MAY 2007

Inishowen woman Kathy Donaghy

Kathy Donaghy formally of Drung currently reports on the general election for RTÉ. Kathy has been assigned to the Fianna Fáil election headquarters in the IFSC from where she reports live on Campaign Daily around lunchtime every day.

Kathy admits that going 'live' is nerve-wracking experience. "I worked on Oireachtas Report previously, and you can have as many takes as you want when you're recording a package for that, but you've only got one attempt when you're going live."

Having spent several years working in the print media, Kathy was keen to try something new and has been working for RTÉ for just over a year. "The opportunity came up and I took it. I thought that if I didn't do it now I mightn't get the chance to do it at all."

Educated at Drung NS and Carndonagh Community School, Kathy took an arts degree in Maynooth in the mid 1990s. She called the Derry Journal asking for a couple of weeks work experience, as she was unsure whether journalism was the career for her. She knew almost immediately that it was the job for her.

She freelanced in Dublin for a while before landing a full-time position with Ireland on Sunday where she worked from 1998 until 2000. It was her coverage of the Franco Sacco murder trial for Ireland on Sunday that brought Kathy's name to prominence, she was nominated as Young Journalist of the Year for her work on the trial. "It was great to get the award, "Kathy said. "There are always a lot of journalists and it helped set me out from the crowd."

She joined the Irish Independent in 2000. She took a degree in legal studies at the Dublin Institute of Technology, juggling study with her full-time job with the Independent, and graduated in 2005.

Kathy lives in the North side of Dublin with her husband Richard Curran, who is the deputy editor at the Sunday Business Post. The walls of her home are covered with the paintings of Ros Harvey, the Malin artist whose work is rooted in the seascape and landscape of Inishowen.

In her spare time Kathy likes to run. Last year herself and Richard competed in the Rome marathon. The woman's mini marathon is on the June bank holiday Monday and she'll be taking part with a couple of girls from work.

After that it'll be back to the Oireachtas unit to report on the first meeting of the 30th Dáil on 14th June and the election of Taoiseach and government. She's happy with her work and hasn't given too much thought to what will come afterwards.

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