Mary Wilson (broadcaster)

Mary Wilson
Occupation	Journalist, broadcaster
Spouse(s)	Tony O'Donoghue (–2005)
Children	Aoife
Nationality	Irish
Notable credit(s)	Drivetime

Mary Wilson is an Irish broadcaster and journalist. She currently presents the RTÉ radio programme Drivetime on RTÉ Radio 1 during weekday evenings.^[1] In 2006, she was described as "one of Ireland’s leading journalists".^[2]

Career

Wilson joined RTÉ in 1990. Although originally from Tipperary, she began her career at RTÉ’s local radio service in Cork before moving to Dublin.^[2] Whilst there she worked across a wide range of areas in the RTÉ Newsroom.^[2] Before presenting Drivetime, she was the legal affairs correspondent for RTÉ News and Current Affairs between 1996 and 2002.^[2] She won the "ESB National Media Awards Journalist of the Year" in 2000.^[3] In 2002, she was promoted to the post of legal affairs editor.^[2] She spent 10 years in the job overall before moving on in 2006. She has covered many high-profile court cases.^[4] When Wilson grew weary with the nationwide escapades of then Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, prior to the Irish general election in 2002, she described herself as "being left a little short of information".^[5]

In 2006, when Rachael English finished up Five Seven Live, Wilson was promoted to presenter of Drivetime.^[6] Her programme airs Monday to Friday from 16:30 until 19:00. Her programme has 229,000 listeners.^[7] Joseph O'Connor's radio diary is commissioned by Wilson on this show each Wednesday.^[8][9]

She has appeared on the Irish television programme The Restaurant.^[10] She received three stars in an episode which featured Ainsley Harriott as a guest star critic.^[10] Wilson served a caesar salad and Portuguese mussels and prawns for starters, two main courses of cod with chips and tartare sauce plus braised lamb shanks with roast root vegetables and her preferred dessert of profiteroles and chocolate.^[10]

Wilson has also appeared on the cover of Village.^[11]

Personal life

Wilson was married to RTÉ Sport editor Tony O'Donoghue until 2005. She has a one daughter, Aoife, who in 2007 was 10.^[6][12]

Wilson described Carl Bernstein's A Woman in Charge: The Life of Hillary Rodham Clinton, as "a complete picture of the woman who would be president", and has spoken of her admiration for Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Biafran book, Half of a Yellow Sun.^[13] She also enjoys the works of Helen Shields and John McGahern, Life of Pi by Yann Martel, An Evil Cradling by Brian Keenan and John Boyne's The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, which she has described as "great for reading with your children".^[13] Her favourite films include Atonement, The Last King of Scotland, Shrek, Shrek 2 and Ratatouille.^[13] Her preferred painter is Louis le Brocquy and her favourite song is "On Raglan Road" by Luke Kelly.^[13] She listens to The Marian Finucane Show and Today with Pat Kenny on the radio and her television pleasure includes Newsnight with Jeremy Paxman, The West Wing, ER and Father Ted.^[13]

References

1. ^ "RTÉ News: Drivetime". RTÉ. http://www.rte.ie/news/drivetime/. Retrieved 2009-06-07. 
2. ^ ^{a b c d e} "Mary Wilson lands drivetime radio slot". breakingnews.ie. 2006-05-26. http://archives.tcm.ie/breakingnews/2006/05/27/story260772.asp. Retrieved 2009-06-07. 
3. ^ "RTÉ Annual Report". RTÉ. 2000. http://www.rte.ie/about/2000eng_62-67.pdf. 
4. ^ "Village Magazine". Village Magazine. 12 July 2006. http://www.village.ie/Media/Commentary/Remembering..._Catherine_Nevin,_Nora_Wall,_John_Gilligan,_victims,_barristers,_judges_and_criminals/. Retrieved 2009-06-07. 
5. ^ "FF hunker in bunker, again". Irish Independent. 2009-05-25. http://www.independent.ie/national-news/ff-hunker-in-bunker-again-1749818.html. Retrieved 2009-06-07. 
6. ^ ^{a b} "Court reporter Mary Wilson to fill new radio drivetime slot". The Sunday Tribune. 2006. http://www.tribune.ie/archive/article/2006/may/28/court-reporter-mary-wilson-to-fill-new-radio-drive/. Retrieved 2009-06-07. 
7. ^ "RTE again holds most popular radio shows". The Irish Times. November 14, 2008. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2008/1114/1226408634712.html. Retrieved 2009-06-07. 
8. ^ "Sally, your country needs you yet again". Irish Independent. 2009-06-07. http://www.independent.ie/opinion/analysis/sally-your-country-needs-you-yet-again-1764798.html. Retrieved 2009-06-07. 
9. ^ "To walk Manhattan is to walk the world". Irish Independent. 2009-05-24. http://www.independent.ie/national-news/to-walk-manhattan-is-to-walk-the-world-1749384.html. Retrieved 2009-06-07. 
10. ^ ^{a b c} "Mary Wilson". RTÉ. Accessed 16 November 2008.
11. ^ "RTE's Mary Wilson on leaving the Four Courts". Village. http://www.village.ie/magazine/edition/RTE-s-Mary-Wilson-on-leaving-the-Four-Courts/. Retrieved 2009-06-07. 
12. ^ "Golden rules for children in a marriage break-up. Last week, RTÉ's Mary Wilson spoke words of wisdom about her relationship split.". The Irish Independent. November 19, 2007. http://www.independent.ie/lifestyle/parenting/golden-rules-for-children-in-a-marriage-breakuplast-week-rtes-mary-wilson-spoke-words-of-wisdom-about-her-relationship-split-sinead-ryan-reports-1222851.html. Retrieved 2009-06-07. 
13. ^ ^{a b c d e} "mary wilson". Irish Independent. 2007-12-15. http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/news-gossip/mary-wilson-1248242.html. Retrieved 2009-06-07. 

External links

• Drivetime homepage

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Name	Wilson, Mary
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