Paul Byrne to return to his radio roots with new position at Cork’s 96FM

Virgin Media Television’s former southern correspondent will be joining the team at Cork’s 96FM.

The station has announced that Ovens native Paul Byrne will be joining the 96FM fleet as a producer of the daily talk show, The Opinion Line with PJ Coogan.

Having started working in pirate radio at 14 years of age, Mr Byrne is no stranger to the ins and outs of broadcasting.

Building on his award-winning career, the father of two will also present the show from time to time, drawing from his previous work for Cork’s 96FM before moving into television.

The veteran broadcaster said he is delighted to be returning to his roots in radio and re-joining the team at Cork’s 96FM.

“It's an exciting time” said Mr Byrne.

“Local radio is fantastic, the medium itself is superb; It's so immediate, and I love good human interest stories.

“Where the station is actually situated, in Broadcasting House, it was actually my former school, Christian Brothers College – so I’m going back to school, and back to work.

“I am very happy to be going back there - initially I joined 96FM going way back, when I was asked to come up and fill in for two weeks, and that lasted eight years.

“I’m really looking forward to it, [and] I just want to say thank you to everyone who's supported me since I departed Virgin Media, I really appreciate the support and the good wishes, it was very touching.” 

Local content controller for Cork’s 96FM and C103, Brendan O’Driscoll said: “Paul is bringing a wealth of experience to the team at Cork’s 96FM.

“His passion for human interest stories is unwavering and he is renowned for his ability to get the best from people who want to tell their story.” 

Paul will officially join the shows’ senior producer and editor, Fergal Barry, in his new role on November 4, and will be filling in for anchor PJ Coogan for the remainder of this week.