It never was.

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    Mute Ken Fallon
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:19 AM

    They did it before and it was a disaster. They only covered two days of the festival and it was mostly the presenters chatting to each other. Typical RTE incompetence.

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    Mute Gerry Keogh
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    Jul 1st 2024, 3:55 PM

    @Jimmy Wallace: Their coverage at the Olympics always was excellent and especially at Rio where the female presenters really came into their own….something a lot of us take for granted

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    Mute A D
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    Jul 1st 2024, 5:03 PM

    @Ken Fallon: Any coverage of the festival should show just the music.
    RTE presenters should stay out of it.

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    Mute S Suilleabhain
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    Jul 1st 2024, 9:17 PM

    @Ken Fallon: yes but they weren’t compelled to have that narcissist Eoghan presenting, they chose to. Then again, knowing rte it could have been so much worse I met that Roz what’sit individual once upon a time. she was with some girl from the rte show Fake street – a pair of complete eegits

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    Mute LCD4533
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:29 AM

    They should partner up with YouTube or Instagram and show it live. Unfortunately RTE missed the boat when it came to digitally advancing its platform. If it were to stream over RTE player, the 7 viewers would inevitably struggle with buffering and the endless adverts

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    Mute Richard K
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:50 AM

    @LCD4533: In fairness to RTE, that was once true of the RTE Player but not anymore. I regularly watch live sport on it and never have buffering issues and there are no ads for live events. My only gripe is that it’s about 20 to 25vseconds behind the TV coverage. The Virgin Media player is much worse. The sound is regularly completely out of sync with the picture.

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    Mute Brian Keelty
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    Jul 1st 2024, 1:39 PM

    @Richard K: the RTE player has more bugs, than the local hospital.

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    Mute Brian Hunt
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    Jul 1st 2024, 4:54 PM

    @Brian Keelty: I wonder which in-house genius got the mega bucks for throwing it together?

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    Mute S Suilleabhain
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    Jul 1st 2024, 9:14 PM

    @Brian Keelty: fitting ,it’s partly because of rte that the whole public healthcare infrastructure is headed for complete ruination
    Of course, in most countries that laugh at the state of us in Ireland, they’d wonder how the lads at the top pulling the strings in the HSE have even gotten away with this for so long.

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    Mute SerotoninWars
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:22 AM

    I’d say yes but let’s face it the overall quality of the acts has dropped off a cliff in recent years. At this stage All Together Now might be a better bet out of the bigger festivals. I like some dance and electronic but it’s become tediously standard at this stage. It’s a long time since it was the chippy fresh newcomer. Watching DJs on TV is an absolute bore. Heavy music is as ever almost completely ignored in Irish festivals and conversation despite every gig I go to being completely sold out. You have to really dig at most of the big festivals to move beyond the retro and beige.

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    Mute Richard K
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:46 AM

    Yes but focus on showing the music and interviews with the acts and not on presenters talking to each other

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    Mute Jim O'Sullivan
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:57 AM

    What about showing us important games like the quarter-finals of the All-Ireland instead of exploiting these games to make money? Equipment bought with public money is used to cover GAAGO.

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    Mute ecrowley ecrowley
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:29 AM

    While EP isn’t my thing at all, you’d think RTE would want to celebrate the largest festival in the country. BBC do great coverage of Glastonbury but it could be argued that they have the resources to cover it properly, and more importantly, the know-how.

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    Mute SerotoninWars
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:34 AM

    @ecrowley ecrowley: Yes, the BBC has resources and infrastructure that barely any broadcaster on the planet can match, never mind Ireland. Hugely expensive to do these things too and with the current wave of RTE the kickback against what many perceive as a jolly would be huge. Many don’t realise that there is a huge amount of hard work going on behind the presenters who look like they are having a good time. But that’s all that many would focus on.

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    Mute SerotoninWars
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:37 AM

    @SerotoninWars: *current wave of RTE hate

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    Mute ecrowley ecrowley
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    Jul 1st 2024, 12:07 PM

    @SerotoninWars: Ya, it would definitely be seen as needless spending in the current climate.

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    Mute SerotoninWars
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    Jul 1st 2024, 1:04 PM

    @ecrowley ecrowley: Alternatively they could get properly trolling for the clicks. Bring Tubridy back to present the Electric Picnic! The rage from Journal commenters alone would power the national grid for the next year!

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    Mute James T.Kirk
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    Jul 1st 2024, 1:09 PM

    @ecrowley ecrowley: The largest is the Fleadh, which they cover with TG4.

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    Mute ecrowley ecrowley
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    Jul 1st 2024, 1:09 PM

    @SerotoninWars: Haha that’d be amazing. Outrage amplified!

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    Mute ecrowley ecrowley
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    Jul 1st 2024, 1:19 PM

    @James T.Kirk: Music coverage across terrestrial channels is pretty good. I wouldn’t know numbers on Fleadh or other festivals but it’s a moot point as the stuff I listen to isn’t covered at all.

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    Mute Mick Duvanny
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:20 AM

    I doubt there is any commercial value in showing it live. Most of the people who really want to see the act will already be at the venue.

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    Mute Brendan O'Brien
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:23 AM

    @Mick Duvanny: RTÉ isn’t just a commercial broadcaster, and the same argument could be made about major sporting events.

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    Mute Brian Hunt
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    Jul 1st 2024, 4:48 PM

    @Brendan O’Brien: Yes, it’s also a government propaganda purveyor!

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    Mute S Suilleabhain
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    Jul 1st 2024, 9:12 PM

    @Brendan O’Brien: it’s not often if ever that I agree with you. Spot on

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    Mute S Suilleabhain
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    Jul 2nd 2024, 9:01 AM

    @Brian Hunt: actually you’re spot on
    .

