The DJ has found himself in hot water once again.
RTÉ Radio One DJ Dave Fanning has apologised for saying that the appearance of Ryan Tubridy and his agent Noel Kelly before two Dáil committees on Tuesday was a “nonsensical Oireachtas Nuremberg trial”.
In the now-deleted Tweet, the veteran DJ posted a picture of himself and musician Rory Gallagher, saying his special radio show focusing on the artist would serve as a distraction from the ongoing committee meeting fallout.
“I want to apologise unreservedly to the Oireachtas Committee for my ill judged comment regarding this weeks hearings. There was no intention to trivialise the proceedings,” he said in on Twitter.
I want to apologise unreservedly to the Oireachtas Committee for my ill judged comment regarding this weeks hearings. There was no intention to trivialise the proceedings.
— Dave Fanning (@davefanning) July 13, 2023
Fanning came under fire in the Oireachtas committee meeting on Thursday as Labour TD Alan Kelly, highlighting that Fanning is a Noel Kelly client, demanded an explanation from newly-appointed RTÉ Director General Kevin Bakhurst.
“How is that appropriate?” asked Kelly, referencing the Tweet.
“I don’t know the context of it,” said Bakhurst. “It’s not appropriate from my point of view, [if] that is the view of an RTÉ employee, because the work of this committee has been incredibly important.”
Dave Fanning under fire for the second time in a month
This isn’t the first time the DJ has been at the forefront of a backlash from his comments recently. Last month, following the death of Aslan frontman Christie Dignam, Fanning made some controversial comments about the singer on Claire Byrne’s radio show.
Asked to give his perspective on the Dubliner’s life and music career, Fanning said, “[Dignam] blew it royally.”
He would say later on that: ‘Because I was abused at the age of six by a neighbour and there was this hole in my life for ages so I filled it, not by trying to get high with heroin, but just by filling it with heroin to keep myself away from the memory of it.’ And I remember saying to him: ‘Are you sure about that now, Christy? Are you sure you’re not trying to pull the wool over my eyes?’.”
Fanning later apologised, saying he “missed the mark” and that the comments were “incredibly ill-timed and poor taste.”
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