Fair City stars are said to be relieved after RTÉ’s plans for the future “sparked real worry”.
The broadcaster’s New Direction document, which was released on November 14, set out its plan for “the radical transformation of the organisation”.
The document states that the broadcaster is looking to increasing commissioning by 50% by the year 2028, meaning less RTÉ projects will be produced in-house.
According to The Irish Sun, both Fair City and the Late Late Show will remain in-house RTÉ productions.
The outlet reported that worried actors have been assured by bosses that it won’t be sold off to an independent company, amid their fears there would be a major cast cull.
A Fair City insider said: “There was real worry among some of the cast about whether their characters would survive if an outside company took over making the show for RTÉ.”
“RTÉ have told the actors that Fair City will not be affected by any of the announcements yesterday.”
“It really put a lid on what was a concerning couple of days for everyone.”
Meanwhile, RTÉ insiders have said that the Late Late Show will also remain an in-house production.
A source told the publication: “The Late Late Show and Fair City are two of the biggest money spinners for RTE and they won’t be letting them any independents get their hands on them.”
“New host Patrick Kielty has done a great job re-inventing the Late Late and the Covid Lockdown proved it’s more than just an entertainment show, it can used for talking to the nation in a time of crisis.”
