Impressive track record of shoestring scheduling

Cathal Goan comes to RTE with an impressive track record of running a public service broadcaster on a shoestring in the face of intense competition.

Mr Goan (45) has been chief executive of TG4, formerly Teili fis na Gaeilge, since 1994. On as little as one-tenth of the budget available to RTE, the station has combined home-produced news, soap and entertainment with imaginative foreign imports.

After a shaky first few months, when there were frequent transmission interruptions and problems with reception, the station has attained a daily reach of about 400,000 viewers. This from a station that was written off by many as an unworkable white elephant before it even started broadcasting.

RTE's director of public affairs, Mr Kevin Healy, paid tribute to Mr Goan yesterday in a manner which makes clear what the station expects of him.

"Cathal has done a wonderful job as head of TG4 in starting up the Irish language service from a greenfield site. He leads a young, enthusiastic team which has used the most modern broadcasting technology in the world and through innovative scheduling, he has succeeded in growing an audience for his service."

Mr Goan indicated what he expects of those who work for him when he described what he appreciated about his young work force. "They are very flexible, very adaptable. They are sharp, they see things. They want to find out how it is done. They do not bring baggage to the table."

The Belfast-born former television producer lives in Galway with his wife, the sean nos singer Maighread Ni Dhomnaill, and their two children.

He joined RTE as an archivist in 1979, having read Celtic studies in UCD. He went on to be a radio producer and worked on the television current affairs programme, Today Tonight. He eventually moved "reluctantly" to the Irish language current affairs programme, Cursai, but found he enjoyed the experience.

He was appointed editor of Irish language programmes in 1990, before becoming ceannasai of TnaG almost six years ago.

While keeping costs down and padding its schedule with innovative repeats such as All Ireland Gold, TG4 has had some success with indigenous new programming, such as Ros na Run. One of the station's more unexpected hits was its live broadcasts of the Public Account Committee's DIRT hearings.

Mr Goan E. He comes to RTE at a time when it plans to cut more than 300 jobs and prune its budget significantly. He will also face the challenge of leading the development of three digital channels with no indication that the Government intends raising the licence fee paid to RTE.