( channel in
Ireland , aimed at Irish-language speakers and established as a wholly owned subsidiary by
Radio Telefís Éireann on
31 October ,
1996 . It was formerly known as '''Teilifís na Gaeilge''' or '''TnaG''', before a rebranding campaign in
1999 . It was established as an independent public corporation, Telefís na Gaeilge, on
1 April 2007 1, following the passage of relevant legislation in 2001. Additional funding is anticipated. Approximately 730,000 viewers tune in to the station every day and the core audience is in the region of 100,000; giving it an audience share of between 2-3%. Ladies
Gaelic Football broadcasts attract up to 180,000 viewers. In
July 2007 , TG4 was accepted as a new member of the
European Broadcasting Union .
The daily Irish-language programme schedule is its central service, broadcasting approximately 2.5 hours a day of 'First Showing' Irish-language programming, together with an estimated 2.5 hours a day of Irish-language programmes repeats. RTÉ supplies TG4 with 1 hour a day of all 'First Showing' Irish- language programming. The remainder of the TG4 schedule is made up of English-language acquired programmes from the USA (such as ''
Nip/Tuck '' and ''
The O.C. ''). On
1 April 2007 , coinciding with its independence from RTÉ, TG4 changed its overnight sustaining service from
Euronews , which it had previously relayed for some years, to
France 24 . RTÉ channels relay
Euronews still.
Operating as a publisher and broadcaster, TG4 annually invests up to €15m in original indigenous programming from the independent production sector in
Ireland . The Irish-language
Soap Opera ''
Ros Na Rún '' is one of its most popular programmes, and it also commissions a number of documentaries.
On
1 April 2007 , Teilifís na Gaeilge became an independent
Statutory Corporation , with former
Gaelic Athletic Association President Peter Quinn becoming first chairperson of the corporation. The other members appointed to the authority were Joe Connolly, Padraig MacDonnacha, Eilís Ní Chonghaile, Méabh Mhic Ghairbheith, Méadhbh Nic an Airchinnigh, Bríd Ní Neachtáin, Feargal Ó Sé, and Regina Culliton
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Under the
Broadcasting Bill 2006 the corporation (like RTÉ) will be replaced with a
Company Limited By Guarantee instead, also to be called Teilifís na Gaeilge.
See Also: List of programs broadcast by TG4
TG4 has nurtured a reputation for innovative programming in film, arts, drama, documentaries, and sports. For example, it broadcast popular US imports such as ''
Nip/Tuck '', ''
Carnivàle '', ''
The Wire '', ''
The O.C. '', ''
One Tree Hill '', ''
Everwood '', ''
Survivor '', ''
Invasion '' and ''
Curb Your Enthusiasm '' before mainstream
UK channels, and in 2005, it broadcast exclusive Irish coverage of the
Wimbledon Championships tennis tournament and
Tour De France French cycling. It also frequently shows classic films in English, such as
Westerns .
The channel also extensively covers Irish sports, such as
Gaelic Football and
Hurling leagues and club championships, and women's gaelic football (formerly it also broadcast
Celtic League Rugby ). These are events which generally do not appeal to a mass audience, but have a reasonably loyal following.
TG4 also produces a small amount of light entertainment, such as the chat show ''
Ardán '' and the fashion/dating show ''
Paisean Faisean ''. Most of TG4's programming is subtitled in
English .
On
October 31 2006 it aired the first episode of a
Comedy-drama series aimed at a teenage audience, entitled ''
Aifric '' after the programme's fourteen-year-old protagonist.
It also actively commissions documentaries such as the acclaimed and popular ''Amú'' series of travel programmes which launched the career of
Hector Ó HEochagáin , one of a number of TG4 presenters who have gone on to success at other channels. Others include newsreader
Gráinne Seoige .
Additionally, in June 2006, the station began a trial online simulcast of most of their content, available at
tg4.tv . Certain content is blacked out for rights reasons.
TG4 will soon be broadcasting episodes of
South Park and
Sesame Street (''Sráid Sesame'') that will be dubbed into
Irish .
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TG4 was originally only available in
Northern Ireland via 'overspill' of the terrestrial signal from across the border. In the 1998
Belfast Agreement there was provision for TG4 (then TnaG) to be made available in Northern Ireland, along with increased recognition of the Irish language. Similarly, while TG4, along with the
Republic 's other terrestrial channels, is carried on
Sky Digital there, it was not available to Sky subscribers in Northern Ireland until
18 April ,
2005 , and on Cable until February 2007.
In March 2005, TG4 began broadcasting from the
Divis transmitter near
Belfast , as a result of agreement between the
Department Of Foreign Affairs and the
Northern Ireland Office . However, because of overcrowding on the frequency bands only a low power signal can be transmitted and reception is still unavailable in many areas, even in parts of Belfast. The channel is however available on cable and on to Sky satellite subscribers. It is hoped that the channel can eventually be made available on digital terrestrial services (Freeview) and
Free To Air on satellite.
Source: http://www.irish-tv.com/irishtrans.asp
- ”Irish Viewers to get a '6' Sense Soon.” ( 9 February 2006 ). The Irish Independent Business p10
