It's almost the end of summer which means it's about time we were done with all the repeats and Best Of's on the telly box and got ourselves some new TV shows to sink our teeth into.

RTÉ launched their autumn season today announcing new home-produced drama, comedy and documentaries including Amy Huberman's new show 'Finding Joy', Sharon Horgan's new series 'Women on the Verge' and a new series called 'Taken Down', from the team behind 'Love/Hate' (in main image above).

Some of Ireland's best known faces joined RTÉ Director-General Dee Forbes in Montrose today to celebrate the launch of the new schedule.

Speaking at the launch, Dee Forbes said: "This new season of programmes on RTÉ One, RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player is a strong demonstration of RTÉ's commitment to Irish public life and our island's unique and merging cultures. Today, we have launched a collection of new home-produced drama, comedy, arts, entertainment, documentary and lifestyle programming that showcases an ever-broadening range of perspectives, with new voices, new faces and new themes. From the violent birth of our nation, captured in both drama and documentary, to the modern day heroes of the Rotunda Hospital - and sprinkled through with high-octane entertainment and sport - this new season explores all sides of Irish life, past and present.

"This blend of in-house and commissioned programming is a statement of intent; as the back-bone of the industry, RTÉ has to, wants to and needs to invest in Ireland's audio-visual creative industry. RTÉ wants to do more, and the new season sees us take decisive steps in this direction."

See the lineup below:

DRAMA & COMEDY

 

- Taken Down – The creative team behind Love/Hate, Spiral Pictures' Stuart Carolan (writer/ executive producer), Suzanne McAuley (executive producer) and David Caffrey (director) are joined by best-selling novelist Jo Spain to bring this brand new crime series to RTÉ and international audiences. The series centres around the investigation into the violent death of a young Nigerian migrant found abandoned close to a Direct Provision Centre. Stars: Aissa Maiga; Lynn Rafferty; Brian Gleeson; Orla Fitzgerald and Barry Ward.

 

- Resistance – Set during the War of Independence, four years after the events of Rebellion, Resistance follows our characters as they fight for their lives and their future. We explore how the events of the War of Independence, culminating in Bloody Sunday, change their lives, their sense of themselves, their families and their society. Starring: Brian Gleeson, Simone Kirby, Natasha O’Keeffe, Michael Ford-Fitzgerald and Jordanne Jones

 

- Mother’s Day – The story of two mothers on either side of the Irish Sea for whom the Warrington Bombing had a profound, life-changing impact. Starring Vicky McClure, Anna Maxwell Martin, Daniel Mays and David Wilmot. A BBC production in association with RTÉ.

 

- Doing Money – The true story of Ana, snatched from the streets of London and put into sex slavery in Ireland. Stars Karen Hassan (The Fall) and Alex Secareanu (God’s Own Country). A BBC production in association with RTÉ.

 

- Death and Nightingales – The story of one young woman’s struggle to control her own destiny in Northern Ireland in the 1880s. A BBC production in association with RTÉ and starring Ann Skelly, Matthew Rhys and Jamie Dornan.

 

- Finding Joy – Written by and starring Amy Huberman as Joy, a woman who finds herself thrust into the limelight as she tries to get over a break-up. Also starring Aisling Bea, Laura Whitmore and Jennifer Rainsford.

 

 

- Women on the Verge – Darkly comic tale about three friends whose lives are going in the wrong direction. Written by Sharon Horgan and Lorna Martin and starring Horgan, Kerry Condon, Eileen Walsh and Nina Sosanya. Co-produced by UKTV and RTÉ.

 

- Killing Eve – RTÉ viewers get to see the hit new assassin drama first. Stars Sandra Oh as an MI5 officer hunting down a talented psychopathic assassin (Jodie Comer). Also stars Fiona Shaw and Owen McDonnell.

 

RETURNING: Mr Mercedes; The Big Bang Theory; Young Sheldon; Vikings, Homeland, Bridget & Eamon, The Young Offenders, Grey’s Anatomy, The Tommy Tiernan Show, Blue Bloods; Mrs Brown’s Boys Christmas and New Year Specials.

 

 

ENTERTAINMENT

 

- Marty and Bernard’s Road Trip (Working Title) – Marty Morrissey and Bernard O’Shea continue their Dancing with the Stars bromance, taking to the road in a series of road trips discovering everything from extreme male grooming to surviving in the wilderness Bear Grylls style.

 

- Podge & Rodge – Ballydung Manor is flinging open its doors again for celebrity roasting and scorching music acts. Joining them is new co-host in Doireann Garrihy.

 

- Brendan O’Connor’s Time Out – Brendan O’Connor gets up close and personal with people in the public eye, discussing the big moments that have turned out to define their lives and have made them the person they are today.

 

- Vogue – Vogue Williams is back with three new documentaries delving into the world of social media and modern relationships – checking out the life of an Instagrammer; trial by social media; and asking is monogamy dead.

 

- Ireland’s Fittest Family – New host Kathryn Thomas joins coaches Anna Geary, Davy Fitzgerald, Donncha O’Callaghan and Derval O’Rourke for the most ambitious series of the family fitness challenge show yet.

