Mick Heaney

Mick Heaney

Contributor

Mick Heaney is a radio columnist for The Irish Times and a regular contributor of Culture articles

Falling to Earth – My Summer with Bowie review: Captivating one-man show by turns reflective, bawdy and entertaining

Dublin Theatre Festival 2023: Eugene O’Brien’s fanciful story of the friendship between a rural bouncer and a legendary singer is brought to life by Stephen Jones’ vivid performance

‘Is it a little bit of a dog whistle?’ Newstalk Breakfast hosts swap conversations for clickbait

Radio: Shane Coleman and Ciara Kelly half-heartedly stir the pot, while Kieran Cuddihy enjoys some senatorial skirmishing

Radio: Natural but nervous Maura Derrane struggles to lift RTÉ’s misfiring 9am slot

Radio 1′s revolving-door approach to Ryan Tubridy’s old spot does no favours for the TV presenter finding her groove in a new medium

Claire Byrne’s grim cocktail leaves a bitter taste

Radio: The RTÉ presenter discusses crises big and small, from Libya and Morocco to RTÉ and dodgy Greek hooch

Pat Kenny motors along at Newstalk as RTÉ’s big stars stall

Radio: Veteran presenter seems unlikely to take foot off pedal in either the studio or car, while Miriam O’Callaghan needs more gripping material to arrest decline

Nicky Byrne puts a nervy, newly single Dave Moore at ease – but is then less than subtle

Radio: After 21 years of broadcasting with Dermot Whelan at his side, Today FM’s Dave Moore is taking his first, tentative steps as a solo host

Oliver Callan fires a clean shot at Ryan Tubridy that any hitman would be proud of

Radio: On The Nine O’Clock Show, the stand-in host has a jag at the self-exculpatory impulses that scuppered his predecessor’s planned return

Rapper’s Delight, Gold Digger, Super Bass: The story of hip hop in 20 songs

Rap is 50 this year. These groundbreaking tracks are a history of the world-conquering genre

‘Ireland damaged a lot of its children and she was one of them’: Sinéad O’Connor’s death casts sense of shock across the airwaves

Radio: Normally wry Newstalk presenter captures disbelief over singer’s death, in a week of disturbing news at home and abroad

There’s one show that breaks through RTÉ Radio 1’s diet of grim news and light chat

Seán Rocks’s adventurous Arena arts show is is a welcome diversion in an earlier time slot that nudges it into prime time

‘There’s so many things I could tell you’: Pat Kenny mixes sympathy for Tubridy with a flurry of zingers

Radio: Newstalk host keen to tackle other matters but Ryan Tubridy’s committee speech grabs all the attention

RTÉ crisis: Tubridy beginning to resemble the hapless spark that set off a wildfire

Radio: Radio 1 coverage highlights admirable relentlessness with which presenters and reporters have pursued payments scandal

Tubridy tumult saturates RTÉ: ‘The consequences are felt every hour in this building’

Radio 1 presenters relentlessly cover hidden payments controversy, as Oliver Callan sounds like someone making himself comfortable in the Ryan Tubridy slot

Brendan O’Connor tries not to take sides, but fails to hide his feelings

RTÉ presenter tries not to take sides, though he doesn’t hide his views during defence debate

‘I’d say the f***er would have come through the window’: angry bulls test Colm Ó Mongáin on Liveline

Radio: The current affairs host faces his toughest Radio 1 test yet as he fills in for Joe Duffy