2015 in Irish television

• 1 February – Stephen Fry appears as a guest on RTÉ One's religious affairs programme The Meaning of Life during which he makes controversial comments about God, of whom he says is "utterly evil, capricious and monstrous".^[19]
• 2 February – Good Morning Britain debuts on UTV Ireland, but viewing figures give it an average audience of 2,700, compared to 61,000 for TV3's Ireland AM.^[20]
• 4 February –
  Sky reports an increase of more than 200,000 customers in the UK and Ireland in the second half of 2014, its highest growth for nine years.^[21]
• 4 February – The National Lottery midweek draw is postponed until the following day because of a computer glitch that stopped the ticket machines working.^[22]
• 4 February – It is announced that Jeff Ford will leave his role as
  Fox International Channels UK.^[23]
• 4 February – Viewing figures for TV3's new soap Red Rock have halved from 323,000 to 165,000 during its first three weeks of broadcasting. However, TV3 remains pleased with the soap's performance, saying that its viewership has surpassed expectations.^[24]
• 4 February – TV3 presenter Sybil Mulcahy announces she is leaving the channel after 16 years.^[25]
• 5 February – RTÉ2 confirms it will air Eurovision's Greatest Hits, a concert celebrating 60 years of the Eurovision Song Contest, which will be shown throughout Europe over the Easter weekend.^[26]
• 9 February –
  Europa League football for three years from 2015 to 2016. However, RTÉ has retained the television and online rights to show Wednesday Champions League matches, while TV3 will show Tuesday Champions League matches.^[27]
• 9 February – A man who appears in the TV3 documentary series Prison Families is given a suspended sentence at Dublin's Circuit Criminal Court after his trial was told that a robbery and an attempted robbery he committed took place at the time of other offences, and should have been considered at a previous trial.[28]
• 12 February – Viewing figures released by Tam Ireland and Nielsen indicate UTV Ireland had an average audience of 5.5% through January, with an episode of Coronation Street featuring a storyline involving a bus crash having the most number of viewers, with 597,000.^[29]
• 13 February – UTV Ireland announces its intention to air highlights of the Ireland cricket team's 2015 World Cup campaign, beginning with their opening match against the West Indies on 16 February.^[30]
• 14 February –
  Eircom.^[31]
• 15 February – UTV Ireland considers a move for its 6.30pm bulletin of Ireland Live to take on TV3's
  TV3 News at 5.30pm because of poor viewing figures, which were as low as 2% for the first two weeks of January.^[32]
• 16 February – Laura Whitmore announces that she is leaving MTV News after seven years.^[33]
• 18 February – The
  Royal Television Society Awards for its programme A Woman Alone With The IRA, an investigation into how the IRA handled sexual abuse allegations against a suspected member.^[34]
• 18 February – UTV Ireland confirms it will be showing Carl Frampton's prize fight against Chris Avalos on 28 February after UPC viewers, whose access to UTV ended with the launch of its all-Ireland counterpart, expressed concerns it would not be available.^[35]
• 19 February – Taoiseach Enda Kenny uses Prime Time to submit to a rare live television interview but must wait as an episode of British soap opera EastEnders concludes.^[36][37]
• 20 February –
  The Late Late Show is much criticised.^[38][39][40]
• 23 February – Undecided on whether to renew The Voice of Ireland for a fifth series, RTÉ are looking for an alternative to replace the programme for its Winter 2016 schedule.^[41] But after considering other options, the broadcaster announces in June that The Voice of Ireland will return for a fifth series in January 2016.^[42]
• 25 February – Paramount Pictures Ireland announce a collaboration with the Gaelic language television channel TG4 that will see The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water made available in the Irish language in cinemas, the first collaboration of its kind.^[43]
• 26 February – The TV3 Group confirms plans to launch TV3 HD on both
  UPC Ireland and Sky Ireland in August.^[44]
• 26 February – TV3 confirms its intention to air all 48 matches from the 2015 Rugby World Cup.^[45]
• 27 February – Singer–songwriter Molly Sterling is selected to represent Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song "Playing with Numbers".^[46] Sterling, who at 17 is Ireland's youngest Eurovision entry, is knocked out of the contest during the second semi-final on 21 May.^[47][48]