 

- Mini Moguls – Five teenagers apply for the opportunity of a lifetime – a chance to meet the famed, mysterious and dashing YouTuber, Max Mogul but as they compete for the chance to become rich and famous themselves, it becomes clear that all is not as it seems.

 

Returning: Dancing With The Stars: The Late Late Show; The Late Late Toy Show; The Ray D’Arcy Show; Winning Streak; Eurovision Song Contest; Rose of Tralee; Up for the Match; Pat Shortt’s Music from D’Telly; Fleadh Cheoil; Brendan O’Connor’s Cutting Edge; Bernard Dunne’s Mythical Heroes.

 

 

FACTUAL & LIFESTYLE

 

- Sea Swimming – Documentary following eight people whose sea swimming has helped them overcome grief, manage mental and physical health or given them a chance to hit the reset button.

 

- Our Mental Health – Documentary following young Irish people as they open up about their mental health struggles to help cast light on our understanding of depression and anxiety.

 

- One Day – The One Day documentary strand goes behind the scenes for 24 hours in three more areas of Irish life – covering beauty, tourism and cleaning/waste.

 

- Keepers of the Flame – Emmy winner Nuala O’Connor tells the story of generations dealing with the consequences of war and civil war.

 

-  Philly McMahon – The Hardest Hit – Philly McMahon, who lost his brother to addiction, explores the underbelly of illicit drug use and makes a case for decriminalising drugs in Ireland.

 

- Life Before Independence - presented by Catriona Crowe, documents what everyday life was like for the ordinary citizens living during that extraordinary period in our history.

 

- Let It Linger - Documentary celebrating the life and legacy of the late Dolores O'Riordan.

 

-  Daniel and Majella’s USA Road Trip – Daniel and Majella O’Donnell head to America, travelling from Chicago to North Dakota in an RV. Where they go and what they do will be up to the fans and the good people of the Mid-West.

 

- The Irish Revolution – Three-part landmark documentary narrated by Cillian Murphy telling the story of the Irish revolution from its origins through to the Civil War. Produced by Tyrone and Create One productions for RTÉ One in association with UCC.

 

- Growing Old Live (Working Title) – Ireland’s leading scientists and researchers unlock the mysteries of the human lifetime from 0 to 100 across three consecutive nights, live in front of a studio audience. Produced by Loosehorse in partnership with RTÉ and Science Foundation Ireland.

 

- Brendan O’Carroll’s Britain (Working Title) – Brendan O’Carroll sets out to explore the sometimes-turbulent yet historic bonds of identity between Britain and Ireland, discovering the contribution the Irish emigrant community has made to building Britain.

 

- Election 1918 Election 1918, presented by David McCullagh, explores how modern television would report an election that saw the rise of Sinn Fein, the electoral emergence of the Unionists in Ulster, the abstention of the left and the enfranchisement of Irish women.

 

- Stephen Byrne - Leaving Again ­– Broadcaster Stephen Byrne shredded his original Leaving Cert results before opening them but now he’s doing the unthinkable and sitting it all over again.

 

- The John Pauls – The stories of some of the one in ten people called John Paul after the Pope’s 1979 visit and how their lives reflect how Ireland has changed in the intervening decades.

 

- Guns and Rosaries - Martin Sheen narrates this fascinating documentary on Fr Patrick Peyton, the Irish-American priest who brought Hollywood celebrities and millions across the globe to their knees in praying the Rosary.

 

- Dr Eva’s Great Escape - This three-part documentary series follows Dr Eva Orsmond and her South African husband, Wyatt, as they pursue a dream to transform a rundown Portuguese hotel into a destination weight loss hotel in the sun.

 

- We Need to Talk About Mam – Brendan Courtney and his mum Nuala embark on a cross-generational journey to discover the realities of growing old in a country that doesn’t seem to be sympathetic or supportive of its rapidly aging population.

 

- Whistleblower – After publication of the Disclosures Tribunal report, Katie Hannon will present an in-depth documentary on the events leading up to the establishment of this unprecedented public enquiry and the inside story of the Tribunal itself.

 

- Who Do You Think You Are? –Six very different Irish celebrities – Damien Dempsey, Pat Shortt, Laura Whitmore, Bertie Ahern, Adrian Dunbar and Samantha Power - embark on a quest to uncover their own family history.

 

- Wingman – Baz Ashmawy plays wingman as he guides his charges on a journey toward making their dreams become a reality. No dream is too big or too small for the Wingman.

 

- I, Dolours – A cinematic yet intimate and complex portrait of Dolours Price, militant IRA activist, hunger striker and dissident Republican who two years before she died gave a filmed interview on condition that it would not be broadcast in her lifetime. Now for the first time her story can be told in full and entirely in her own words.

 

- Now You See Me – Four part series with Irish drivers swapping their cars for bikes in a week-long commuter challenge and checking out some of the best and worst cycle cities across Europe.

