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Dublin Live
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Dublin Live
Joe Duffy: Taoiseach leads tributes as RTE legend announces retirement
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Tributes have poured in for Joe Duffy after he announced his retirement from RTE today. Duffy, who has presented on RTE Radio One for 37 years, will be stepping down from Liveline in June. He will present his final episode on Friday, June 27. And a number of tributes have been paid to the Ballyfermot man following the announcement. Taoiseach Micheal Martin praised Duffy's "warm and generous personality". He said: "Wishing Joe Duffy the very best as he steps back from RTE after 37 years - and 27 years as the host of Liveline. "Joe was a constant in our lives, with a warm and generous personality. So many were helped by 'Talking to Joe'. An essential part of the national conversation." Labour's Arts and Media spokesperson Rob O'Donoghue TD said: "Joe Duffy's voice has been a mainstay in Irish homes for decades, and his decision to step away from broadcasting marks the end of an era. "For many years, Joe provided a vital platform for stories that too often went unheard. He had the rare ability to turn the microphone toward those on the margins, to shine a light on the realities facing ordinary people across the country. "Joe addressed many complex and often stigmatised issues. His work around HRT and menopause opened up a much-needed national conversation on women's health. "He also brought history alive for a new generation. His moving broadcasts and publications highlighting the stories of children of the 1916 Rising provided a powerful and humanising account of our past. I wish Joe Duffy the very best in his well-earned retirement." RTE's Director General Kevin Bakhurst said: 'Whether breaking stories like the first powerful moments of the 9-11 attacks in the US, or helping the nation navigate the often heart-breaking challenges of a global pandemic, Joe Duffy's Liveline doesn't just have its fingers on the pulse, it is the pulse of the nation. Joe navigated controversies, unearthed scandals, exposed scams, fought misinformation and shone a light on topics long ignored, from historical abuse to the menopause and healthcare reform. "Joe was always the guide, never the story. His journalistic insights were perfectly in balance with his human instincts, and Liveline under Joe became both a sanctuary for those seeking justice, and a public square of which Joe was in full control." Join our Dublin Live breaking news service on WhatsApp. Click this link to receive your daily dose of Dublin Live content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. For all the latest news from Dublin and surrounding areas visit our homepage.
The Irish Sun
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
‘You'll be sorely missed' cries RTE's Claire Byrne as stars floored by ‘broadcasting legend' Joe Duffy's Liveline exit
TRIBUTES have begun to pour in from across Ireland for radio legend Joe Duffy after the RTE stalwart announced his retirement. RTE colleagues, including Claire Byrne, and members of the public were quick to wish Joe the best and praise him for his decades of work. Advertisement 3 Radio stalwart Joe will be hanging up his Liveline mic in weeks Credit: RTE 3 Tributes and praise poured in from across the nation Credit: (C) MARC OSULLIVAN,WWW, Joe He told Fellow RTE broadcaster "Thank you for being a great colleague over the years and for creating a special place for so many people on Liveline. You'll be sorely missed by many." Advertisement READ MORE ON JOE DUFFY TV presenter "Enjoy your art Joe when you do relax, it'll be very well deserved." And "Thanks Joe, for as many gas as important conversations over the airwaves through your tenure. " Advertisement Most read in Celebrity Outside of the broadcasting industry, Joe garnered respect from politicians and members of the public alike. Taoiseach RTE fans left in stitches as Joe Duffy 'couldn't get a word in' during his own radio show "So many were helped by 'Talking to Joe'. An essential part of the national conservation." And Tanaiste Advertisement "Joe has held a unique position in public life and will leave an important legacy in broadcasting & in public service." While plenty of listeners shared their thoughts too. One said: "Loved listening to the show, would only listen if Joe was on. Joe will be missed." Another said: "1.45pm won't be the same without your voice. You've just a way with you, so many laughs, so many campaigns, well miss you." Advertisement While another listener said: "Will miss your unique take on so many topics. The voice of reason in a cracked up world". Announcing his impending departure today, Joe hailed the trust of listeners as the reason Liveline saw such success. LISTENER TRUST He said: "After 37 wonderful years here in RTE, and 27 years presenting Liveline, it has been an incredible honour and privilege to be part of a programme that relied entirely on trust: the trust of our listeners. "People felt they could pick up the phone, ring Liveline, and share their lives, problems, stories sad, bad, sometimes mad and funny, their struggles, and their victories." Advertisement Joe also paid tribute to his predecessor, Marian Finucane. The dad-of-three said: "Liveline began under the stewardship of the late Paying tribute to the radio icon, RTE boss "Joe was always the guide, never the story. His journalistic insights were perfectly in balance with his human instincts, and Liveline under Joe became both a sanctuary for those seeking justice, and a public square of which Joe was in full control.' Advertisement He added: "Joe Duffy is an icon of broadcasting, and will be hugely missed by his listeners, his colleagues, and all who picked up the phone to the nation's hotline." READ JOE DUFFY'S STATEMENT IN FULL "After 37 wonderful years here in RTE, and 27 years presenting Liveline, I just wanted to share a few words with you as I prepare to move on. "First of all, it has been - and I mean this from the bottom of my heart - an incredible honour and privilege to be part of a programme that relied entirely on trust: the trust of our listeners. "People felt they could pick up the phone, ring Liveline, and share their lives, problems, stories sad, bad, sometimes mad and funny, their struggles, and their victories. I never took that for granted - not for a single minute. "Over these years, I've been blessed to work alongside hundreds of producers, researchers, broadcasting assistants, and all the wider public servants who make RTE - and when I say everyone, I mean everyone. Those who lifting a paintbrush, wielding a Black & Decker, a hoover drill, operating a sound desk. From the person at reception to the person climbing a mast. We were and are all working towards the same goal: serving the public. "And it goes without saying that my wife June and my three children Sean, Ellen and Ronan, have been such a part of keeping me going, day after day, often through difficult times on an intense daily programme. "For that alone I am deeply privileged and eternally grateful. "As the American poet Maya Angelou wrote: 'People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.' "And I hope, in some small way, through Liveline and through RTE, we made people feel heard. "And now, after many happy years, I've decided the time has come to move on. "I wrote to the head of Radio last November, informing her that having already extended by contract for two years, that Friday June 27 next when it was due to expire would be my final day on Liveline. "As you know I'm not a firefighter - a garda, not a paramedic, teacher, parent of young children, not a nurse, not a street cleaner - all of them real, vital, essential public servants. "As my late mother Mabel used to say to me, you're not to lose the run of yourself if you're just answering the phones, I was just trying to listen, trying to connect, and trying to give people a voice, especially those without. "Mabel, who died two years ago would have been 96 on Sunday and on the day she was born the Irish parliament was debating the abolition of workhouses - we've come a long way - like many in her generation who have been great Liveline listeners, remember you dug the well - subsequent generations drank the water. As a country, a community we've come a long way. "Liveline began under the stewardship of the late Marian Finucane 40 years ago and it will endure. "So onwards! I'm looking forward to the chapter. Please, please keep talking to Joe. I'm here until the end of June." 3 Joe broadcasting from Grafton Street in 1998
