25-05-2025
Could former GP Ciara be just what the doctor ordered for Liveline?
Liveline contender Ciara Kelly has highlighted her credentials in the race to replace Joe Duffy – but knows the veteran broadcaster will be an 'extremely hard act to follow'.
The Newstalk Breakfast host is one of several names in the running to take the Liveline hot seat when Duffy departs on the last Friday of June.
Asked about the prospect of going solo after five years presenting as a duo with Shane Coleman, Kelly pointed out she did three years on Lunchtime Live – 'the Newstalk equivalent' to Liveline – before taking the morning slot. Liveline contender Ciara Kelly has highlighted her credentials in the race to replace Joe Duffy – but knows the veteran broadcaster will be an 'extremely hard act to follow'. Pic: Gareth Chaney/ Collins Photos
The former GP told 'I did the first ever interactive radio show on Newstalk. I took over from George Hook in that slot and grew the audience very nicely. So yes, I did do that role, and it went well actually.'
Remaining coy as to whether she has been approached by RTÉ, the former Operation Transformation contributor said she 'couldn't possibly say anything about any of that'.
'I'm sure Liveline would be an amazing job for anyone who was lucky enough to get it. But I have no real comment other than that, obviously, I have a great job [at Newstalk] myself as well.'
Further pressed on her suitability, Kelly noted: 'I suppose I do like talking to people and all of that kind of thing, absolutely.
'But having said that, I have no idea if I'm in the running for Liveline or not. That obviously is out of my hands entirely.' The GP-turned-broadcaster acknowledged that Duffy will be 'an extremely hard act to follow' for whoever ends up in his chair, after his 27 years fronting the show. Pic: RTÉ
The GP-turned-broadcaster acknowledged that Duffy will be 'an extremely hard act to follow' for whoever ends up in his chair, after his 27 years fronting the show.
'And he's a lovely man,' she added. 'I would know Joe a little bit, and he's obviously an icon as well, and made [Liveline] his own. So I think for anyone filling those shoes, it would be an enormous task.'
The Greystones, Co. Wicklow-raised presenter said she has been a Liveline listener, since 'even before Joe's days', when the show was hosted by the late Marian Finucane, whom Kelly described as 'probably the best broadcaster Ireland has ever produced'.
'I think Marian was gifted in her touch, not only in current affairs but in her ability to get people to open up to her and to talk to her,' Kelly said.
'And I think that's something that she shares with Joe, actually – that people saw both of them as almost like a friend, someone you could really talk to.' Kelly has worked on RTÉ TV shows before, including as a medical expert on Operation Transformation and presenting duties on the magazine's health show, Doctors On Call. (Ciara Kelly on Operation Transformation). Pic: Gareth Chaney Collins
The Newstalk woman called the 40-year-old RTÉ staple Liveline 'an institution of Irish radio' that has 'a finger on the pulse of the country'.
Kelly has worked on RTÉ TV shows before, including in her role as medical expert on Operation Transformation and presenting duties on the magazine health show Doctors On Call.
She is a former client of Noel Kelly, the agent whose books include much of RTÉ's top talent, and who became a household name himself during the secret payments scandal in 2023.
She was one of several stars to part company with NK Management in the wake of that story, citing her duty as a broadcaster to report on it without bias.
Kelly told the Irish Independent in July 2023: 'In order to fully interrogate the RTÉ payments issue going forward, to remain impartial and fulfil my objective public service broadcasting remit.
'I believe I have to now step away from the agency and as of today, I no longer retain them as my agent.'
Kelly's Newstalk colleague Andrea Gilligan has also been mentioned as a potential replacement for Duffy.
The Donegal woman is the current presenter of Lunchtime Live – similar in format to Liveline – and has been praised for her easy manner with callers.
Katie Hannon and Philip Boucher-Hayes, who have often stood in for Duffy over the years, have also been mooted as obvious considerations for RTÉ.
Rose of Tralee host Dáithí Ó Sé is reportedly a strong contender too, while Dancing With The Stars presenter Jennifer Zamparelli was the bookies' favourite at one stage.