March

• 1 March – The Sunday Independent reports that RTÉ and TV3 are allowing representatives of commercial brands to appear on daytime chat shows to sell their products as part of package deals ranging from €1,000 to €15,000 per appearance. The sale of "editorial airtime" is prohibited by the broadcasting regulations.^[49]
• 1 March – Writing in the Sunday Independent,
  GAA analyst and former All-Ireland winner Joe Brolly expresses his concern over the 2014 deal that allows Sky Sports to air some matches on a pay-per-view basis, saying that it "exemplifies the disregard for the lifeblood" of the GAA.^[50] However, speaking to RTÉ the following day, the new president of the Association, Aogán Ó Fearghail says that the deal has not hurt viewing figures and broadened the reach of Gaelic football by allowing it to be aired to a greater audience, but suggests that now there may be too many televised matches and the number may have to be reduced.^[50]
• 4 March – TV3's Red Rock tackles the issue of arranged marriage with the arrival of two Asian characters, a father and daughter in conflict over the topic.^[51]
• 4 March – RTÉ launches RTÉ Player International, an online service making the broadcaster's content available to international viewers.^[52]
• 5 March – As figures reveal that audience figures for UTV's Ireland Live dropped from 1.5 million in January to 1.3 million in February, Kevin Bakhurst, the managing director of news and current affairs at RTÉ, tells the Evening Herald UTV face a "hard slog" to improve their audience numbers.^[53]
• 5 March – John Martin, a member of the New Land League, says he will make an official complaint to Gardaí following a confrontation with broadcaster Vincent Browne outside a repossessed property in Killiney the previous day. Gorse Hill Manor has been occupied by the group since it was seized by the High Court. Brown was accompanied by a camera crew and journalists, and used footage of his visit on that evening's edition of his show, Tonight with Vincent Browne.^[54]
• 5 March – TV3 announces it is axing the live element of its entertainment series, Xposé, which will return to being pre-recorded. The decision will allow the broadcaster to develop The 7 O'Clock Show as a live show with a similar format to BBC One's The One Show.^[55]
• 7 March – The Irish Independent reports that the Commercial Court is to hear a case brought against TV3 by RTÉ for non-payment of transmission tariffs through 2013 and 2014. The tariffs relate to unpaid fees to 2RN, a subsidiary company of RTÉ that manages the transmission system. The case is scheduled for Monday 9 March.^[56]
• 7 March – A group of 150 protesters gather outside RTÉ's Donnybrook headquarters to demonstrate against their coverage of
  water protests and austerity measures.^[57]
• 8 March – The US drama American Crime debuts on RTÉ2, just three days after making its US television debut on ABC.^[58]
• 8 March – Mary McAleese narrates a documentary about the women's organisation Cumann na mBan on TG4.^[59]
• 9 March – At the Commercial Court, RTÉ is seeking €1m from TV3 for the non payment of digital transmission tariffs through 2013 and 2014.^[60]
• 10 March – In celebration of
  St Patrick's Day, UTV Ireland launches its "Bringing U Home" campaign, which encourages Irish people living overseas to submit greetings videos to friends and relatives, with entries having a chance to win return air tickets to Ireland from wherever they are currently living.^[61]
• 11 March – Analysis of All-Ireland matches from the past five seasons has indicated that Sky Sports succession as second provider of GAA games has had little impact on the majority of supporters as many county matches are not shown live.[62]
• 14 March – Brendan O'Connor confirms that the current series of The Saturday Night Show will be the last. O'Connor will return with a new show in 2016, while Ray D'Arcy will present a replacement show for The Saturday Night Show from the autumn.^[63]
• 18 March – UTV Media confirms it expects UTV Ireland to report £6m in losses over 2015, double its original forecast. The company cites the length of time the channel took to receive its public service status as a major contributing factor, since it could not fully engage with advertisers and viewers until it was established.^[64]
• 18 March – TV3 will host two
