Minister for Communications Pat Rabbitte officially unveiled a plaque commemorating the opening of the TV3 HD studios in Ballymount last night, celebrating a major technological leap forward for a channel that continues to evolve with the times.
Comedian Mario Rosenstock - assuming his best Vincent Browne impersonation - had the audience in stitches and the real Vincent squirming in his seat before the evening’s panel of guests was introduced.
Gay Byrne; David McRedmond, CEO of TV3; and Independent Senator Mary-Louise O’Donnell joined Minister Rabbitte and Mr Browne for a colourful debate on the transformation of television since its arrival in Ireland in the 1960s.
Introduced as ‘the man who invented television in Ireland’, Gay Byrne recalled the excitement that preceded TV’s introduction to the country when crowds gathered outside one of the first TV sets on Grafton Street to catch a glimpse of the RTE test card.
A discussion followed positing whether TV content has actually improved or deteriorated since the 60s, with Gay reflecting on how the shared sense of community that existed when everyone watched the same programmes has been lost.
But he praised the positive advances made by HD technology in sport and nature documentaries, particularly those of the BBC and Sir David Attenborough.
Senator O’Donnell argued that content and choice has vastly improved, noting our newfound ability to watch TV on multiple devices including tablets, laptops and smartphones as signs of significant technological progress.
Mario Rosenstock returned before the night’s end, dressed hilariously as Joan Burton while complaining loudly about her absence from the panel.
Minister Rabbitte told IFTN afterwards that he was ‘immensely’ impressed with the new TV3 HD studios, calling it ‘an anchor which means that TV3 will be here to grow and prosper and also to engage in collaborative efforts with other broadcasters and I think, equally importantly, to facilitate small independent producers who want to come in and do their own creative work here.’
Louis Walsh was also enthusiastic about speaking to IFTN and described how impressed he was by the ‘brilliant’ new TV3 HD facility.
‘I think it’s fantastic competition for RTE. Competition’s a good thing. It keeps everyone on their toes,’ he said.
Regarding the upcoming season of the X Factor and whether there would be a shake-up of the format, Louis predicted many changes but admitted that his knowledge was limited.
‘I don’t have my contract yet, but it would be my tenth year and I’d love to do that.’
He was also quick to dismiss reports that his fellow judge Tulisa Contostavlos is set to be dropped by producers.
‘I think the world of Tulisa. I have nothing but good things to say about her. Her mother’s from Churchtown. She’s a Byrne. I couldn’t say anything negative about her. I said she was a chav in a tracksuit and I meant that in a good way. What you see is what you get. There’s nothing fake about her.’
If Louis had to choose a new addition to the line-up of judges, would he have any preference?
‘Sharon Osbourne would be my number one choice. She does her own thing and she’s a maverick. I love Sharon.’
