UTV Ireland has announced Jenny Buckley as the new presenter of the channel’s weather programme, which will broadcast every weekday following UTV Ireland’s news and current affairs programmes, ‘Ireland Live’ and ‘Ireland Live at 10’.
Jenny joins UTV Ireland having worked across a variety of media for the past nine years. She began her career acting on stage and on screen, assuming many different roles, including ‘The Woman Who Walked into Doors’ and ‘Tara Road’. In 2006, Jenny began her presenting career with Channel 6, where she presented ‘Access Hollywood’ and ‘Cois Farraige’. In 2010, she also became one of the presenters of RTÉ’s travel show, ‘No Frontiers’.
Mary Curtis, Head of Channel at UTV Ireland, said: ‘With less than two weeks to go until the launch of UTV Ireland, there is great excitement amongst the team here. In just over a year, we have established a brand new television channel, making significant announcements along the way – most recently Pat Kenny’s much anticipated return to television, with a one-hour special on New Year’s Day and a brand new series beginning in March 2015. We have also recruited some of the best journalists and broadcasters in the industry.’
She continued: ‘We are delighted to welcome Jenny to the team. We have been doing a number of screen tests for weather in recent weeks and Jenny’s strong presence and warm personality shine through on camera. Having worked on stage and in television for many years, her experience adds to UTV Ireland’s already dynamic on-screen offering.’
In addition to acting and presenting, Jenny is recognised as one of Ireland’s foremost voiceover artists, having narrated several e-books and ads for leading brands. She has also been teaching drama for over 10 years. During that time, Jenny ran her own drama school in Ballymun and she was also a director of Stars Stage School in Howth.
Commenting on her new role with UTV Ireland, Jenny said: ‘I am very excited to be joining UTV Ireland and becoming part of a brand new legacy in Irish television broadcasting. I have followed UTV Ireland’s story since the channel was announced and I was very keen to get involved. The channel’s HD studios and headquarters are hugely impressive and, having met the whole team, I am counting down the days until we launch on January 1st.’
UTV Ireland will launch on January 1st, with a documentary ‘Out with the Old: In with the U’ hosted by Pat Kenny airing at 8.30pm.
