DJ Eoghan off to UK's station of the stars

Adelina Campos

A YOUNG Irish music presenter has hit the big time after landing a spot with a top UK station.

TG4's Eoghan Mac Diarmada will swap Irish TV sets for trendy London radio studios, a source has revealed.

While Eoghan, who broadcasts on the Pop 4 programme, has yet to confirm when he will be leaving, it is understood he has accepted an offer from indie station Xfm.

"Eoghan mentioned that he would soon be moving to London to become a radio DJ over there," an insider said.

"He said something about Xfm, and it's not much of a surprise really because he is incredibly passionate about music, and he really likes the type they play on that station -- alternative rock, indie pop."

It remains unclear, however, whether the 25-year-old politics and Irish graduate intends to concentrate solely on radio in the future.

Just over two years ago, he even danced as part of the opening act during Rihanna's Dublin concert, and he also tried his hand at acting on TG4 drama series SEACHT.

Proud

"Eoghan hasn't mentioned whether he will pursue his TV career as well, but Xfm is right up his street and he'll definitely do Ireland proud," the source added.

"It might be a good occasion for him to suss out the media industry over there, who knows what kind of opportunities could arise."

It is believed that the top 30 national chart show filmed from the O2 in Dublin attracts fewer than 40,000 viewers weekly, since it does not feature on TG4's top 10 programmes.

These top 10 programmes, which include Feirm Factor and Boithre Iarainn, reach between 40,000 and 100,000 viewers, which suggests that Pop 4's audience is much smaller.

In comparison, Xfm has a total weekly reach of 1.13 million listeners.

While the Global Radio-owned station is not available nationwide -- it only broadcasts in London, Manchester and Scotland at present -- the brand's flagship, Xfm London has more than half-a-million listeners.

"There's no doubt about it, Eoghan will have a great platform over there," a source close to the presenter said.

Trendy

The trendy station is famous for launching the careers of well-known broadcasters and comedians.

The Office's Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, Hot Fuzz star Simon Pegg, comedian Russell Brand and X Factor presenter Dermot O'Leary are just some of Xfm's former DJs who have gone on to become household names in the UK and abroad.

hnews@herald.ie