Broadcaster Lynette Fay has announced she is leaving the BBC. She has been with BBC Northern Ireland since 2001 and has presented her own afternoon show on Radio Ulster since 2019. Fay also presents the weekly Folk Club programme.
Announcing her departure on air, Fay said it was time for her to "move on, evolve and embrace the new opportunities awaiting me".
Fay joined the BBC as a producer and presenter with BBC Radio Ulster’s Irish language programme, Blas.
She also presented Opry an Iúir alongside Daniel O'Donnell.
Fay, who's from Dungannon, thanked listeners and viewers "for opening their hearts and homes to me"
"Amplifying local life through the female lens and sparking conversations that have made people sit up and take notice has given me memories to hold dear for many years, while Folk Club has let me into the heart of our vibrant, flourishing folk music scene, a role I will always cherish," she said in a statement.
Fay was named Presenter of the Year (Sound) at the Celtic Media Festival Awards in June 2024.
Emma Dunseith, BBC Northern Ireland's head of content production, said: “We understand that Lynette is keen to pursue new opportunities outside the BBC.
"We’re grateful for her on-air contribution to many different programmes over the years.”
The final programme on The Lynette Fay Show will be Thursday 26 September.
Her last Folk Club programme will be Saturday 28 September.
Ms Fay, from Dungannon, Co Tyrone, revealed the news on Thursday.
She is an award-winning presenter and producer, working in television and radio who has hosted the Lynette Fay Show on BBC Radio Ulster every afternoon, Monday to Thursday.
At the end of the show, she said: “I have a bit of news for you. We were talking earlier in the month that September is the time for renewal, new energy and pressing the reset button.
“And I’m doing exactly that because I’ve made one of the biggest and most difficult decisions of my life in recent weeks and that is that I’m leaving BBC Radio Ulster.
“I walked through the doors of Broadcasting House in Belfast here 23 years ago and in all of that time I’ve had the incredible privilege of meeting and hearing from so many listeners and viewers.
“Thanks to everybody who’s given me their time and to the many who have opened their hearts and their homes and my job is nothing without people, their stories and their trust in me to help them find their voice.
“And I also have to thank the many phenomenal musicians who have given of their time to uplift us all with their extraordinary talents, those who have come into the studio, performed at outside broadcasts, all of the brilliant colleagues that I’ve been lucky enough to work alongside as well.
“And all the shows I’ve worked on recently, particularly this one, The Lynette Fay Show, and Folk Club, they have grown, they resonate deeply with the Radio Ulster audience and I am so, so proud of that.”
She continued: “We have amplified local life through the female lens on this programme, sparking conversations that have made people sit up and take notice.
“We have normalised talking about women’s health, hearing women’s stories and platforming music made by women, so we’ve really built something special here in the afternoons.
“And then Folk Club, it has led me into the heart of our vibrant, flourishing folk music scene, that’s a role I will always cherish, it’s just been an honour to platform and showcase the talent of local musicians.
“It’s also been beautiful to be part of people’s lives, to be part of your day, your week, for such a long time – half my life as someone reminded me recently.
“That mentioned, life has a way of reminding us just how fragile it is and I have given this decision so much thought and I know this is the right moment for me to step back from full-time broadcasting, for now.
“A daily show takes a lot of commitment and high energy. I have loads of ideas and dreams that I would like to follow and I need to make time to give all of them a go.
“I love radio, I love people, connecting with people, and I will continue to do that, it’s simply time for me to move on, evolve and embrace the new opportunities awaiting me and my family.”
Speaking in Irish she said, ‘life is only a spell’, and “it’s just time for me to renew”.
Her last show will be next Thursday, September 26.
Meanwhile, her last Folk Club programme will be Saturday 28 September.
Emma Dunseith, BBC Northern Ireland's head of content production, said: “We understand that Lynette is keen to pursue new opportunities outside the BBC.
"We’re grateful for her on-air contribution to many different programmes over the years.”
Ms Fay attended St Patrick’s Girls’ Academy and graduated with a BA International in Irish and History and HDip in Communications in NUI Galway.
Broadcasting in Irish and English on BBC Radio Ulster since 2001, Ms Fay is now well known on the local airwaves.
She has presented every type of programme from current affairs, to arts to sport.
Ms Fay has been nominated numerous times for her radio work and has numerous PPI awards to her credit.
In the world of television, Lynette also works as a producer and presenter and has a number of documentaries to her credit, in Irish and English.
She presented the hugely popular BBC series Blas Ceoil for four years, and is an integral part of the presenting team for the Ifta award winning Fleadh TV since the programme’s inception.
Alongside Daniel O’Donnell, she has co-presented five series of country music show Opry an Iúir for BBC NI/TG4, and she is the voice of the hugely popular BBC series Keepin Er Country. Ms Fay has also presented BBC NI’s BBC Music Day live show from Belfast’s Crumlin Road Gaol.
A history graduate, she also fronted a 1916 documentary Faoi Gheall ag Éirinn for the BBC.
Behind the camera, Ms Fay has produced a number of documentaries for TG4 and BBC including Michaela, Mo Dheirfúir, Luí na Talún, It’s a Blas, Imirce, An tAmhrán Gaeilge and Píobairí Ard Mhacha – the story of the internationally renowned Armagh Pipers’ Club.
Besides broadcast media, Ms Fay has worked as an event MC, hosting community and corporate events on a regular basis, and focuses her charity work on the Southern Area Hospice, which is based in Newry.
