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Tony Connelly

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For the Irish hurler, see Tony Connolly.

Tony Connelly
Connelly (centre)
Born (1964-12-21) 21 December 1964 (age 59)
County Antrim, Northern Ireland
EducationTrinity College Dublin
OccupationJournalist
Notable credit(s)Europe Editor, RTÉ News and Current Affairs
ChildrenMatteo, Jack, Felix

Tony Connelly (born 21 December 1964,[1] in County Antrim) is an Irish journalist and author. He is Europe Editor for RTÉ News and Current Affairs.[2]

Connelly has written for other agencies and publications, including Time, United Press International and the Irish Independent. His views have also been sought by Euronews, which considers him a respected journalist and "experienced Euro watcher".[3] Connelly's first book Don't Mention the Wars: A Journey Through European Stereotypes was published in 2009.

Early and personal life

Connelly was born in 1964. He lived in Portstewart, before moving to Derry at the age of six. He studied English in Trinity College Dublin. After failing to qualify for a course in the National Institute for Higher Education, he moved to London to work on a construction site. He was laid off after his first day.[4]

He lives in Brussels. His son Matteo lives in Rome.[4]

Career

Connelly's journalistic career began writing for the Derry Journal and the Oxford Courier. He returned to Ireland in 1990.[4] He gained work in the Irish Independent, Evening Herald, Time and United Press International. He joined RTÉ in 1994 as a television and radio reporter.[5]

Connelly has reported from conflicts in Rwanda, Angola, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Georgia and Gaza.[2] In 2001 he was appointed Europe correspondent for RTÉ News and Current Affairs,[5][6] along with Sean Whelan.[7] He won an ESB National Media Award in 1998 and a second in 2001 in the Campaigning and Social Issues category.[8] In 2007, he examined the development of biofuels for RTÉ.[9] In 2009, at least one newspaper indicated he might replace Charlie Bird as RTÉ's Washington Correspondent should Bird opt out.[10] Bird did prematurely leave his post, replaced by Richard Downes.[11] That year he travelled via train around Eastern Europe for RTÉ, through Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland and Germany, to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the collapse of the Berlin Wall.[12][13]

In 2011, Connelly was appointed RTÉ's Europe Editor. In February 2022, while Connelly was reporting on the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine in Kyiv, he was forced to shelter in a basement amid fears of further Russian air strikes.[14]

Bibliography

  • Don't Mention the Wars: A Journey Through European Stereotypes (2009). This book details European stereotypical views.[5][6] Historian Bridget Hourican in The Irish Times notes the author "has plunged straight in: are all French waiters rude, Germans innately bellicose, Swedes depressed, Spaniards obsessed with death"? Connelly confronts the stereotypes of ten EU countries, visiting them all — "In Paris he’s served in a swanky restaurant; in Spain he attends a bullfight; in Sweden he looks at a skyscraper where none of the windows opens (to prevent suicide)".[15] The book was launched at the European Union building on Dawson Street in Dublin on 25 November 2009.[16]
  • Brexit & Ireland (2017).[17]

References

  1. ^ Tony Connelly on Twitter: it’s my birthday 21 December 2019
  2. ^ a b "Tony Connelly". New Island Books. Archived from the original on 16 June 2011. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  3. ^ "Nicolas Sarkozy: The view from Brussels". Euronews. 21 December 2007. Retrieved 11 December 2009.
  4. ^ a b c "I soon realised that being a good newshound meant being pushy, being inquisitive – none of which came naturally to me then". Sunday Tribune. 6 December 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2009.[permanent dead link]
  5. ^ a b c "Tony Connelly – author interview". The Afternoon Show. 24 November 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  6. ^ a b Tony Connelly (26 September 2009). "Did you hear the one about the German comic in the Essex club". Irish Independent. Retrieved 11 December 2009.
  7. ^ "RTÉ announce appointments". The Irish Times. 8 August 2001. Retrieved 10 December 2009.
  8. ^ "RTÉ Scoope 9 ESB National Media Awards". IFTN. 8 November 2001. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  9. ^ Tony Connelly (8 October 2007). "Biofuels: The next generation". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. Retrieved 11 December 2009.
  10. ^ John Meagher (25 July 2009). "Rare sightings of the Bird man of Capitol Hill". Irish Independent. Retrieved 11 December 2009.
  11. ^ "Richard Downes to take up Washington role". RTÉ News and Current Affairs. 26 April 2010. Retrieved 26 April 2010.
  12. ^ Tony Connelly (30 October 2009). "Europe's Revolution – 20 years on". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. Retrieved 11 December 2009.
  13. ^ Tony Connelly (15 November 2009). "My Week: Tony Connelly". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 11 December 2009.
  14. ^ O'Shea, Cormac; Kent, David (25 February 2022). "RTE's Tony Connelly 'moved to basement' in Kyiv amid fears of Russian strikes". Irish Mirror. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
  15. ^ Bridget Hourican (8 December 2009). "An entertaining exploration of the truth behind European stereotypes". The Irish Times. Retrieved 11 December 2009.
  16. ^ Lorna Nolan (26 November 2009). "Ryan reveals he won't be rushing up aisle". Evening Herald. Retrieved 11 December 2009.
  17. ^ Staunton, Denis (14 October 2017). "Brexit & Ireland review: A harsh reality check at the Border". The Irish Times. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
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