[4][5] The show was a spin-off from Bracken — a short-lived RTÉ drama itself spun off from The Riordans — Glenroe was broadcast, generally from September to May, each Sunday at 8:30 pm.

It was created, and written for much of its run, by Wesley Burrowes, and later by various other directors and producers including Paul Cusack,[6] Alan Robinson and Tommy McCardle.

[13] Glenroe's theme tune was that of a traditional Irish song called "Cuaichín Ghleann Néifinn" and was arranged by Jim Lockhart[14] of Horslips.

A newly recorded version, arranged by Máire Ní Bhraonáin of Clannad, was introduced with the start of the 1993/94 series, along with changes to the title sequence.

The main characters are Miley Byrne and Biddy McDermott, whose courtship and marriage form the centerpiece of the action during the early years.

Miley's father Dinny Byrne is a chancer and Biddy's mother, who has been widowed early in the series, conducts a long-running relationship with Dick Moran, the local solicitor.

Widower Dinny Byrne found love after Teasy McDaid's arrival in Glenroe in 1987, with her having been left the local pub by her recently deceased uncle.

One storyline showed how Miley, a devout Roman Catholic, believed his daughter, who had been critically ill with meningitis, was saved by prayer and divine intervention, while Biddy, who rarely went to Mass, credited the doctor with her recovery.

The parish priest, Father Tim Devereaux, was upset that nobody was listening to his pastoral advice, and retired to embark on a round-the-world cruise with Shirley Manning, a widow of Protestant and Jewish ancestry.

In the fourteenth season, Tommy McArdle, the show's producer, began to explore the topic of Irish Travellers in greater depth.

Previous to this revelation, Aileen was shown in conversation with Joseph Timlin at the bar in the Molly Malone, using the derogatory term "knacker" referring to the character Francie Donnelly.

If the actors who played the main characters and whose appearance and likeness were so intrinsic to the beginnings and the storyline of the soap were leaving, it would cease to be Glenroe.

Kevin O'Sullivan wrote, "RTÉ last night confirmed his departure after 20 years, taking into account Glenroe from its beginning and its precursor Bracken.

The Irish Times published irreverent, tongue-in cheek-headlines about the ending of a soap and characters who were fair game for mockery and satire.

Burrowes articulated the problems around the decline of the series, explaining how both ratings and frequency were both guiding factors in the show's ascent and then demise.

He drew correlations between Coronation Street and EastEnders, which both competed for frequency and ratings at the BBC, and then explained "the more often a programme appears in a week.

[33] After Burrowes left the crew of Glenroe, he returned to write one New Year's episode, having been asked to do so by Paul Cusack, the show's successive producer.

He concluded his piece in The Irish Times's Arts section: "let there be no whinging or moaning at the bar for Glenroe, which, for 18 years, gave good neighbours to a generation.

Its place in the Sunday evening schedule was taken by On Home Ground, a drama series set at a fictional rural GAA club, which ran for two seasons from September 2001 until May 2003.

[35][36] In Glenroe, the book Archived 13 June 2015 at the Wayback Machine, when Miley gets a delivery of a parcel and is asked about the contents, the following exchange takes place: …"it's me jingle," he said.

The band, made up of the characters Paudie Doyle, Aileen Synnot, Joseph Timlin, Catherine Daly, and Deirdre Cooney, performed in The Molly Malone bar, shot on location in RTÉ, in a Christmas episode in the late 90s.

The character Aileen Synnot played the guitar surrounded by singing bandmates in one episode, which showed band practice being interrupted by Fr.

Glenroe has cropped up in Dáil debates over these years, as politicians have seen it as an Irish cultural icon which was broadcast through the influential medium of television.

In 1993 Proinsias De Rossa and John Deasy mentioned Glenroe in a discussion about the quality and content of Irish-made TV drama.

"[41] In January 2003, almost two years after the cessation of Glenroe, Irish Actors Equity made a presentation in the Joint Committee on Social and Family Affairs Debate.

"[44] Later that year Paul Kehoe lamented the lack of choice for Irish viewers since the demise of Glenroe: "Not enough programmes such as Fair City are being made in Ireland.

It read: "Actors in RTÉ soap operas such as Glenroe and Fair City will be prevented from portraying well-known characters... for advertising purposes this year...

In effect the ban will mean that actors such as Mick Lally and Joe Lynch will be free to earn money from advertisements and from supermarket openings as longs as they do not portray the characters they play in the Glenroe series.

[51] In 1995 in The European, journalist David Short wrote, "Soap operas, first devised by companies such as Proctor & Gamble to sell their products, are now seen everywhere in the world... people... watching everyday people living unnaturally eventful lives - Glenroe in Ireland, Country GP in New Zealand, The Awakening in Singapore, House of Christianshavn in Denmark, Buniyaad in India and Kampos in Cyprus are other examples of the phenomenon.