"Ireland AM" (1999) TV series 1999-????

User Rating:

9.0/10   

Director:

Niall McDermot

Seasons:

4 | 5 | 6 | unknown

Plot Keywords:

Non Fiction

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Maura Derrane	...	Presenter (96 episodes, 2004-2006)
Karen Koster	...	Herself / ... (81 episodes, 2005-2006)

Country:

Ireland

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Company:

TV3

A refreshing change from the normal boring early morning lifestyle talk shows

I am not a big fan of early morning chat shows. I find it quite difficult to watch people so bright and cheery at 7 o'clock in the morning. Every smile and sarcastic line that is presented from the presenters makes me recoil in torment and I really want to hit him or her over the head with the sledgehammer. It was therefore quite refreshing to come across Ireland AM on TV3.

I began watching Ireland AM when I was unemployed after graduating. It became apart of my daily routine to wake at 7 A.M. and watch the entire three hours it runs for till 10 AM when I would go to the Job Centre in search of employment. During this period of unemployment I became very familiar with the lay out of the show and the persona that all the presenters took on. I also found myself becoming very fond of their attitudes towards certain topics. Since getting a job I do not have the time to spare in the morning but I make the point of watching the Best of Ireland AM at the weekends.

What I have found quite refreshing about this show is that the producers, presenters & researchers go above and beyond the call of duty to cover all topics of interest. Their attitudes are that of genuine encouragement and support for all pieces on the show. The mainstream interests such as sport and popular entertainment are naturally covered but with Ireland AM you can also count on the team presenting quirky and eccentric items that I guarantee will get your interest. There devotion to health items is particularly impressive. Health debates have ranged from ingrown toenails to breast cancer awareness. I find these exposes very interesting as in recent years in Ireland the focus has been on preventive medicine. Certainly Ireland AM can accredit themselves to this because they also answer peoples worries about health problems with professional experts invited to talk about illness symptoms and routes to diagnosis's and hopefully cures.

The presenters are great. They do not come across as stuck up middle class idiots but they are the kind of people you would enjoy a pint in their company. However it did take me along time to warm to Mark Cagney. I found his method of interviewing sometimes very irritating. His technique mainly consists of asking an interviewee a question and then answering his own question with his own opinion. This at times is very annoying. We know the man is very intelligent but his constant need to prove it every morning becomes tiresome. But I will admit he is brilliant at his job and he has many years experience in the media industry. What's more amazing is that his enthusiasm has never waned and he is very spirited especially when it comes to criticizing Irelands prejudiced attitude to all things that are different. He was accompanied by the stunningly beautiful Maura Derrane up until recently but she resigned and now he his accompanied by the equally beautiful Sinead Desmond. In the wings to help with the shows mammoth amount of topics is the ever happy Alan Hughes.

A great effort from TV3 to brighten up Irelands morning TV schedule and I hope it continues on for a long time to come. No major faults from me. It ticks all the boxes for me that are required for me to thoroughly enjoy a show. It has something for everyone and is really worth the watch on cold winter mornings. 8 out of 10.