Bhoys help TG4 enjoy record audience

Last night's live coverage of the Celtic v Barcelona UEFA Cup match on TG4 achieved the highest audience ratings ever for the channel.

Overnight data from Nielsen Media Research, the official television audience measure for

Ireland, show that approximately 220,000 viewers watched the match.

TG4's coverage had a share of 15% of the national audience, meaning that approximately one person in six watching television in the Republic last night between 8pm and 10pm was tuned on TG4.

This is five times the station average and it is worth noting that Nielsen only measures domestic viewers and does not include those watching in pubs and clubs..

The channel's Sport's Editor, Rónán Ó Coisdealbha, is pleased with these audience figures. "TG4 has made a mark with its live sports' coverage", he said, "and we are delighted that the Celtic match has achieved a new viewing record for us, topping the 187,000 who viewed last year's All-Ireland Ladies Football Final."

Mr Ó Coisdealbha added that the figures also vindicate the channel's policy of providing commentary in Irish.

"Good coverage and good commentary overcome any linguistic barriers," he said "and it is clear from the audience figures that the Celtic and Catalonian passion on view in Glasgow last evening lends itself to the Irish idiom."