LMFM

LMFM broadcasts from Drogheda in County Louth. LMFM broadcasts on frequencies 95.8 FM and 96.5 FM, reaching listeners as far south as Dublin and as far north as Northern Ireland.
LMFM first aired in 1989 and was one of 24 original local stations created by the 1988 Radio and Television Act, which ended the national broadcaster's (RTE) monopoly on the airwaves. There were originally 3 LMFM studios in Dundalk, Drogheda, and Navan but, as of 2026, only the Drogheda studio remains. LMFM's founders included brothers Fergus and Kearney McArdle, local hotelier Peter Quin, and Peter Govern, a local construction executive. There is some lack of clarity regarding the key founders: although LMFM's Wikipedia entry lists Peter Govern as the founder, a 1989 news report from the Drogheda Independent lists Govern among several other backers (including the McArdles and Quinn).
LMFM was originally conceived as a mixed-genre station, with programming ranging from "Irish country" to the 'hottest hits'. Notably, LMFM was the only local station to exceed the 20% news broadcasting requirement initially set by then regulator, the Independent Radio and Television Commission (station leaders initially allocated 30% of air time to news). Little public information is available about the station's first 10 years in existence. However, by the early 2000s, advertising revenues had grown significantly, and it was the most listened-to station in counties Louth and Meath.
In 2005, LMFM was sold to Belfast-based Ulster Television (UTV) for €9.5m. Beneficiaries of the sale included CEO Michael Crawley, builder Peter McGovern, and Gemma Hiney (who each owned a 17.5% stake worth €1.6m). Hotelier Peter Quinn had a 16.5% stake worth €1.5m, and food industry executive Eugene Caulfield owned 11.5% worth €1.05m.
It is important to note that the purchase of LMFM by UTV came after UTV had already acquired Lite FM (rebranded as Q102) in Dublin, Live 95 in Limerick, and 96 and 103 FM in Cork. Thus, LMFM was part of UTV's expanding footprint across the Republic of Ireland.
UTV's Irish holdings rebranded to Wireless Group ROI in 2016 reflecting UTV’s disposal of its television assets to ITV plc. In 2016, the WG's holdings were purchased for £UK220.3m by News UK & Ireland Ltd., which is ultimately owned by US-based News Corporation (News Corp). News Corp's largest single shareholder is Lachlan Murdoch. In 2025, News UK & Ireland Ltd. rebranded its Wireless Ireland Radio subsidiary as Onic.
In addition to LMFM, Onic also operates six other Irish radio stations, including FM104, FM95, and Q012. Onic also operates the commercial sales house, Urban Media, which works with Galway Bay FM and WLR. Onic stations reach 775,000 listeners weekly, representing 10.6% of the Irish radio market. Onic Audio Limited employs more than 200 staff in Ireland and recorded revenues of EUR €23.375m in 2024, up from EUR €22.4m in 2023.
Key Facts
| Audience Share | 24.4% (Louth/Meath Market, JNLR 2025) |
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| Ownership Type | Private |
| Content Type | Free |
| Data Publicly Available | ownership data is easily available from other sources, e. g. public registries etc. |
| Operating Company | Independent Broadcasting Corporation Limited Identifier: Companies Registration Office (CRO) Company No. 146206. |
Ownership
| Ownership Structure | LMFM is operated by Independent Broadcasting Corporation Limited, which is owned by Onic Audio Limited (formerly known as Wireless Ireland (ROI) Limited but rebranded in 2025). Onic is owned by News UK & Ireland, which is ultimately owned by US-based News Corporation (News Corp), a global media conglomerate listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market. |
|---|---|
| Voting Rights | Voting rights at News Corp are governed by a dual-class share structure, in which Class B shares carry full voting rights and are predominantly controlled by the Murdoch family, while Class A shares carry no voting rights. As of September 2025, Murdoch-affiliated entities hold approximately 72 million Class B shares, representing around 39% of all Class B shares outstanding, giving the family effective control over the company. |
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Operating Company
Facts
| Founding Year | 1989 LMFM first aired in 1989 as one of 24 local stations licensed under the Radio and Television Act 1988, which ended RTÉ's monopoly on Irish broadcasting. |
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| Editor-In-Chief |
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| Contact | Rathmullan Road A92 T274 Drogheda Ireland info@lmfm.ie +353 (0) 041 983 2000 www.lmfm.ie |
| Revenue | Missing Data |
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| Operating Profit | Missing Data |
| Advertising (in % of total funding) | Missing Data |
| Market Share | Missing Data |
| Headlines |
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| Meta Data | Historical Information about LMFM was obtained from a variety of news sources, including the Irish Times and Drogheda Independent articles accessed via the Irish Newspaper Archives. https://irishnewsarchive.com/ | |
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