Radio Career
In the late 1990s D'Arcy moved to a radio career on Today FM. There he took over the mid-morning show from Tim Kelly which went out from 10:00 to 12:45. This slot was later changed to 9:00 to 12:00, entering direct competition with The Gerry Ryan Show on RTÉ 2fm. He credits much of his show's success to the team that has served him over the years: Jenny Kelly, Mairead Farrell and Will Hanafin.
The D'Arcy Show has achieved something of a cult status due to some of its quirky segments. One of the most popular of these is called "Fix-It Friday", which, as is evident by its name, takes place each Friday. It involves D'Arcy and his assistant Jenny Kelly's attempts to find the solution to any question the listenership request of them. Another segment is the "Odd One Out Quiz" which takes place every day the show is on air. This involves D'Arcy asking a phone-in contestant a series of questions each involving three items, one of which is the odd one out. A regular example would be two consonants and a vowel. The fast-paced delivery is usually enough to unhinge the contestant although D'Arcy is usually generous in his delivery and will often repeat questions after the allotted time has run out.
The D'Arcy Show has also seen many unusual innovations. For instance D'Arcy and his production team, Jenny Kelly, Mairéad Farrell and Will Hanafin, once performed a spoof version of the OK Go hit "Here It Goes Again" in D'Arcy's back garden in frozen conditions. In June 2008 D'Arcy was one of over 1,200 people who stripped naked to participate in an Irish Spencer Tunick art project and he later spoke of it on his show.
On the weekend of 21–22 March 2009, an unknown person placed satirical naked pictures of Brian Cowen in the National Gallery of Ireland and the gallery of the Royal Hibernian Academy. The artist, Conor Casby, emailed The Ray Darcy Show anonymously, claiming responsibility for the creation of the paintings, but not their hanging. Gardaí subsequently raided the Today FM studios and the producer, Will Hanafin, was asked to hand over the emails, claiming that the placing of the paintings constituted indecency, incitement and criminal damage. Hanafin refused to provide the emails without a warrant.
D'Arcy has played a major role in Today FM’s Shave Or Dye Campaign.
D'Arcy has been approached by RTÉ over the years and has considered leaving Today FM.
Read more about this topic: Ray D'Arcy
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