  Irish Film and Television Awards ceremonies this year. The first in May will focus on film and television, while the second in October will award achievements in the television industry.^[65]
• 18 March – GAA USA, a four-part series presented by Dara Ó Cinnéide that tells the story of Gaelic football in the United States, debuts on TG4.^[66][67]
• 19 March – Lynda McQuaid is appointed Director of Content at TV3, replacing Jeff Ford.^[68]
• 20 March – Broadcaster Joe Duffy is making a television version of his popular radio programme, Liveline, a pilot of which will be aired by RTÉ over the summer.^[69]
• 22 March – The Sunday Times reports that TV3 believed the decision to grant UTV Ireland public service status was a "fait accompli" that had been decided weeks before its announcement as documents released under the Freedom of Information Act reveal the extent of TV3's objection to the decision.^[70]
• 22 March – RTÉ screens Ireland's 2015 Women's Six Nations Championship match against Scotland live from Cumbernauld.^[71] The game sees Ireland beat Scotland 37–3, meaning Ireland have secured both the 2015 Men's and Women's Six Nations titles.^[72]
• 24 March – TV3 announces the launch of its new nightly news programme,
  TV3 News at 8, a 30-minute bulletin showing at 8.00pm, following a similar format to nightly newscasts across Europe. The programme goes on air from Monday 30 March, and will be presented by Colette Fitzpatrick.^[73]
• 25 March – Speaking at a sitting of the Dáil, former Communications Minister Pat Rabbitte accuses RTÉ of being a "recruiting sergeant" for Sinn Féin and the far left because of its coverage of the Irish Water controversy. The comments are rejected by the broadcaster and Sinn Féin.^[74]
• 26 March – BBC Director-General Tony Hall signs a deal with Northern Ireland Screen which will see an increase in network spending in Northern Ireland. The agreement will also enable an extra £200,000 a year to be invested in drama development, and a £2m annual investment in children’s content.^[75]
• 27 March – TV3 has announced the establishment of a strategic distribution partnership with Sky Vision, which will see its content distributed on the international market.^[76]
• 29 March – Minister for Communications Alex White will include the Six Nations Championship on a list of sporting events that must be made free-to-air on live terrestrial television, it is reported.^[77] White confirms to Cabinet his intention to add the coverage of the tournament to the free-to-air list two days later.^[78]
• 30 March – Sky Sports have secured the rights to Ireland's 2015 Rugby World Cup warm-up games against Scotland on 15 August, and Wales on 29 August.^[79]
• 30 March – Former RTÉ presenter
  Sheena Keane makes her return to television five years after leaving The Afternoon Show with a series on TV3 titled Get the Numbers, Write.^[80]
• 30 March – Following a case brought by three music companies, the High Court orders UPC Ireland, the country’s second largest internet service provider, to take measures to stop the illegal downloading of content.[81]
• 31 March – David McGovern, a fireman based in West Florida, is announced as the winner of UTV Ireland's "Bringing U Home" competition, and wins return tickets to visit his friends and relatives in Ireland.^[82]

April

May

• 1 May – The High Court places a temporary injunction on the broadcast of an RTÉ story about businessman Denis O'Brien until 12 May, while a full hearing on the issue takes place.^[119]
• 1 May – After agreeing a deal with Endemol, TV3 announce they will broadcast
  Channel 5, which is not licensed to broadcast in the Irish Republic.^[121]
• 1 May –
  The Late Late Show stages a debate on Marriage Equality ahead of the 22 May referendum on the issue.^[122][123]
• 1 May – The world's largest television, the 105-inch LG Ultra HD 5K UC9 TV, is unveiled at the Henry Street branch of Arnotts in Dublin, with a price tag of €82,599.^[124]
• 2 May – Music producer
  Daily Star that he is planning a talent show for Irish television following a similar format to Britain's Got Talent.^[125]
• 4 May – Pat Kenny tells
  The Frontline not been cancelled.^[126]
• 5 May – RTÉ One's
  John Waters and Eileen King of Mothers and Fathers Matter for the No campaign.^[127]
• 6 May – TV3's Tonight with Vincent Browne hosts a live studio debate on the upcoming marriage referendum.^[128]
• 7 May – BBC Sport NI announce their coverage of the 2015 North West 200 motorcycle race to be held later this month, which will air on radio and television across Northern Ireland, as well as online.^[129]
