President Mary McAleese and Taoiseach Bertie Ahern were among hundreds of listeners who paid tribute to RTÉ broadcaster Marian Finucane at the end of her long-running radio show yesterday.
Speaking on the final show, Ms McAleese described Finucane as the country's top female broadcaster and "that lovely voice of empathetic broadcasting" with a gift for "broadcasting with empathy rather than attitude".
Mr Ahern was not on air, but sent a bouquet of flowers and letter congratulating Finucane on her years in broadcasting. The Taoiseach and the President's tributes were among several hundred calls and emails sent by listeners to the show, RTÉ said.
Finucane started as a continuity announcer with RTÉ in 1974 and became the presenter of Women Today in the late 70s. She has presented a number of current affairs television programmes over the years including Nationbuilding, Paper Chase and Crimeline.
She has been a constant feature of Radio 1 daily programming since she began presenting Liveline in 1985. She took over the morning slot from Gay Byrne six years ago. Her new programme will be broadcast every Saturday and Sunday morning from September.