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    Mute Magnificent Mongoose
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:35 AM

    I would say yes to showing live performances but RTE has proven before that they are incapable. Snippets of live performances and boring chat.

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    Mute SerotoninWars
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:41 AM

    @Magnificent Mongoose: I’m not sure who has ultimate responsibility but thinking about the New Years Eve live bash on RTE each year…we have a wad of amazing bands and musicians across many genres and what do we get…a washed up boyband. That’s how much they think of the public.

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    Mute J Ven
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    Jul 1st 2024, 11:30 AM

    A small country like ours normally has one state TV channel, maybe two to include TG4, plus one radio station, that’s it. That’s the meaning of national broadcasting for society’s interests. Show the Dáil Éireann sessions, etc, not to show movies, and commercial interests being subsidised by the tax payer

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    Mute ahhhhh Ted...... Tubridys going into comedy
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    Jul 1st 2024, 12:34 PM

    Why not Virgin media. RTE can’t wash it’s face nevermind paying millions for rights to a private entity.

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    Mute tiobraiddroicead
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    Jul 1st 2024, 4:33 PM

    How about a poll on cutting public funding to rte?

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    Mute Roman Walczak Sadlowski
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    Jul 1st 2024, 12:10 PM

    If anything E.P should have its own YouTube broadcasting if it wishes to provide free access.. or create a paid access for events on YouTube to further enhance income so the next event can be even better. Why should RTE benefit..

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    Mute S Suilleabhain
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    Jul 1st 2024, 9:11 PM

    @Roman Walczak Sadlowski: why should EP profit further in this way? Completely disagree with you. Meanwhile in Britain, supposed leftie Michael eavis is looking like quite the Tory with what he charges for a Glastonbury ticket now.

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    Mute Karen Marten
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    Jul 1st 2024, 1:36 PM

    No way sure they can’t over the st Patrick’s day parade with out talking over it all and rubish camera cover

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    Mute bruce banner
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    Jul 1st 2024, 12:32 PM

    They would need some decent sound engineers first though. Rte ones have always been awful.

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    Mute Michael o connor
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    Jul 1st 2024, 6:15 PM

    I’d love to see D4orbes up on the stage explaining her role in the RTE saga!

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    Mute David O Brien
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    Jul 1st 2024, 6:32 PM

    @Michael o connor: I’d pay to see that!

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    Mute S Suilleabhain
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    Jul 1st 2024, 9:08 PM

    @Michael o connor: who in your view is more rotten to the core Id love the journal to do a poll
    A) Frances Fitzgerald
    B) Dee Forbes
    C) Noirin o Sullivan
    D) Al equal
    E) I’m a me feiner I defend corrupt rte, corrupt hse etc

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    Mute CWrex
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    Jul 1st 2024, 1:10 PM

    Its complicated. The BBC are a huge operation and can afford to employ someone for 12 months to cover just the ‘Rights’ alone for such a festival. It would only take one band to say no to skew the whole thing. Remember when England said “No” to the Free to air rugby internationals and it fecked-up the schedules?

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    Mute Mick Hanna
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    Jul 1st 2024, 2:39 PM

    Who Cares! Unless It’s Subscription Only! YOU WANT IT, YOU PAY FOR IT!!!

    18
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    Mute Paddy C
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    Jul 1st 2024, 1:11 PM

    They should sit down and figure out how to run without bailouts and TV licence fees for mediocre entertainment at best. It’s the channel I give the least time to minus the news and weather the rest is good for sending you asleep,garbage.

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    Mute S Suilleabhain
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    Jul 1st 2024, 9:25 PM

    @Paddy C: on the contrary, the ag

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    Mute S Suilleabhain
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    Jul 1st 2024, 9:26 PM

    @Paddy C: the agenda ridden news with it’s very patronising tone and selective reporting, is also good enough to put many to sleep.

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    Mute Athena
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    Jul 1st 2024, 1:59 PM

    What RTE should do, is develop a viable business model. So, now in addition to TV licence, the government (taxpayer) are ranting more funding to this moloch.

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    Mute Mick Hanna
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    Jul 1st 2024, 9:38 PM

    @Athena: Without The TV Tax!!!

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    Mute S Suilleabhain
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    Jul 1st 2024, 9:03 PM

    RTE is corrupt and completely out of touch. It should not exist in its current form and doesn’t provide public service broadcasting – it’s a rubbish entity with an incredible political bias – you just have to look at Miriam o Callaghan’s career in terms of her connections but many give her a preposterous free pass cos of that condescending but presentable style she has. Absolutely never going to tune in again the damage is done

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    Mute John Nolan
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    Jul 1st 2024, 3:42 PM

    Usual moaners on again

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    Mute S Suilleabhain
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    Jul 1st 2024, 9:07 PM

    @John Nolan: pointing out that rte pushes non stop propaganda right down to who’s obnoxious are fheis gets promoted all the whole sole of the rubbish they broadcast isn’t moaning. Stop objecting to people highlighting wrongdoing and calling it moaning. I’m confident that you moan, the question is whether it’s about me fein for you ? For others it’s about Sinn Fein (not the political party) although how appropriate since they smear them non – stop

    While I’m on the subject, has rte been caught out even on six one televising the Muslim cal to prayer being done in Croke park? I’ll happily moan about that no organised religion that promotes such fear and terror, including the RCC should get this free ride

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    Mute Wayne Shoes
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    Jul 1st 2024, 4:19 PM

    Ask fine Gale they love the arts..Not

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    Mute ron don
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    Jul 2nd 2024, 1:54 AM

    What a brutal “Poll” just televise things, Virgin, RTE who cares

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