• 9 May – Figures released by UPC Ireland indicate the number of subscribers to the service has fallen from 422,700 to 386,500 over the past twelve months. The operator blames an increase in competition for the fall. However, its broadband business is faring better, with an increase from 348,300 to 365,800 subscribers over the same period.^[130]
• 10 May – RTÉ One airs a service of remembrance for the 40 children killed during the Easter Rising, which took place on 7 May at St Patrick's Parish Church, Ringsend, Dublin.^[131]
• 11 May –
  Claire Byrne Live, which features a debate on the upcoming marriage referendum between Simon Coveney TD for the Yes campaign and Senator Rónán Mullen for the No campaign. An average 150,000 tune in for Pat Kenny's show at 9.00pm, UTV Ireland's best figures to date for the 9.00pm timeslot and a 33% increase in viewership, while Claire Byrne's programme at 9.35 receives an average audience of 368,000.^[134][135]
• 11 May – Ireland Live's Alison Comyn chairs a marriage referendum debate from UTV Ireland's Cork studios, featuring representatives from Mothers and Fathers Matter, Yes Equality, Stand Up for Marriage and Labour LGBT.^[136]
• 11 May – TV3's Tonight with Vincent Browne features a live debate from the Headfort Arms Hotel in Kells. A man is seen falling over as Browne introduces the programme, prompting him to comment on the fact to much raucous laughter.^[137][138]
• 12 May – TV3 announces it will air the
  2015 FA Cup Final on 30 May, bringing the FA Cup back to Irish terrestrial television after a 20-year absence.^[139][140]
• 12 May – UTV Ireland's news programme
  Ireland Live at 10 hosts a debate on the Age of Presidential Candidates Referendum (an issue also being decided by a referendum on 22 May) from its Dublin studios.^[141]
• 13 May – Taoiseach Enda Kenny appears as a guest on TV3's Ireland AM.^[142][143]
• 14 May –
  UTV Media adjusts UTV Ireland's expected loss for its first year on air to £8.5m (€11.82), almost three times the original forecast.^[144]
• 14 May – UTV Ireland announces it is moving its early evening edition of Ireland Live from 6.30pm to 5.30pm. The channel will also introduce hourly news updates during the day.^[145][146]
• 15 May – TV3's political editor
  Irish Times article, and declares her support for a Yes vote in the marriage referendum.^[147][148] Halligan steps aside from providing TV3's coverage of the referendum in the wake of her announcement in order to protect the channel's impartiality.^[149]
• 15 May – Comedian Oliver Callan is reminded of RTÉ's controversial policy on impartiality surrounding the marriage referendum after publicly backing a Yes vote.^[150]
• 15 May – Pinewood Studios announce the establishment of an Irish studio with the launch of Pinewood Productions Ireland Limited.^[151]
• 15 May – RTÉ and Pat Kenny dismiss rumours that Kenny was blocked from appearing on Ray D'Arcy's RTÉ radio show ahead of the launch of Pat Kenny in the Round.^[152]
• 16 May – The Irish Independent reports that Communications Minister Alex White is to replace Health Minister Leo Varadkar as the government representative in the final RTÉ marriage referendum debate after a row broke out between Fine Gael and the Labour Party about which of the coalition parties should be represented in the final debate, the government's place in the two previous debates having been taken by Fine Gael TDs.^[153]
• 18 May –
  Thejournal.ie reports that Fianna Fáil—currently the main opposition party—has written to RTÉ to complain about its exclusion from the majority of the broadcaster's marriage referendum debates. Sinn Féin have said they will also complain about their exclusion from the debates.^[154]
• 18 May – Communications Minister Alex White, who is to represent the government in the last of three marriage referendum debates, to be aired by RTÉ the following day, dismisses claims of government tension after RTÉ said that Health Minister
  Miriam O'Callaghan,^[156] while Varadkar speaks for the Yes campaign opposite Patrick Treacy SC on the 18 May edition of Claire Byrne Live, the second edition of that programme to feature a marriage referendum debate.^[135]
• 18 May – UTV's Ireland Live at 10 hosts a debate on the Age of Presidential Candidates referendum from its Galway studios.^[141]
