Award-winning radio producer Lorelei Harris has scooped another prize for her documentary work. Her documentary A Girl Called Maria, compiled and researched by Mandy McAuley, won a Gold World medal at the New York Radio Festival. The documentary tells the tragic story of Maria McConnell, who was brutally murdered in Belfast last year. Maria was born in Belfast in 1977. In her late teens, she began suffering from depression and became withdrawn and afraid to leave her house. She recorded her innermost thoughts and feelings in her diaries.
In the months prior to her death, Maria began to make some progress and began to occasionally venture out of the house. She plucked up the courage to go out for a night on the town with her friends - but she never returned. Twelve days later her body was found in the back room of an empty student house.
Lorelei Harris is RTE Radio's commissioning editor of features and documentaries. In 1991, one of her productions, Dreaming of Fat Men, won the Prix Italia. Last year, another of her productions, Elijah's Cup, came third in the same competition. A Girl Called Maria will be re-broadcast on RT╔ Radio 1 at 7.05 p.m. on Wednesday, July 18th.
Hard times lie ahead for TV3 as the broadcaster faces a number of high profile departures over the coming weeks. A recent RTE quest for journalists saw four of the six available positions being filled by TV3 staff. News anchor Ray Kennedy and producer Fiona Mitchell are set to join the ranks of the RT╔ newsroom, while reporters Bernard McMullan and Adrian Lydon are joining the Prime Time team. Ireland AM presenter Emma Buckley is quitting in September after just one year on the breakfast show, and long-time 20/20 producer Garret Harte is also set to leave TV3 when his contract finishes in August.
RTE'S Independent Productions Unit (IPU) has announced details of its latest commissioning round. The IPU is seeking proposals for single documentaries in the True Lives series, as well as submissions in the area of regional programming, for autumn 2002. The closing date for submissions in these categories is Wednesday, 5 September 5th, at noon. The IPU operates a rolling submissions policy for both entertainment and drama, which means producers may submit proposals in these categories at anytime time. Further details on the commissioning round are available on the IPU website www.rte. ie/tv/ipu, or bye-mail ipu@rte.ie.
Morning Ireland presenter Richard Crowley is setto leave histhe position after six years with the show, when his contract ends later this summer. RT╔ has said Crowley will continue to contribute to radio and television programmes for the station. No announcement has yet been made as to who will join ┴ine Lawlor and David Hanley as the third member of the Morning Ireland team. But contenders will include Richard Downes, Peter Cluskey, Joe Little and Rois∅n Duffy - all of whom have been filling in as presenters in the Morning Ireland slot this summer.
RTE has extended the deadline for entries for the 2001 New Comedy Awards to Friday, August 10th. The idea for the awards came about after both the BBC and Channel 4 held regional heats in Dublin for their own comedy awards.
As with last year, the top prize for the best new stand-up comedian is £1,000, but this year the winner will also receive a development and marketing support grant from RTE's comedy unit. The competition is not open to full-time professional comedians.
Entrants are asked to record three to five minutes of their original material on videotape and submit it to RT╔ New Comedy Awards, Platform Events, P.O. Box 7595, Dublin 16.
Further information is availablefrom event managers Platform Events at 01-4951000, or e-mail awards@platform.ie. The or the website is at www.rte.ie/rawtalent.