The Kennedys of Castleross
The Kennedys of Castleross was an Irish serial drama or soap opera which was broadcast on Raidió Éireann from 1955 to 1973.[1]
The serial was devised by Arks advertising agency on behalf of its client, Fry-Cadbury and the first script writers were Mark Grantham and Bill Nugent.[2] The first episode was broadcast on 14 April 1955.[3] The cast included Marie Kean, T. P. McKenna, Vincent Dowling, , and .[2]
Each fifteen-minute episode was transmitted at lunchtime on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The programme's signature tune was the second movement of Hamilton Harty's An Irish Symphony, sub-titled The Fair Day.
During its long run, various other scriptwriters worked on The Kennedys of Castleross, including playwright Hugh Leonard[2] and broadcaster .[4]
When Fry-Cadbury withdrew its sponsorship in the 1960s, Raidió Éireann bowed to popular demand and retained the serial as part of its regular programming. However, after an almost 18-year unbroken run, the station announced in January 1973 that The Kennedys of Castleross had reached the end of its natural life and would be cancelled. As a measure of how much the long-running soap opera's popularity had declined since its heyday, Radio Éireann received only one letter of protest following the announcement.[5]
For the final episode, Raidió Éireann broke with convention and broadcast a special one-hour edition on Saturday 24 February 1973.[6]
References[]
- ^ In the early 1960s, the series was also broadcast on , a shortwave service for Irish troops serving overseas.
- ^ a b c The Irish Times, "An Irishman's Diary", 16 January 1965
- ^ "RTÉ Libraries and Archives: preserving a unique record of Irish life". RTÉ. Retrieved 9/10/2011.
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(help) - ^ The Irish Times, "Morning becomes David", 21 April 1994
- ^ The Irish Times, "Only one letter mourns the 'Kennedys'", 11 January 1973
- ^ The Irish Times, "Radio Today" (radio listings), 24 February 1973
- 1955 radio programme debuts
- 1973 radio programme endings
- 1955 establishments in Ireland
- 1973 disestablishments in Ireland
- Irish radio soap operas
- RTÉ Radio 1 programmes