RTE’s Jean Byrne retires after 25 years on air

She was known for her eye-catching fashion.

RTÉ weather presenter Jean Byrne has "quietly" retired after 25 years on air. Insiders have revealed that the popular presenter, who is in her 40s, retired early from Met Éireann and RTÉ  just before Christmas. The meteorologist is said to have kept her departure on the low, as she didn’t want a big fuss made of her leaving. Friend and colleague, Evelyn Cusack said: “After a long career at Met Eireann and many years spent gracing our screens at RTE Weather, Jean Byrne hung up her weather charts at the end of 2021. “Although we will miss Jean’s presence both in the Met Eireann forecast office and on our screens, we wish Jean every happiness and success in the future.” The Kerry woman was well-known for her daring fashion and fabulous outfits, turning quite a few looks over the years - most of which came from her own wardrobe. In 2019, she revealed: "I basically choose my own outfit and some of the stuff I have worn in the past has been my own, I never even intended to put it on air because it was what I wore outside. “The costume department in RTÉ are terrific as well. The camera makes you look bigger anyway, it puts on at least 10lbs and jackets make you look even bigger. “It became a little bit more relaxed at one point and then I just decided, ‘OK, I’m a bit tired of the old jackets, I’ll wear one or two of my own things'. “I don’t go out of my way to find new designers but I do go out of my way in my spare time to source things and put them together. "My main thing is getting what I want and I like things that nobody else is wearing — one-off pieces. “In the weather office, we have a blue screen so you can’t wear certain types of blue, not anything that’s like a royal blue. Certain patterns don’t work either, they have what you call a strobing effect, so the best things are block colours.” Jean first appeared on the RTÉ weather forecast back in 1996 and had been a staple figure on our screens since.