Colm Connolly (1942 – 3 January 2025) was an Irish journalist, documentarian and newsreader, best known for his work with

RTÉ News RTÉ News and Current Affairs (), also known simply as RTÉ News (''Nuacht RTÉ''), is the national news service provided by Irish public broadcaster (RTÉ). Its services include local, national, European and international news, investigative ...

Life and career

Born in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

County Dublin County Dublin ( or ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland, and holds its capital city, Dublin. It is located on the island's east coast, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Until 1994, County Dubli ...

, Connolly was a guitarist in the Paramount Showband in the 1960s. He later began working as a freelance journalist with

BBC Bristol The BBC campus, Broadcasting House Bristol, is located on Whiteladies Road, Bristol. The first building to be occupied was 21/23 Whiteladies Road, which was built in 1852 and is a Grade II listed building, with four radio studios. It was form ...

and presented a regional current affairs programme for five years. Connolly returned to Ireland to work with

as a reporter and newsreader in 1975. One of his first major assignments was as principal reporter on the kidnapping of Tiede Herrema in October and November 1975. Connolly published a book about the kidnapping − ''Herrema: Siege at Monasterevin'' − two years later. In the late 1980s, Connolly moved into documentary making. His subjects included poet Francis Ledwidge, soldier

Myles Keogh Myles Walter Keogh (25 March 1840 – 25 June 1876) was an Irish soldier. He served in the armies of the Papal States during the war for Italian unification in 1860, and was recruited into the Union Army during the American Civil War, servin ...

and the

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British ocean liner that sank in the early hours of 15 April 1912 as a result of striking an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United States. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers a ...

. He also researched, wrote, directed and produced a documentary on the life and assassination of

Michael Collins Michael Collins or Mike Collins most commonly refers to: * Michael Collins (Irish leader) (1890–1922), Irish revolutionary leader, soldier, and politician * Michael Collins (astronaut) (1930–2021), American astronaut, member of Apollo 11 and Ge ...

called “The Shadow of Béalnabláth.” The documentary went on to win a Jacob Award. Colm wrote the accompanying book “Michael Collins”. Connolly was RTÉ News' first Arts and Media correspondent until his retirement in 2003. Connolly died on 4 January 2025, at the age of 82.

References

External Links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Connolly, Colm 1942 births 2025 deaths BBC newsreaders and journalists RTÉ newsreaders and journalists Broadcasters from County Galway People from Tuam