The Lyric Feature
Episodes
The Blind Poetess of Ulster | The Lyric Feature
22 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Born in Donegal in 1816, Frances Browne was blinded by smallpox at an early age, but despite this became a prolific and well-known Vict...
Without Dependence | The Lyric Feature
15 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Without Dependence tells the story of Críostóir Ó Floinn – bilingual Limerick-born poet, playwright, teacher, and perhaps the most censored write...
A living Voice - Donegal | The Lyric Feature
08 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Traditional Irish musicians from Donegal reinterpret scores collected by Séamus Ennis in the 1940s.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informatio...
A Living Voice, Episode 1 | The Lyric Feature
01 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This two-part series presented by J.J. O'Shea brings us the fruits of a project initiated by folklorist Ríonach Uí Ógáin and supported by the Iris...
Out of the Marvelous | The Lyric Feature
22 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Out of the Marvellous asks what can artists learn from the monastic way of life? Writer Sara Baume visits St. Mary’s Cistercian Abbey in Glencairn, ...
Wanted, An Irish Novelist | The Lyric Feature
15 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Rosa Mulholland (1841-1921) was a best-selling Victorian author of ghost stories, novels and essays whose work has been largely forgotten. Dr Sara Lod...
You talkin to me? | The Lyric Feature
08 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Six artists create new radio art for The Mirror Lamp Press Radio Edition. With RTE lyric fm & Culture File this feature explores voice, performance, a...
Three men standing at the MET| The Lyric Feature
01 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A focus and celebration of the work of Author and Radio producer John Quinn who passed away recently.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informati...
Recalling the Layers | The Lyric Feature
25 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Patricia Baker goes in search of the hidden history of a place behind a locked door in Dublin 8.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Shaky Bridge | The Lyric Feature
18 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The poet Louis de Paor was born in Cork, but has not lived there for many years. In this evening's Lyric Feature, he goes back to explore the Cork of ...
Among the heather rocks| The Lyric Feature
11 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Poet Annemarie Ní Churreáin goes back to the Donegal Gaeltacht, where she grew up, and explores the folklore and history, landscape, language and pe...
The Forgotten Migration | The Lyric Feature
04 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Chris Nikkel follows the story of a forgotten Irish migration to Canada through folk music passed down orally, and a special bicentennial commemoratio...
A place in the Choir | The Lyric Feature
28 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Documentary maker Róisín Power opens the door into the world of the National Symphony Chorus of Ireland to ask why singers continue to give their ti...
Feather & Flock - Eagles | The Lyric Feature
21 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
reland has white tailed sea eagles as well as golden eagles, both having been recently reintroduced. In this episode Anja Murray and Brían Mac Gloinn...
Der Musikmann | The Lyric Feature
14 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Our Gold award winner from this Years IMRO awards. 'Der Musikmann' presented by George Hamilton.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The Lyric Feature | Over nine waves
07 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
An exploration of the powerful and enigmatic poem "The Song of Amergin" and the ancient Milesian legend in which it appears. Presented and Produced by...
Our half lost cousins | The Lyric Feature
30 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Theo Dorgan explores poetic, mythical, historical and cultural links between Ireland and Galicia in north west Spain.See omnystudio.com/listener for p...
Until a world comes to life | The Lyric Feature
23 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A collection of four short radio features from artists in various disciplines taking the poems of Patrick Kavanagh as a jumping off point for their ow...
1001 Gems | The Lyric Feature
16 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Derry-born composer Seán Doherty is best known for his choral compositions, but in this Lyric Feature, 1001 Gems, he goes back to his roots in Irish ...
Dead Reeds | The Lyric Feature
09 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Paddi Benson and Grace Lemon are two uilleann pipers who play and write music together in London. In their new Lyric Feature on RTÉ lyric F...
A Sonic Artic return | The Lyric Feature
02 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Composer and sound recordist, Karen Power and her microphones revisit the remote, magnetic spaces of the Arctic which she first visited and recorded m...
Black Siren - | The Lyric Feature
26 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This weeks Lyric Feature is -Black Syren, which tells the largely forgotten story of Rachel Baptist, a Black Irish soprano, who predominantly appeared...
The musician that is me - | The Lyric Feature
19 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
"Ahead of her celebratory concert with the NSO, this feature reflects on the career of US-born composer Jane O'Leary, who has made an immeasurable con...
Connie Gets a Rewrite | The Lyric Feature
12 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Constance "Connie" Smith was born in 1929 on Limerick's Wolfe Tone Street and would later become a star who burned brightly, but all too briefly, duri...
A New series begins with 'A corner of the Burren'
05 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The poet Moya Cannon takes us to A Corner of the Burren to a place she discovered through her reading of Tim Robinson's maps, the triangle f...