• 18 May – The second guest on Pat Kenny In the Round is Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield. Figures later indicate the programme to have had an audience of 66,000, fewer than half the viewers who tuned into the previous week's opening edition. The show is beaten in the ratings for the 9.00pm timeslot by documentaries on both RTÉ One and TV3—Ireland and the Eurovision attracting a viewership of 351,800 for RTÉ One, and The Battle of Gorse Hill, a documentary about businessman Brian O'Donnell, securing an audience of 74,700 for TV3. An edition of Coronation Street preceding In the Round pulls in an audience of 416,000.^[157]
• 19 May – A second marriage referendum debate on
  John Waters.^[135] Waters also debates with Sinn Féin deputy leader Mary Lou McDonald on UTV's Ireland Live.^[158]
• 21 May – As part of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland's code of practice relating to election coverage, a moratorium on the broadcast of news items that it is deemed could influence the decision of voters in the 22 May marriage referendum comes into effect at 2.00pm.^[159]
• 21 May – The High Court grants businessman Denis O'Brien an injunction against RTÉ preventing them from broadcasting a news story about his banking affairs with Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (IBRC).^[160] The report must now be redacted before the High Court rules on whether a revised version can be aired.^[161]
• 21 May – Charlie Murphy, Brian Gleeson and Sarah Greene will appear in a new RTÉ drama about the Easter Rising. Rebellion, a five-part television series produced by Zodiak Media Ireland, will air in 2016.^[162][163]
• 21 May – TV3 announce their coverage of the
  Louise Duffy and Eoghan Doherty will present a special TV3 IFTA Film and Drama Awards programme on Monday 1 June.^[164]
• 22 May – UTV Ireland airs the second Pride of Ireland Awards, the ceremony having been held at Dublin's Mansion House three days earlier.^[165]
• 22 May – Ireland's national airline, Aer Lingus launches a new €2m television advertising campaign that aims to modernise its image.^[166]
• 23 May – Irish voters back a
  constitutional amendment allowing same-sex marriage.^[167] Vincent Browne presents TV3's coverage of the results of the previous day's marriage referendum in a special programme, Vincent Browne Live from the George, broadcast from Dublin's popular gay nightclub, The George.^[168][169] UTV Ireland provides live updates throughout the day, with a special edition of Ireland Live at 5.30pm.^[141] During RTÉ's coverage of proceedings, Senator Katherine Zappone proposes to her partner, Ann Louise Gilligan live on air.^[170] President Michael D. Higgins signs the Marriage Equality Bill into law in August.^[171]
• 23 May – The Voice of Ireland presenter Eoghan McDermott backtracks from a tweet he sent out shortly after 10.00pm the previous evening protesting at RTÉ's marriage referendum gagging order. McDermott says that he posted the tweet, which included the words "Fuck you RTÉ" because he was in a "heightened emotional state".^[172][173]
• 23 May – Sweden's Måns Zelmerlöw wins the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest with "Heroes".^[174]
• 24 May – Gaelic football pundit Joe Brolly is forced to make an on-air apology during RTÉ's The Sunday Game after describing the tactics of a team as being ugly, and comparable with the looks of RTÉ colleague Marty Morrissey.^[175]
• 25 May – UTV airs Pat Kenny's interview with Mickey Harte.^[176] The third edition of Pat Kenny in the Round to air on UTV Ireland features an interview with singer Lulu, and draws an audience of 95,000. The programme is aired against RTÉ's Crimecall, which is watched by 365,000 viewers.^[177]
• 27 May – Ryle Nugent, RTÉ's Group Head of Sport, issues a statement saying that he has spoken to Joe Brolly about "his ill-conceived attempt at humour [which was] inappropriate and extremely hurtful and had no place" in The Sunday Game. Nugent says that the matter is now closed.^[178][179]
• 28 May – A statement made to the Dáil by Independent TD Catherine Murphy concerning the relationship between media owner Denis O'Brien and IBRC cannot be broadcast by Irish media because of the present injunction against RTÉ. Murphy was allowed to speak on the matter because of the law of Parliamentary privilege that allows parliamentarians to speak on issues without threat of legal action, and the speech is broadcast by Oireachtas TV, which airs proceedings from the Oireachtas. In the wake of the incident, RTÉ announces that it will seek High Court permission to report the contents of Murphy's statement.^[180][181]
