Gráinne Seoige facts for kids

Gráinne Seoige (born 5 November 1973) is a well-known Irish journalist and TV presenter. She has worked on news, documentaries, and entertainment shows. Gráinne is a big supporter of the Irish language. She is the only TV person to have worked for all four main Irish TV channels: TG4, TV3, RTÉ One, and RTÉ2. She also read the very first news reports on three of these channels: TG4, TV3, and Sky News Ireland.

In 2024, Gráinne ran for election as a candidate for the Fianna Fáil political party in the Galway West area. She was not elected.

Early Life and Education

Gráinne Seoige was born in Spiddal, a town in County Galway, Ireland. She is the oldest of four children. Her parents are Philomena and Mairtín Seoige. Gráinne's younger sister, Síle Seoige, is also a TV presenter.

Gráinne grew up in Galway. She went to Mercy Convent school in Spiddal. Later, she studied at University College Galway (UCG). She earned a degree in English, Sociology, and Political Science. After that, she completed a special diploma in Applied Communications for Television and Radio, which she studied through the Irish language.

Gráinne's TV Career

Gráinne Seoige started her exciting career in television on 31 October 1996.

Starting at TG4 and TV3

Her first job was at Teilifís na Gaeilge, which is now called TG4. She was a news anchor for their 10 pm news. She worked there until 1998. Then, she was asked to join TV3 as a launch anchor.

At TV3, Gráinne presented the 5:30pm News and the 6:30pm News. She also hosted News Tonight. She helped produce, write, and present news updates throughout the day. Sometimes, she even presented Ireland AM, which was the only breakfast show in Ireland at the time. Gráinne was on air for over seven hours, reporting live, when the 9/11 terror attacks happened.

Working at Sky News

In 2004, Gráinne moved to Sky News Ireland. She presented news reports from their headquarters starting on 10 May 2004. She anchored many news bulletins between midnight and noon.

Time at RTÉ

Gráinne joined RTÉ, Ireland's main national broadcaster, in 2006. From 2006 to 2009, she co-hosted an afternoon chat show called Seoige. She presented this show with her sister, Síle. From 2011 to 2016, she co-presented the series Crimecall.

She also had other important roles at RTÉ. She hosted the People of the Year Awards in 2008. She co-presented the Up for the Match sports specials in 2008. Gráinne also presented The All Ireland Talent Show from 2009 to 2011. She hosted the sports quiz show, Put 'Em Under Pressure.

Gráinne also presented documentary series for RTÉ. These included Gráinne Seoige's Modern Life in 2011. She also presented Great Irish Journeys, which looked at Ireland during the Great Famine. Since she speaks Irish fluently, Gráinne often appears on Tell Me a Story. This show is on the children's channel RTÉjr, where she tells stories in Irish.

In 2022, Gráinne was a contestant on the Irish version of Dancing With the Stars. She danced with professional dancer John Nolan. They finished in 8th place in the competition.

Working for ITV and BBC

In 2010, Gráinne often appeared on the British channel ITV. She was a presenter on the breakfast show GMTV. She also worked as a features editor on ITV Breakfast's morning programme Daybreak. She covered both national and international news stories.

In 2011, she appeared on the BBC One series That's Britain. On this show, she covered topics like crowded trains and energy prices.

Political Involvement

Gráinne Seoige became a candidate for the Fianna Fáil political party. She ran in the Galway West area during the 2024 Irish general election. She received 2,929 first preference votes. However, she was not elected to a seat in the Dáil.

Personal Life

Gráinne Seoige has one son. He was born when she was 20 years old. In 2002, Gráinne married Stephen Cullinane. He was a former colleague from TV3. They divorced in 2010. In 2007, NUI Galway honored Gráinne with an Alumni Award. This award was for her great work supporting the Irish language.

In 2014, Gráinne announced her engagement to Leon Jordaan. He is a businessman from South Africa and a former rugby coach. In 2016, Gráinne moved to Pretoria, South Africa. There, she started her own business that deals with diamonds. Gráinne and Leon Jordaan were married in December 2019.