RTÉ has decided to axe its Tonight with Vincent Browneprogramme after almost 11 years on air.
The programme is going as part of a revamp of RTÉ Radio 1's evening schedule, which will see a new arts programme hosted by Vincent Woods at 8pm and a new current affairs programme at 11pm.
Tonight with Vincent Brownebuilt up a loyal following since it first went on air in September 1996. It was widely praised for its nightly re-enactments of the tribunals with actors Joe Taylor and Malcolm Douglas. It also provided a forum for Browne's particular take on politics and society.
Browne, a columnist with this newspaper, said he had anticipated that his programme would be dropped, but he was still disappointed.
Ironically, the announcement came on the day he signed a contract with publishers Random House to write a biography of Charles Haughey. "I had a good innings. I don't want to appear to be in mourning about it. I'm just going to move on," he said.
"I am grateful for the opportunity I have had to present it for 10 years. I thank RTÉ for that opportunity and also all those who worked with me on the programme, the participants and the listeners, many of whom made contact with me and gave encouragement."
Tonight with Vincent Brownehas been slowly haemorrhaging listeners since it reached a peak of 51,000 in 2004. The latest Joint National Listenership Research (JNLR) figures for May reveal that it had 25,000 listeners.
An RTÉ spokeswoman said that declining listenership figures were a factor, as were continuing plans by Ana Leddy, head of RTÉ Radio 1, to change the schedule. She has already axed Rattlebag, Val Joyce's Late Dateand John Kelly's Mystery Train.
"Listenership is always a factor. It's a changing, competitive market," the spokeswoman for RTÉ said.
