What if Ian Dempsey had stayed with RTÉ?

its_steve116

How different do you think the radio landscape from 1998 up to now would have been if Ian Dempsey had turned down the Today FM breakfast show and stayed on 2FM?

Declan A Walsh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058288983/what-if-ian-dempsey-had-stayed-with-rte

For starters, Ian Dempsey would probably be presenting a show on RTE Gold for some years now - probably weekday breakfast.

Gareth O'Callaghan would not have got the breakfast gig on 2FM. He had been the internal replacement for Ian.

Mark Byrne more than likely would have stayed a bit longer on Today FM as the breakfast presenter - he had been there before it was announced that Ian was coming. Mark might not have returned to 98FM at all. The other imponderable is whether or not he would have switched career to be a pilot had he not left Today FM - I suspect he would have anyway. Assuming that sooner or later Mark Byrne would have vacated that spot, the question is who would have taken over that spot. Possible replacements over the years could have been Aidan Cooney, Ray Foley, Lam Quigley, Dermot and Dave and P.J. Gallagher and Jim McCabe, or indeed Gareth O'Callaghan.

Tubridy might never have become famous (he was the equivalent of Barry Lenihan before hosting the 2fm breakfast show) Colm and Jim Jim would never have joined 2fm. Dempsey might have taken over the 9 to Midday slot following Gryans death. John Clarke would have remained head of 2fm until his retirement in Summer 2015. Dan Healy might never have become head of 2fm. Adian Leonard or Michael Cahill could be head of 2fm today and it might never have gone down the youth road. Willie O'Reilly would have put Ray Darcy on Today FM breakfast in 2000 not Midmornings.

its_steve116

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120379638#Comment_120379638

Interesting!

thejuggler

Interesting what if discussion….it’s possible that without Ian Today fm may never have turned the corner and may have gone the way of its predecessor Century which closed down after 15 months on air in November 1991. But maybe the IRTC/BCI would never have allowed it to fail.

Hodges

Were he still on 2FM? Well he'd probably still be hyping Garth Brooks as if he was a new Dylan; he'd be presenting a TV show such as Meet the Mcdonagh's; he'd be playing the bollix out of new bands who are worse than OTT or B*Witched; and he'd still have Doug Murray on doing those god awful Jimmy skits and thinking they're the new Derek and Clive. In other words, he'd be stuck in the mud.

By contrast his moving to Today FM was a big awakening because the it was first time that independent broadcasters showed that they were ready to do something big to get the audience, and it showed RTÉ that they had to stop relying on jaded talent repeating the same jaded shows and formats. While the TV and FM1 adapted their products, 2FM is still struggling to this day after his loss.

Another interesting what if is, what if Willie O'Reilly got the pd of 2fm job in 1999 instead of John Clarke? Ray Darcy and Ray Foley would have been on 2fm in the 00s and Tony Fenton would have stayed there. Greg Gaughran would have been on Today FM.

ford fiesta

I always hoped that Ian would naturally return to RTE Radio at lunchtimes, as a replacement for Ronan Collins on Radio 1.

Sadly the station has gone in a different direction in the last year or so.

its_steve116

Greg Gaughran on Today FM. Interesting.

Declan A Walsh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120385554#Comment_120385554

Why would Greg Gaughran have been on Today FM as a result of all that? I don't see where he fits into all this.

Montage of Feck

The lovable rogue characterisation of Bertie would not have gained as widespread acceptance without the efforts of Mario Rosenstock, who without Dempsey patronage would now only be remembered by diehard glenroe fans.

FG under Michael Noonan would have won the 2002 general election possibly cooling the overheating economy.

Declan A Walsh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120389022#Comment_120389022

Gift Grub started when Mark Byrne was still presenting, but you might be right about it needing Dempsey's patronage.

GSF

So if Dempsey had stayed at 2Fm no housing bubble, subsequent colllapse, NAMA, Angola Irish bank and 10 years of cuts to public spending leading to todays housing crisis.

ian Dempsey has a lot to answer for 😂

2smiggy

he probably would have turned into this this miserable old bag of shite. Ian seems happy with what he is doing. I'd take happiness everytime

its_steve116

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120390315#Comment_120390315

Surely you mean Anglo not Angola?

Declan A Walsh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120385554#Comment_120385554

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120388984#Comment_120388984

I still don't get the Greg Gaughren scenario. When Ian went to Today FM, Greg was with FM104. If Ian had stayed at 2FM that time, Greg would still have been with FM104 then.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120392173#Comment_120392173

I was referring to what if Willie O'Reilly stayed at RTE rather than Ian Dempsey. Here's the deal, Tom Hardy had Greg in mind for a gig around 2003 but Willie O'Reilly vetoed it. Cliff Walker got the job instead.