Music, Romanticism & the Sublime- | The Lyric Feature
20 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Part 3 - The romantic imagination - Michael Lee explores the rich imaginative idealism that informed so much music in the Romantic Era.See omnystudio....
Music, Romanticism & the Sublime- | The Lyric Feature
13 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Part 2 - Virtuosity and PoetryIn this three-part series, Michael Lee explores the rich imaginative idealism that informed so much music in the Ro...
| The Lyric Feature Romanticism & the Sublime
06 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this three-part series, Michael Lee explores the rich imaginative idealism that informed so much music in the Romantic Era. Part 1 - The Subl...
Recalling the layers | The Lyric Feature
29 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Patricia Baker goes in search of the hidden history of a place behind a locked door in Dublin 8.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Wild | The Lyric Feature
22 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
'Wild' tells the story of Ireland's landscapes and its wildlife across past, present and future, exploring the ever changing relationship between peop...
A Dream of Foreign Lands | The Lyric Feature
15 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A Dream of Foreign Lands commemorates the 40th anniversary of Rum Sodomy & The Lash, the groundbreaking album by The Pogues. Featuring exclusive contr...
The Ballad of the Stolwijk Rescue | The Lyric Feature
08 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ye Vagabonds Brían Mac Gloinn tells the story in word and song of the rescue of 18 Dutch sailors off Arranmore Island in December 1940. Written, pres...
The Naked Soul of Man | The Lyric Feature
01 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A story of music, leadership and resilience on Shackleton's Endurance Expedition.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Deirdre of the Sorrows | The Lyric Feature
25 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Scottish poet Kenneth Steven presents Deirdre of the Sorrows, exploring this ancient tale that continues to inspire writers and musicians today.See om...
<a label="Title" tabindex="0">Der Musikmann - An Irishman in Cologne | The Lyric Feature</a>
18 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Presented by George Hamilton, this feature follows conductor David Brophy’s progress over his first six months with the WDR Rundfunk orchestra, on h...
Black Syren | The Lyric Feature
11 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This weeks Lyric Feature is -Black Syren, which tells the largely forgotten story of Rachel Baptist, a Black Irish soprano, who predomi...
1001 Gems | The Lyric Feature
04 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Derry-born composer Seán Doherty is best known for his choral compositions, but in this Lyric Feature, 1001 Gems, he goes back to his roots...
Feather and Flock - Eagles | The Lyric Feature
27 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ireland has white tailed sea eagles as well as golden eagles, both having been recently reintroduced. In this episode Anja Murray and Brían Mac Gloin...
Feather and Flock - The Tern | The Lyric Feature
20 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode ecologist Anja Murray and musician Brían Mac Gloinn visit a busy nesting colony of little terns on the Wicklow coast and talk with te...
Feather and Flock - The Skylark | The Lyric Feature
13 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Skylark is a charismatic bird of open ground and the uplands, widely celebrated for their impressive singing ability. In this episode, ecologist Anja ...
Feather and Flock - The Lapwing | The Lyric Feature
06 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Lapwings are any of various ground-nesting birds akin to plovers and dotterels. They range from 10 to 16 inches in length, and are noted for their slo...
Feather and Flock - The Jay | The Lyric Feature
30 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Jays are colourful, vocal, and highly intelligent woodland birds. In this episode ecologist Anja Murray and musician Brían Mac Gloinn meet ornitholog...
Feather and Flock - The Cuckoo | The Lyric Feature
23 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Feather and Flock delves in to the ways of six iconic native Irish birds. Each episode combines ecology, folklore and history to uncover the incredibl...
Among the Heather Rocks | The Lyric Feature
09 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Poet Annemarie Ní Churreáin goes back to the Donegal Gaeltacht, where she grew up, and explores the folklore and history, landscape, language and pe...
Until a World Comes to Life | The Lyric Feature
02 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A collection of four short radio features from artists in various disciplines taking the poems of Patrick Kavanagh as a jumping off point for their ow...
Stranger Than We Thought | The Lyric Feature
23 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The legacy of avant-garde art practice in 20th century Ireland is often considered a blank space. Yet the work of a remarkable archive is proving this...
The silence in between | The Lyric Feature
16 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Pianist Guy Livingston takes us on his quest for silence in music, from medieval chant to the future sounds of a trip to Mars. Presenter : Guy Livings...
Music Mystery and Manuscripts | The Lyric Feature
09 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Zoë Comyns tells the story of the relatively unknown Cork born writer and composer Ethel Voynich who sold millions of copies of her anti-Catholic no...
Where the river rises | The Lyric Feature
02 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Poet Jane Clarke explores the Avonmore River in County Wicklow through poetry and conversation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The Golden Museum | The Lyric Feature
26 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In “The Golden Museum” J.J. O`Shea reflects on his experience as the child of Irish immigrants in London in the mid-twentieth century. The story i...
