RTÉ radio host Joe Duffy retiring after 37 years

Joe Duffy to retire from Liveline next month. Picture: RTÉ

Veteran radio presenter Joe Duffy has confirmed he will retire next month after almost four decades with RTÉ.

After 37 years, he will sign off with his final Liveline airing on Friday, June 27. Duffy, 69, has hosted the RTÉ Radio 1 programme since 1998.

"After 37 wonderful years here in RTÉ, and 27 years presenting Liveline, it has been an incredible honour and privilege to be part of a programme that relied entirely on trust – the trust of our listeners," Duffy said.

"People felt they could pick up the phone, ring Liveline, and share their lives, problems, stories sad, bad, sometimes mad and funny, their struggles, and their victories. I never took that for granted, not for a single minute."

He added: "RTÉ has been a great place to work. Public service has always been at its heart. And now, after many happy years, I've decided the time has come to move on. I would like to thank you the listener, for tuning in each and every day – it has been an honour to sit in this seat and hear your stories."

Duffy will contribute to RTÉ's 100th year commemoration in 2026. RTÉ will run a process over the coming months to appoint his successor with an announcement expected in the autumn.

Duffy will be Patrick Kielty’s special guest on tomorrow night’s The Late Late Show to discuss 37 years in broadcasting. 

Liveline presenter Joe Duffy, who has confirmed his upcoming retirement from RTÉ. Picture: Colin Keegan, Collins Dublin

Taoiseach Micheál Martin led the tributes to the Liveline host, writing on social media: "Wishing Joe Duffy the very best as he steps back from RTÉ after 37 years - and 27 years as host of Liveline.

Joe was a constant in our lives, with a warm and generous personality.

"So many were helped by ‘Talking to Joe’. An essential part of the national conversation."

RTÉ's director general Kevin Bakhurst also paid tribute to the retiring journalist, saying he is "an icon of broadcasting".

"Whether breaking stories like the first powerful moments of the 9-11 attacks in the US, or helping the nation navigate the often heart-breaking challenges of a global pandemic, Joe Duffy’s Liveline doesn’t just have its fingers on the pulse, it is the pulse of the nation," said Kevin Bakhurst. 

"Joe navigated controversies, unearthed scandals, exposed scams, fought misinformation and shone a light on topics long ignored, from historical abuse to the menopause and healthcare reform. Joe was always the guide, never the story. 

"His journalistic insights were perfectly in balance with his human instincts, and Liveline under Joe became both a sanctuary for those seeking justice, and a public square of which Joe was in full control.

"Joe Duffy is an icon of broadcasting, and will be hugely missed by his listeners, his colleagues, and all who picked up the phone to the nation’s hotline. I’d like to wish Joe all our best for his retirement and extend my warmest wishes to June and to Joe’s family. He might be hanging up on the Liveline, but our loss is surely his family’s most welcome gain."

Duffy grew up in Ballyfermot, Dublin. He joined RTÉ as a producer in 1989.

In 1992, he won a Jacob’s Award for his reports on The Gay Byrne Show on radio.

He is the author of several books, including two prize winners, Children of the Rising and Children of the Troubles.