A NEW stamp has been issued this month marking 100 years of broadcasting in Ireland.
The first issue of An Post’s 2026 Stamp Programme was unveiled at the GPO in Dublin by Ireland’s Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport Patrick O’Donovan this week.
(L- R) David McRedmond, CEO of An Post; Patricia Monahan, RTÉ’s Director of Audio; Patrick O’Donovan, Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport; Kevin Bakhurst, RTÉ’s Director-General pictured at the launch of the new stampIt celebrates an :historic milestone in Irish cultural life and the triumphant evolution of broadcasting over the last century in Ireland,” a spokesperson for An Post said.
The first radio broadcasting station in the Irish Free State, 2RN, went on air on New Year’s Day 1926.
Television followed on New Year’s Eve 1961, when Teilifís Éireann (later called RTÉ Television) began broadcasting.
The special stamp, which features an antenna surrounded by transmission signals radiating across the nation, has been created by Dublin design agency Red&Grey.
“When 2rn began broadcasting, this nation was only in its infancy in the first years of independence, and with limited resources, the State prioritised finding and sharing a new voice for the nation,” Minister O’Donovan said.
“This established, here in Ireland, a medium which to this day remains one of the most accessible and engaging forms of communication and self-expression – which is as popular today as ever with the majority of people here in Ireland still listening to radio on a daily basis,” he explained.
The new 100 Years of Broadcasting stamp is available now“Through this medium, 2rn and RTÉ – as well as the many commercial, local and community radio services – have played an intrinsic role in the formation and sustaining of modern Irish identity, culture and even our character.”
He added: “The 100 years of Broadcasting’ postage stamp marks the centenary of one of the most important steps in the building of a new, independent and confident nation that actively wanted to share a voice that was original and uniquely our own.”
RTÉ Director-General Kevin Bakhurst said the recognition within the new stamp is “so important particularly at a time when we face much uncertainty and many challenges in the world”.
“Our organisations have a significant shared history with the first public radio broadcast by the fledgling new Irish state’s on New Year’s Day 1926 being overseen by the Department of Posts and Telegraphs, so the launch of a commemorative stamp by An Post is a great companion to our special RTÉ radio broadcasts from the GPO and our programme of broadcasts and events throughout this milestone year,” he explained.