Declan A Walsh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120392231#Comment_120392231

That's interesting. I never knew about Tom Hardy having Greg in mind. They of course would have known each other from the superpirate Radio Nova during the 1980s and their paths would have crossed again in the first few years of 98FM, before Greg left for the original national license holder Century Radio. That all makes sense now.

Here is another what if. Maybe Ian Dempsey might have been moved eventually to weekends to make way for younger presenters on 2FM, before being carted off to RTE Gold.

troched

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120390315#Comment_120390315

Reminds me of those "Evil Ian Dempsey" segments Ray Foley did a couple of times.

Btw below is the schedule that then Pd John Caden proposed to relaunch the station in late 97, the board rejected it and went with the ginger media crowd instead, John Caden resigned and the rest is history.

7am - 9am -- Liam Murray and Paddy Mackey

9am -10:30am -- Eamon Dunphy

10:30am - 12.30pm -- Paul Power

12:30pm - 2pm -- Emily O'Reilly

2pm - 5pm -- Phil Cawley

5pm - 7pm -- Declan Meehan and Bob Gallico

7pm - 9pm -- John Kelly

9pm - Midnight-- Donal Dineen

its_steve116

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120413778#Comment_120413778

Never heard of the guys on the 7am slot?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120413913#Comment_120413913

They were journalists who did Saturday Midmornings from the beginning of radio Ireland and their Saturday show lasted about 2 years into the Today FM rebrand. I can't really remember ever listening to the show but I guess anything that survived from radio Ireland into today fm must have been doing something right.

Declan A Walsh

Deleted

Declan A Walsh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120413778#Comment_120413778

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120413913#Comment_120413913

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120414334#Comment_120414334

It was Liam Mackey and Paddy Murray actually! Liam Mackey used to co-present a summer entertainment programme on RTE during the 1980s. He has also worked with Hot Press and has turned up on music-related tv programmes. Paddy Murray was particularly associated with Sunday World.

They presented that programme around lunchtime on Saturdays. It was called Murray and Mackey. As was said above, it transferred from Radio Ireland (March 1997) to Today FM (January 1998). I don't think it lasted that long though. My memory of it was that it was gone by the summer of 1998. They used to read out funny news stories and spent a lot of time laughing! I found it quite entertaining at the time.

its_steve116

A full timeline of how September '98 - now may have looked if Ian stayed with RTÉ would be interesting.

its_steve116

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120389022#Comment_120389022

Would a Noonan premiership have been better than an Ahern/Cowen one? Would things have been radically different?

its_steve116

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120380221#Comment_120380221

So if Ryan Tubridy hadn't gotten the 2FM breakfast show, how would the Late Late Show have turned out?

Atlantic Dawn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121199704#Comment_121199704

Yes an interesting point, I suppose the top 3 RTÉ linked candidates then for the role would have been...

Gerry Ryan

Brendan O'Connor

Seán Moncrief

radiotrickster

Ian recently celebrated 25 years on Today Fm. I wonder how many years he could have stayed on breakfast at 2fm before they tried to shift him on. I would say certainly not 25.

Declan A Walsh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121217047#Comment_121217047

How long had he been presenting breakfast on 2FM before he left for Today FM in 1998? Let's say it was 1988 when he started doing breakfast. It is unlikely he would still be doing it in 2013 if that was 25 years, but not impossible. Regardless, if Ian was still with RTE now, he would most likely be with RTE Gold.

ZaK23-54

No I do not think that Ian would be happy voice tracking on RTÉ Gold..

Ash.J.Williams

Ian dempsey and gift grub was a real game changer, celtic tiger , pre 9/11 , great craic

Tork

If Ian hadn't left RTE, I think he'd have ended up on Radio 1. He has been a household name since the 1980s and is a safe pair of hands. If timelines had been different, I could see him presenting that lunchtime show Louise Duffy has now, or John Creedon's evening one. Or maybe he could even have ended up with what's now the Ray D'Arcy show. I don't remember him ever presenting a magazine show but I think it'd be a nice change from the forced fun breakfast radio he has been doing forever. And god knows, he'd have to be better than D'Arcy.

As things are now, moving to Today FM was a terrific move for his long-term career. I doubt that was in anybody's thinking back in 1998. Since then, 2FM has moved on everyone who was there in Ian's time. I don't think he'd have been any different, though he could've survived as long as Dave Fanning. Because he was proactively poached by Today FM when they were relaunching, he became one of the biggest names on the station. He has featured prominently in their advertising ever since. Their big-name presenters are older than the 2FM ones, so he's in a good place.