‘The Divine Comedy’ – singer Neil Hannon almost misses Ray D’Arcy interview after going to the wrong radio station

Broadcaster Ray D’Arcy joked that the Divine Comedy frontman went to the last place they spoke on air, when D’Arcy had a show on Today FM.

“Now, he finally made it here! Neil Hannon. Oh, the Divine Comedy,” he said, welcoming Hannon into the Montrose studios and his show on RTÉ Radio 1, which has broadcast since 2015.

The broadcaster previously hosted The Ray D’Arcy Show mid-morning on Today FM, finishing up with the station in 2014 and moving the show to the mid-afternoon slot on Radio 1.

Today’s News in 90 seconds – 29th May 2024

An apologetic Hannon admitted he was “on autopilot” and went to the wrong radio station for his scheduled interview with D’Arcy this afternoon.

“I’m so sorry. I’d love to say, I just got it wrong. I just wasn’t thinking at all, just on autopilot. That’s what happened but anyway, luckily Dublin is one of the smaller capitals,” he said.

The singer, who lives in north Kildare, will play at Forest Fest this summer, alongside The Human League, Tony Hadley and The Stunning.

Hannon, after arriving in the correct radio station this afternoon, joined D’Arcy for a conversation about the festival and his music.

“Well, great to see you. Don’t be a stranger. And RTÉ is the place. We’re only here 10 years,” the radio host told Hannon, signing off from the show.

“RTÉ, is it? Right. And Brian Cowen is the Taoiseach?” Hannon quipped.

His band, The Divine Comedy, are best known for albums such as Casanova and A Short Album About Love, which were both released in the late 1990s.

Hannon also wrote the theme music for the sitcom Father Ted and a number of songs used within the show, including Ted and Dougal’s Eurosong entry ‘My Lovely Horse’.

Most recently, he wrote original songs for movie musical Wonka, starring Timothée Chalamet as Willy Wonka and Hugh Grant as an Oompa-Loompa.

Hannon’s wife Cathy Davey, who he married earlier this year, will also play at Forest Fest in July.