I already know some people won't agree with this but I really think Irish radio is great for listening to music (and occasionally good funny programmes).
Trust me, it is way better than French radio, where each station has its own different audience and type of music. At least in Ireland, the generalist radio stations broadcast a wide range of music suitable to a broader range of listeners.
In France, you have the hip-hop station, the Hits stations, the oldies station or the pop-rock station. For me who has a lot of different tastes in music, I find Irish radio perfect. Where else would you hear the latest hit just after a good old Queen song? Not in France I tell you.
Maybe that's why I was never faithful to a radio station in France. I had to go from one to another constantly in order to find a decent song to listen to (and sing out loud in my car). My husband doesn't understand that at all. He listens to one and only radio station (FM104 if you're wondering). It doesn't matter if he hates the song, or there's an ad break, or the radio host is annoying, he will not change it. You can imagine the fights in the car...
When you're a foreigner, listening to radio is also one of the best way to learn the language (and especially local slang!). When I moved here 12 years ago and had a very long journey on the jammed M50 motorway every morning, Irish radio was there to keep me company. My station of choice back then was 98fm, and their breakfast show was just hilarious. Fair enough, I didn't get all the jokes at first, but listening to Irish presenters talking about Irish stuff made me understand a lot more about my new country and its people.
If only there was more French music on Irish Radio stations ! I know, I can keep dreaming...
