Coimisiún na Meán has today (15.10.2026) announced €3.92 million in funding under the first dedicated ‘Shared Island, Shared Stories’ round of the Sound & Vision broadcast funding scheme.
This funding round was delivered through the Shared Island Media Fund, a €14 million programme being implemented over three years by Coimisiún na Meán with support from the Government’s Shared Island Initiative. The fund is designed to encourage content creation and media collaboration across Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The funding will support the production of 27 all-island media projects, comprising 14 television and 13 radio productions, involving independent producers and broadcasters from across the island. The successful projects span a broad range of genres, including drama, documentary, entertainment and animation, and will deliver high-quality content for audiences.
‘Shared Island, Shared Stories’ is a new strand of the Sound & Vision Scheme, which supports the production of high-quality, accessible programming for broadcasting on television and radio that reflects on themes of culture, history, language and diversity. Sound & Vision also plays a crucial role in supporting the independent production sector, with approximately 98% of the funding offered in this round going to independent producers.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin said: “I welcome this announcement of funding by Coimisiún na Meán awarding support to 27 media productions across the island of Ireland under the ‘Shared Island, Shared Stories’ scheme. This diverse and interesting mix of projects, spanning genres, topics, and languages, reflects the creative potential of the media sector. I am glad to see that many of the proposed programmes will draw on the themes of the Shared Home Place programme, highlighting the rich and complex heritage, and contemporary cultural vibrancy, of our shared island.”
Media Development Commissioner Rónán Ó Domhnaill said: “We are delighted to announce the successful applicants in the first dedicated ‘Shared Island, Shared Stories’ round of Sound & Vision. The stories we tell have the power to bring us together, make strong emotional connections, provide a sense of shared ownership over events and memories, and give us a better sense of who we are and where we’re from.
“To that end, the projects funded in this round include stories that examine peace-building and the legacy of conflict, celebrate shared cultural traditions and heritage, and explore contemporary questions of identity, migration, belonging and inclusion. They reflect the island’s cultural wealth and diversity by presenting stories from different traditions, regions, languages and generations. There is also a focus on cross-border collaboration, either based on the stories that are being told, or the nature of the productions themselves. We look forward to seeing them come to fruition.
I would like to acknowledge and thank Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Minister Patrick O’Donovan for providing the funding to support these important projects.”
The successful projects include:
- X-Spelled: All Island Spelling Quiz – A children’s spelling competition, which will be aired on RTÉ 2, featuring participants from across the island. The fun approach will subtly introduce geographical, linguistic and cultural reference points from across the island to a young audience.
- Heartbeat Heroes – For broadcast on Virgin Media One, this is a documentary series about the All-Island Congenital Heart Disease Network – an integrated healthcare service operating across both jurisdictions.
- Laoithe na bhFiann – An Irish-language radio series for RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta reviving the lost melodies of the Fenian Lays from the 17th-century Duanaire Finn. A blend of captivating storytelling, scholarly debate, and stunning new music.
- Left Back – A radio drama, for broadcast on LMFM Radio explores shared cultural identities around sport and youth culture with a strong potential to deepen cultural and creative exchange. Crew and young actors from both sides of the border will participate in the production.
- Bloody Sunday: A Love Story – A personal story set against the horror of Bloody Sunday. By using love as a prism through which to explore communities once deeply polarised, this documentary for RTÉ One will contemporise a story of division and reconciliation, bringing it to new generations.
- Spritelites / Síofraí Solais / Spricht Lichts – This children’s animation series will be made in Irish, English and Ulster Scots and broadcast on BBC NI. It will feature characters and stories from across the island that have made significant contributions at home and abroad.
- A Belfast Boy in Connemara – This history documentary, for broadcast on Connemara Community Radio, demonstrates a thoughtful understanding of history and shared heritage through themes of migration, religion, class, language and identity. It explores common human experiences, particularly friendship, work and emigration.
This is the first of three dedicated rounds of Sound & Vision that will be supported by the Shared Island Media Fund. Under the Fund, Coimisiún na Meán will also establish new Shared Island Media Fora; develop funding initiatives for journalism based on its existing Journalism Schemes; and support the development of new creative ideas through a dedicated Shared Island Stories & Experiences fund.