• 30 May – RTÉ announces plans for a €20,000 revamp of its daily
  Angelus slot, and will invite film makers to suggest new ideas for the 6.00pm broadcast.^[182]

• 1 June – Having taken over the broadcast rights from RTÉ, TV3 airs the 2015 Irish Film and Television Awards ceremony, which took place on 24 May. The ceremony is watched by an audience of 121,100, compared to 382,000 in 2014. TV3's coverage of the IFTAs is beaten in the ratings by an interview with Shane Filan on UTV's Pat Kenny in the Round, which draws a viewership of 143,000.^[183]
• 2 June – Following a legal challenge brought by RTÉ, the High Court rules that Ireland's media are free to report Catherine Murphy's Dáil statement about Denis O'Brien and IBRC, and any other comments made under the law of Parliamentary privilege.^[184] On 16 June it is reported that O'Brien has launched legal proceedings against the Irish government and the Dáil over Murphy's statement, which O'Brien's lawyers feel was a "breach of parliamentary privilege".^[185]
• 2 June – UTV Ireland announces Daniel and Majella's B&B Road Trip, a six-part series that will see singer Daniel O'Donnell and his wife, Majella, visiting bed and breakfast establishments around Ireland. Filming will begin in July.^[186][187] UTV Ireland's announcement of the show, scheduled to air in October, prompts a rush of applications from B&B owning fans eager to have the O'Donnells as their guests.^[188]
• 3 June – Justice Donald Binchy, the judge who granted an injunction against RTÉ over its Denis O'Brien story, publishes a redacted summary of his decision. He says the public is not entitled to know "every detail of the affairs and operation of IBRC", and because RTÉ had not proved the occurrence of any inappropriate activity by either party. Although the summary is redacted, it is less heavily so because of Catherine Murphy's statement in the Dáil, which put some of the information into the public domain.^[189]
• 4 June – TV3's soap Red Rock airs for the final time before taking a summer break. It will return on 2 September.^[190] The season finale ends with a dramatic cliffhanger as Garda Adrijan Kosos (played by Boyko Krastanov) is hit by a car after stopping a motorist. The episode is watched by an average audience of 183,000.^[191]
• 6 June – To celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of
  Nationwide special from Sligo on 10 June.^[192]
• 8 June – Debut of Whiskey Business, a four-part TV3 series charting the Teeling family's attempt to revive the Teeling whiskey brand and establish Ireland's first new whiskey distillery in more than a century.[193]^[194][195]
• 8 June – Daniel and Majella O'Donnell are guests on the final edition of Pat Kenny in the Round to air before the summer.^[196]
• 9 June – UTV Ireland announces that it has appointed Radio Kerry journalist Alison Nulty as its Southern Correspondent to be based at its Cork studios.^[197]
• 9 June –
  Independent News and Media dismisses rumours that it could buy TV3, with a spokesman describing the scenario as "highly unlikely".^[198]
• 12 June – RTÉ fails in its bid to overturn the injunction granted to Denis O'Brien preventing the broadcaster from reporting his financial relationship with IBRC. However, the injunction is to be amended to take into account developments since it was originally imposed.[199]
• 12 June – The
  Doughty Hanson.^[200]
• 12 June – Figures obtained by the
  Evening Herald indicate that UTV Ireland's news programme Ireland Live has had an average audience of 17,500 since moving to the 5.30pm slot, with the 10 June edition attracting a viewership as low as 7,000.^[201]
• 13 June – TV3 have scrapped plans to revive the dating game show
  Blind Date after previously buying the format from ITV, the Evening Herald reports. The decision comes shortly after Lucy Kennedy, who was to have hosted the show, gave an interview to Irish Tatler in which she spoke of her delight at being picked as the show's presenter and said filming would begin later in the year.^[202][203]
• 14 June – The Sunday Independent reports that
  Davy Stockbrokers have cut their profit forecasts for UTV Media as a result of the losses made by UTV Ireland, with predictions that the channel will not return a profit until 2018.^[204]
• 15 June – TV3 reaches an out-of-court settlement with RTÉ over €1m of unpaid fees for digital transmission services.[205]
• 17 June – The High Court grants RTÉ permission to broadcast all but two paragraphs of its report about Denis O'Brien's banking relationship with IBRC.^[206]
