Hands

Hands 1978

9.00

A unique, multi-award winning series of thirty-seven documentries on Irish crafts capturing the final years of traditional rural and urban life in Ireland during the seventies and eighties.

1978

Fáilte Towers

Fáilte Towers 2008

1

Fáilte Towers was an RTÉ reality TV show that was broadcast as a one off during August 2008. The concept of the show involves thirteen celebrities running a hotel for sixteen days and nights in order to win money for their designated charities. The show format was not repeated nor was it exported or resold. The name is a play on the BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers: and the word Fáilte meaning "welcome" in Irish. The hotel used in the series is Bellingham Castle in Castlebellingham, County Louth. The show is presented by Aidan Power and Baz Ashmawy and the judges are Bibi Baskin, Dublin restaurateur Derry Clarke and Castle Leslie hotelier Sammy Leslie. Each night the public are invited to vote for the contestant they would like to stay in the show. At the end of the show one of the contestants must "check out". The presenters tell each of the contestants individually if they are "safe" and if so are ordered "back to work". The three remaining contestants are then marched into the Oliver Plunkett Suite to face the judges, one of whom sends one of the contestants back to work before all three cast their votes on which of the remaining two must leave the show. The evicted celebrity is then interviewed by the presenters, with best bits shown as well. Created by Adare Productions, it was available to watch online on the RTÉ Player for up to two weeks after being broadcast. John Creedon won on 17 August.

2008

Jack B. Yeats: The Man who Painted Ireland

Jack B. Yeats: The Man who Painted Ireland 2021

1

Author Colm Tóibín explores the legacy of the artist to mark the 150th anniversary of his birth, chronicling his evolution as a painter. Narrated by Pierce Brosnan.

2021

Gerry Hutch: AKA The Monk

Gerry Hutch: AKA The Monk 2025

1

With unprecedented access to archive footage and extensive new background research this is the up-to-date story of Gerry Hutch by some of those who know his life best.

2025

Home of the Year

Home of the Year 2015

1

Home of the Year features people who have built their dream home, just the way they like it. The series showcases homes all over the country and included; a surprising Semi D, a small terraced homes with a clever interior, a converted church, an architecturally distinct flood proof home, and a family home with clever storage solutions, to name just a few.Making the tough decisions as to who goes through to the final are our three expert judges; interior design legend Hugh Wallace, award winning architect Declan O’Donnell and textiles and homewares designer Helen James.Looking for individuality, functionality and clever design, the judges individually score the homes out of 10, the home with the highest combined score, goes through to the final where the ultimate winner will be crowned.

2015

Fallout

Fallout 2006

1

A powerful fictional drama, made in the style of a documentary, which explores some of the possible scenarios in the event of an accident occurring in the nuclear reprocessing plant, Sellafield.

2006

The Story of Ireland

The Story of Ireland 2011

8.30

The series aims to explore Irish history using the historical facts and evidence while charting the origin and impact of the numerous myths that have been passed off as history in the past. Key to this approach is relating developments in Ireland to events and changes in Europe and the world at large as the centuries progress.

2011

Stardust

Stardust 2006

1

'Stardust' is a 2006 miniseries produced for RTÉ by Brackside Merlin Films. The first episode surrounds the night a fire broke out at the Stardust Disco in North Dublin on 13 February 1981, in which 48 people died. The second episode depicts the search for answers and justice by families and survivors. It was screened over two nights on the 25th anniversary of the fire in 2006.

2006

Great Lighthouses of Ireland

Great Lighthouses of Ireland 2018

1

Great Lighthouses of Ireland tells the story of Ireland’s lighthouses and their continuing importance to the country’s survival. For all their romance and mystery, lighthouses remain a vital part of Ireland’s maritime infrastructure.

2018

Joe Dolan - Sweet Little Rock N Roller

Joe Dolan - Sweet Little Rock N Roller 2012

1

Joe remains one of Ireland's most iconic entertainers. The only Irish singer to register chart hits over five successive decades, Joe evolved from being a rural Rocker in the early sixties to become Ireland's first international pop star.