We Only Want the Earth - Part 2 | The Lyric Feature
19 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In episode two, presenter Jonathan Grimes joins Nick Roth in Massey’s Estate in the Dublin mountains, where the composer and saxophonist leads a mus...
We Only Want the Earth | The Lyric Feature
12 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This two-part documentary series, presented by Jonathan Grimes of the CMC, explores how Irish composers are responding to the climate and biodiversity...
Maria, La Callas | The Lyric Feature
05 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This Friday 10/01/25 sees the Irish release of Maria,a biopic of Maria Callas with Angelina Jolie in the title role. But Liz Nolan got there first wit...
Crossing the Sound | The Lyric Feature
29 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Poet Gerald Dawe explores the enduring appeal of the west of Ireland landscapes to writers and artists.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informa...
A Dream of Foreign Lands | The Lyric Feature
22 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A Dream of Foreign Lands commemorates the 40th anniversary of Rum Sodomy & The Lash, the groundbreaking album by The Pogues. Musician and musicologist...
Lament for Art O'Leary | The Lyric Feature
15 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The premiere of a new opera by composer Irene Buckley, inspired by the poem Chaoineadh Airt Uí Laoghaire.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy info...
Dorothy's Prison Notebooks | The Lyric Feature
08 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In 2018, actor Sharon Mc Ardle and playwright Declan Gorman set out to create a theatre piece based on diaries kept by revolutionary and writer Doroth...
Music on the Edge | The Lyric Feature
01 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Approaching thirty years together as an ensemble, the ConTempo Quartet spent their formative years in Romania in Central Europe before moving to the w...
Queen of Nightclubs | The Lyric Feature
24 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Kate Meyrick was a trailblazer: a business woman, a nightclub owner, a mother and a celebrity prisoner. In spite of the fact that she made 100s of new...
Generational Resistance | The Lyric Feature
17 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In a change to our schedule, we rebroadcast Generational Resistance: Granny’s Intentions and the Birth of the Irish Beat Scene, featuring interviews...
Feather and Flock - Eagles | The Lyric Feature
10 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Ireland has white tailed sea eagles as well as golden eagles, both having been recently reintroduced. In this episode Anja Murray and Brían Mac Gloin...
Feather and Flock - The Tern | The Lyric Feature
03 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode ecologist Anja Murray and musician Brían Mac Gloinn visit a busy nesting colony of little terns on the Wicklow coast and talk with te...
Feather and Flock - The Skylark | The Lyric Feature
27 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Skylark is a charismatic bird of open ground and the uplands, widely celebrated for their impressive singing ability. In this episode, ecologist Anja ...
The Musician That Is Me | The Lyric Feature
20 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
US-born composer Jane O'Leary, who has lived in Ireland since 1972 and has made an immeasurable contribution to contemporary Irish classical music, lo...
Magic on a Winter’s Night | The Lyric Feature
13 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Mary Brophy goes behind the scenes at the 71st Wexford Festival Opera as Artistic Director Rosetta Cucchi and her teams orchestrate their particular b...
Building a Ballet | The Lyric Feature
06 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Lyric Feature returns for a new series opening with Building a Ballet one of the five Lyric Features shortlisted at the 2024 IMRO awards.See omnys...
From Kingstown to Dun Laoghaire | The Lyric Feature
30 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this week’s Lyric Feature, we remember the poet, lecturer and regular contributor to our programmes Gerald Dawe who died last month.See omnystudi...
No Journey’s End | The Lyric Feature
23 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Michael O’Shea was a musician from Carlingford, Co Louth who released one self-titled album in 1982 that is now regarded as a masterpiece of the Psy...
Maggie from Mayo | The Lyric Feature
16 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
‘Discovered’ by Guglielmo Marconi while singing at a fashionable soiree in London, the famous inventor subsequently brought Sheridan to Italy, to ...
These Things I Wish | The Lyric Feature
09 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
As a child, Bairbre O'Hogan remembers her mother bringing an elderly friend to do her weekly shopping in Dún Laoghaire. Bairbre knew her as MrsVersch...
Imogen Stuart and Michael Coady
02 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The sculptor Imogen Stuart and the poet Michael Coady died within a day of each other on the 24 and 25th of March this year. Each is r...
Maria, La Callas
26 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
To mark the centenary of her birth, Liz Nolan explores the life and legacy of Maria Callas, the iconic Greek soprano, widely regarded as the most sign...
Feather and Flock Pt 3 - Lapwing | The Lyric Feature
19 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Lapwings are any of various ground-nesting birds akin to plovers and dotterels. They range from 10 to 16 inches in length, and are noted for their slo...
Feather & Flock - Pt 2 Jay | The Lyric Feature
12 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Jays are colourful, vocal, and highly intelligent woodland birds. In this episode ecologist Anja Murray and musician Brían Mac Gloinn meet ornitholog...
