Hot on the heels of the dismissal of Sam Smyth, Willie O’Reilly has left his post as chief executive of Today FM for a new role at RTE – prompting speculation about which big-name Today FM personality could be the first to follow him to the state broadcaster.

O’Reilly has been at the helm of Today FM for the past 12 years, during which time the commercial broadcaster has won a major share of the national market through the success of shows such as the drivetime The Last Word, under successive presenters Eamon Dunphy and Matt Cooper, and the morning Ray D’Arcy Show.

And the future of Cooper and D’Arcy is sure to come up for discussion following O’Reilly’s decision to leave the station for the newly-created Group Commercial Director role at RTE.

Having previously worked at RTE as executive producer of the Gerry Ryan Show for ten years before taking up the Today FM gig in 1999, O’Reilly was a vital cog in the ongoing success of the station.

He was also seen as a close ally of personalities such as Cooper and D’Arcy, both of whom he recruited to the station in the first place.

O’Reilly’s departure from Marconi House comes just over a week after the controversial decision to axe Sunday current affairs show host Sam Smyth.