2012

Tubridy Tonight

Tubridy Tonight 2005

1

Tubridy Tonight was an Irish chat show hosted by Ryan Tubridy that aired for five series on RTÉ One between 2004 and 2009. The programme featured guest interviews, audience participation and live music from both a guest music group and the house band. Tubridy Tonight aired every Saturday night, except during the summer months, directly after the main evening news. The show's house musical act was Clint Velour and the Camembert Quartet. Tubridy Tonight was the first successful Saturday night chat show to be broadcast by RTÉ since the ending of Kenny Live in 1999. The programme had regular viewing figures of 450,000, however, the show also regularly fell victim to so-called "Saturday Night Syndrome", with The Late Late Show, broadcast on Friday nights, frequently featuring supposedly better guests. In 2009 Tubridy Tonight came to an end when RTÉ announced that Tubridy would succeed Pat Kenny as host of The Late Late Show for the following series.

2005

The Year of the French

The Year of the French 1982

1

The Year of the French was a television serial, directed by Michael Garvey and based on the novel by Thomas Flanagan, which was first broadcast in 1982. It was a co-production by the Irish broadcaster RTÉ, the British television company Channel Four and the French broadcaster FR3, now France 3. The first episode was shown on RTÉ television on 18 November 1982. In France the programme was known as L'année des Français and was first broadcast on 23 May 1983. The title refers to the year 1798 when French troops sailed to Ireland to support Irish rebels against the British forces under Lord Cornwallis. To accompany the series Paddy Moloney composed and arranged music which was performed by The Chieftains with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, conducted by Proinnsias O'Duinn, and with Ruairi Somers on bagpipes. The album of this music was released in 1983.

1982

After Braveheart

After Braveheart 2015

2.00

A docudrama telling the story of the events that unfolded when a Scottish army led by Robert Bruce tried to drive the English out of Ireland 700 years ago.

2015

Who Do You Think You Are?

Who Do You Think You Are? 2008

1

Popular Irish personalities trace their roots, and this journey through generations of ordinary lives reveals extraordinary stories.

2008

The Radharc Squad

The Radharc Squad 2012

1

On the 50th anniversary of RTÉ TV and Radharc, the first independent production company to make programmes for Irish television, this 2-part series reveals the remarkable story and legacy of this maverick group of filmmaker priests who, between 1962 and 1996, produced over 400 documentaries in 75 countries on a range of social, political, and religious issues.

2012

Celebrity Jigs 'n' Reels

Celebrity Jigs 'n' Reels 2006

1

Celebrity Jigs n' Reels was an Irish reality entertainment television show broadcast on RTÉ One. It was produced by Mind The Gap Films.

2006

Uncharted with Ray Goggins

Uncharted with Ray Goggins 2025

1

Ray Goggins takes well-known Irish faces from the worlds of politics, music and sport on outdoor expeditions through some of the most remote and treacherous environments on Earth.

2025

Legacy

Legacy 2025

1

A look at 15 of Ireland's National Historic Properties - a collection of castles, country houses, memorial sites and gardens, owned by the State and managed by the Office of Public Works.

2025

Return of the Wild: The Bearman of Buncrana

Return of the Wild: The Bearman of Buncrana 2020

10.00

In a small pocket of Donegal woodland, Killian McLaughlin is attempting to turn back the hands of time and return all of Ireland's majestic native animals to their ancestral home, where they used to live in its ancient forests.

2020

Cromwell in Ireland

Cromwell in Ireland 1970

1

Cromwell in Ireland is a two-part RTÉ documentary to be broadcast in September 2008. It is produced by Irish television production company Tile Films and is described as an examination of "that great nemesis of Irish history: Oliver Cromwell". The series stars Owen Roe as Oliver Cromwell, Declan Conlon as Hugh Dubh O'Neill and Catherine Walker as Elizabeth Price. The show's airing coincided with the 350th anniversary of Cromwell's death on 3 September 1658 and will begin on Tuesday 9 September at 22:15 on RTÉ One. It will later be broadcast on the History Channel in November. It is directed by two-time IFTA winning director Maurice Sweeney and presented by the leading historian, Dr Micheál Ó Siochrú. The series consultants included John Morrill, Professor of History at University of Cambridge, Jane Ohlmeyer, Professor of History and Vice Provost at Trinity College, Dublin, Pádraig Lenihan, Lecturer in History at University of Limerick, Nicholas Canny, Professor of History at NUI Galway and Ronald Hutton, Professor of History at University of Bristol. Cromwell in Ireland was commissioned by RTÉ Television in association with The History Channel, supported by the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland. It was produced by Tile Films. The series was shot on high definition with large-scale reconstructions combined with CGI, provided by Sue Land and Warren Osbourne of the UK's Red Vision visual effects company, recreating the sieges and battles that took place in that era. Composer and Stellarsound producer, Steve Lynch teamed himself with the Bratislava Symphony Orchestra to record the soundtrack for the series.

1970