• 19 June – UTV airs the annual Spirit of Northern Ireland Awards, an event celebrating ordinary people in Northern Ireland who have achieved extraordinary things.^[207]
• 21 June – Black Work, a three-part crime thriller starring Sheridan Smith, makes its Irish television debut on UTV Ireland.^[208]
• 22 June – UTV Ireland's flagship news programme, Ireland Live, hits a new low in terms of viewership with an audience of 4,700 for its 5.30pm broadcast. The channel comes in for criticism two days later from TV3's Director of Content, Lynda McQuaid, who accuses UTV of failing to hold on to viewers outside its broadcast of Coronation Street and Emmerdale, comments she makes at the launch of TV3's autumn schedule.^[209]
• 23 June – UTV's lenders agree to ease their borrowing terms after earnings for UTV Ireland were recently downgraded.^[210]
• 23 June – The Financial Times reports that Liberty Global are in talks to buy TV3.^[211]
• 28 June – UTV Ireland's Managing Director, Michael Wilson tells the
  Sunday Business Post that the channel is planning to rebrand in the coming months in an attempt to increase its audience share. Changes will include a new onscreen identity and a review of programme scheduling.^[212]
• 30 June –
  Jade Lynch guest presents TV3's Xposé.^[213]

• 4 October – Ireland's final group stage Rugby World Cup match against Italy draws an audience of 1.38 million. Of those watching the game, an average 956,600 do so on TV3, with figures peaking at 1.18 million, giving the channel its highest ever ratings.^[264][265]
• 5 October –
  Independent.ie reveals that broadcaster Chris Donoghue is to leave his job as co-anchor of UTV Ireland's nightly news programme, Ireland Live in December, less than a year after the channel's launch.^[266]
• 5 October – UTV Ireland hire broadcaster Alan Cantwell as a news editor.[267]
• 8 October – Broadcaster
  Irish Sun of his shock the UTV Ireland cancelled his chat show, In the Round, claiming that he heard the news from its producers, Coco Television, rather than UTV itself.^[268]
• 11 October – TV3's coverage of the 2015 Rugby World Cup continues to break ratings records, with Ireland's match against France seen by an average 1.15 million viewers, peaking at 1.42 million. Figures suggest a total of 1.69 million tuned in to the game's coverage on TV3, which includes the game itself, as well as pre and post match analysis.^[269]
• 19 October – RTÉ announces that it will revamp its daily
  Angelus slot, introducing a new set of short films featuring ordinary Irish people pausing to reflect during the Angelus. There will also be a People's Angelus on Fridays where viewers will be invited to submit their own footage. RTÉ says the new look Angelus will give people "of all faiths and none some quiet space in a hectic day-to-day world".^[270]
• 19 October – ITV agrees a £100m deal with
  UTV Media plc to buy its television assets. UTV Media plans to rebrand its remaining assets, but ITV says it has no plans to rebrand UTV as ITV Northern Ireland.^[271]
• 22 October – Three weeks after being employed on a six-month maternity cover contract, broadcaster Alan Cantwell announces his intention to leave the position of late news editor at UTV Ireland to return to TV3, describing the latter as his "alma mater" which will provide him with more "security and certainty".[272]
• 22 October –
  Irish Film and Television Awards.^[273]
• 26 October – Following reports that the UTV Ireland flagship news bulletin,
  Irish Film and Television Awards, "viewing figures aren't what makes us".^[274]
• 26 October – Daniel and Majella's B&B Road Trip debuts on UTV Ireland, giving the channel their best viewing figures to date. The first episode of the programme is watched by an average of 322,000 on UTV Ireland, while it is seen by a further 192,000 on UTV.[275]^[276] The series moves to RTÉ in 2016.^[277]
• 28 October – The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) have rejected a complaint from a female viewer about an item on TV3's Ireland AM from February 2015 that featured a fake penis. The item, concerning contraception, included a demonstration of how to properly put on a condom, winning the show praise from viewers, and a single complaint that appropriate warnings had not been given before the segment. BAI found that at least three warnings were given before the piece was shown, making viewers fully aware of the nature of the content.^[278]