Feather & Flock - Pt 1 The Cuckoo | The Lyric Feature -
05 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Feather and Flock is a new six part series delving in to the ways of six iconic native Irish birds. Each episode combines ecology, folklore and histor...
For the record | The Lyric Feature
28 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Laoise O’Brien has spent the past twenty-five years championing an instrument often unfairly perceived as an instrument of torture, the recorder. Jo...
A Portrait of the Artist as a Radio Documentary
21 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
An audio portrait of painter James Hanley, told through the eyes of his sitters, fellow artists, buyers, family and friends, a story of being creative...
The Bard of Armagh | The Lyric Feature
14 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Micil Ned Quinn from Mullaghbawn in Co. Armagh was immersed in the folk arts from childhood and grew up to be a renowned traditional singer and songwr...
Calling the Curlew Home | The Lyric Feature
07 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Ireland is on the verge of losing its population of breeding curlew, but could our songs, stories and art help us to save it?See omnystudio.com/listen...
Chorus Noster Recolat | The Lyric Feature
31 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
An examination of the earliest notated music in Ireland: Medieval Monastic Chant.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
We Only Want The Earth: Episode 2 | The Lyric Feature
24 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We Only Want The Earth: Can music help us face the climate crisis?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
We Only Want The Earth: Episode 1 | The Lyric Feature
17 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We Only Want The Earth: Can music help us face the climate crisis?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Building a Ballet | The Lyric Feature
10 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The story of the women behind Dublin's forgotten National Ballet Company.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Queen of Nightclubs | The Lyric Feature
03 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The story of Irishwoman Kate Meyrick who operated the most decadent London nightclubs of the Jazz AgeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informati...
A Living Voice, Episode 2: Donegal | The Lyric Feature
25 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Traditional Irish musicians from Donegal reinterpret scores collected by Séamus Ennis in the 1940s.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informatio...
A Living Voice, Episode 1: Connemara | The Lyric Feature
18 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This two-part series presented by J.J. O'Shea brings us the fruits of a project initiated by folklorist Ríonach Uí Ógáin and supported by the Iris...
The Salt of Something New | The Lyric Feature
11 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Chandrika Narayanan-Mohan presents six poets from four continents who are making their mark on the world of Irish poetry.See omnystudio.com/listener f...
A Place of Pointed Stones | The Lyric Feature
04 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In A Place of Pointed Stones, Jessica Traynor explores the history and folklore of Banagher with local historian James Scully, and we hear new poems a...
Writing Yourself Home | The Lyric Feature
28 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Writing Yourself Home is presented by the Irish born but Manchester based poet Vona Groarke. Through a series of conversations with four fellow Irish ...
From Kingstown to Dun Laoghaire | The Lyric Feature
21 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Gerald Dawe explores the social and cultural history of Dun Laoghaire, where he has lived for over 30 years, in poetry and conversation.See omnystudio...
Reflections on Lough Derg | The Lyric Feature
14 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Poet Eleanor Hooker reflects on Lough Derg and its place in the lives of those who live near it and on itSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy infor...
Wild Nephin | The Lyric Feature
07 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Poet Seán Lysaght explores the Wild Nephin area of north Mayo. For more episodes of The Lyric Feature go to the RTÉ lyric fm Podcasts.See omnystudio...
A Portrait of the Artist as a Radio Documentary | The Lyric Feature
31 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The portrait painter James Hanley is the subject as sitter in this audio portrait of his life and work.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informa...
The Dawning of the Day | The Lyric Feature
24 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The story behind Patrick Kavanagh's On Raglan RoadSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
For The Record | The Lyric Feature
17 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Laoise O'Brien explores a millennium of music through her own experiences as a recorder player.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The First Pure Clear Place | The Lyric Feature
10 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Leontia Flynn, explores Sylvia Plath's lifelong admiration of WB Yeats. The programme also contains rare archive of Sylvia Plath speaking about Yeats ...
Maria, La Callas | The Lyric Feature
03 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
To mark the centenary of her birth, Liz Nolan explores the life and legacy of Maria Callas, the iconic Greek soprano, widely regarded as the most sign...
Ellen's Walk | The Lyric Feature
26 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Olivia O'Leary and poet Paddy Bushe follow the route of a long lost walk in Kerry, as described in a poem by Ellen Fitz-Simon, daughter of DanielSee o...
Dorothea The Doozy | The Lyric Feature
19 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dorothea Herbet writer, poet, artist and proud spinster from Carrick On Suir. Ireland's Jane Austin. Unhoped for, unprecedented, discover the unique '...
An Draíocht | The Lyric Feature
12 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Eoin ‘Stan’ O’Sullivan, Sliabh Luachra musician in residence, assists in the search for six old vinyl records. A story looking back at a musical...