 

-  Dermot Bannon’s Homes - Ireland’s favourite architect packs his bags once more and goes on a road trip to visit some of the world’s most amazing homes, travelling as far as Australia.

 

- Blue Diamond – One Love – Following a group of drama students with intellectual disabilities as they form their own touring stage company.

 

- How to Be Good With Money – Eoin McGee helps a household get to grips with their finances as they work toward a clear goal or aspiration, with a full financial audit and clear financial plan.

 

- Billionaire B’n’B – Yasmine Akram finds out where the rich and the famous spend their leisure time as she test drives some of the most stunning high end rentals on the planet.

 

- Orla Tinsley – Charting Orla Tinsley’s journey as she faces the long wait for a double lung transplant in New York.

 

- Our Lives in Property: Oxmantown Road – The story of Ireland’s property market as experienced by the residents on one Dublin street over the past 50 years, from boom to bust and back again.

 

- Dearbhail McDonald: Fertility Shock - We go on an intimate journey with journalist Dearbhail McDonald as she explores how fewer children, combined with an ageing population, is storing up a very real demographic time-bomb for Ireland.

 

- Brendan Grace – Funny Man – Combining archive footage, interviews with friends, family and fans, for the first time ever, Brendan Grace lays his life and career bare in a revealing portrait of Ireland’s favourite funny man.

 

- Féile – An Turas go Tipp! – Irish language documentary celebrating the early 90s music festival that holds a special place in the hearts of a generation of Irish people.

 

- Cosáin Cheol – Documentary exploring the modernisation of traditional music on the Irish and Scottish scenes over the past 60 years.

 

- Phil Lynott: Scéalta ón Old Town – A half-hour documentary that tells the story behind one of the most iconic Irish pop music videos of all time, Phil Lynott's 'Old Town'.

 

- Neven’s Spanish Food Trails – Neven visits Andalusia in the south west of Spain, trying a huge range of local produce, and cooking a dish inspired by the food he has discovered at each location.

 

Returning: Home of the Year; First Dates Ireland; Home Rescue (formerly Desperate Houses); Find Me A Home; Liveline Callback; Donal Skehan’s Meals in Minutes; Taste of Home; 10 Things to Know, Eco Eye; This Crowded House; Ireland’s Rich List; Operation Transformation; Nationwide; The Geansaí; Ar Son na Poblactha, First Dates Ireland; Today with Maura and Daithí; Getaways

 

 

ARTS & CULTURE

 

- Citizen Lane - Feature-length docu-drama written by Mark O'Halloran, directed by Thaddeus O'Sullivan and starring Tom Vaughan Lawlor as Sir Hugh Lane. It tells the story of one of Ireland's great philanthropists: the aesthete, art collector and socialite Hugh Lane.

 

- The Abbey: A Riot of Their Own - Observational documentary following two Scottish directors through their first year at the helm of Ireland’s National Theatre.

 

- Shooting the Darkness - Film examining how press photographers in Northern Ireland transitioned from light and breezy photocalls, cheque presentations and handshakes to recording bombings, shootings and terror, their images emblazoned on front pages of newspapers across the world. Co-production with Arte and the BAI.

 

- Street Art Following the fortunes of some of Ireland’s most controversial and successful street artists to see how their work is fast redefining the role of the visual arts in modern-day Ireland.

 

- Chester Beatty – Honorary Irishman ­– On the 50th anniversary of his death, this film celebrates the great collector and philanthropist, examining why be became a benefactor to Ireland and its first honorary citizen.

 

- Great Lighthouses of Ireland The series breaks new ground in looking at the heritage of the coastal sentinels which helped to ensure the island’s survival and guarded the trade routes into Ireland and the western approaches into Europe. We tell the stories of the buildings, the people, and what they witnessed.

 

- Schrodinger – What is Life? – Nobel Prize winner Prof Erwin Schrödinger fled to Ireland to escape Nazi persecution in 1938 and went onto do some of his greatest work in Ireland. This documentary explores the legacy of his a 1943 lecture given at Trinity whose impact continues to affect us all today.

 

Returning: The An Post Irish Book Awards

 

 

SPORT

 

- 1982: Prayers of the Faithful – This is the story of when the most unfancied team to ever win an All-Ireland football title - Offaly - beat a Kerry team considered to be the greatest in GAA history. A team that came from nowhere to upset the odds when Seamus Darby scored the most famous goal in GAA history to send shockwaves through Irish sport.

 

- Ireland’s Greatest Sportsperson – The search is on for Ireland’s greatest sportsperson from the 1960s to the 2000s with Des Cahill and Evanne Ní Chuilinn.

 

On the morning of the All-Ireland hurling final join Jacqui Hurley and Darren Frehill from RTÉ Radio 1's Sunday Sport at 11.30am for The Dressing Room, a unique preview programme ahead of the big match live from the Croke Park Hotel. Jacqui and Darren will be joined by panellists John Mullane, Shane McGrath, Tomas Mulcahy and Anthony Daly who will share their insight, opinions and expertise as the throw in gets nail-bitingly close.