Scrap Saturday was a satirical radio sketch show created by Dermot Morgan

Dermot Morgan

Dermot John Morgan was an Irish comedian, actor and former schoolteacher, who achieved international renown for his roles as Father Ted Crilly in the Channel 4 sitcom Father Ted and a strip club MC in Taffin....

, who was also the main performer on the show, and Gerry Stembridge

Gerard Stembridge

Gerard "Gerry" Stembridge is an Irish writer, director and actor. He was educated at Castleknock College in Dublin. While attending University College Dublin, he was auditor of the Literary and Historical Society...

, which ran on RTÉ Radio 1

RTÉ Radio 1

RTÉ Radio 1 is the principal radio channel of Irish public-service broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann and is the direct descendant of Dublin radio station 2RN, which began broadcasting on a regular basis on 1 January 1926...

 on Saturday mornings from 1989 until 1991. Pauline McLynn

Pauline McLynn

Pauline McLynn is an Irish actress, comedienne and author, best known for playing Mrs Doyle in the Channel 4 sitcom Father Ted, and Libby Croker in the Channel 4 comedy drama Shameless.- Early life :...

 and Owen Roe participated as performers.

The half-hour show lampooned political and cultural figures in Irish society such as Charles Haughey

Charles Haughey

Charles James "Charlie" Haughey was Taoiseach of Ireland, serving three terms in office . He was also the fourth leader of Fianna Fáil...

 and Pádraig Flynn

Padraig Flynn

Pádraig "Pee" Flynn is a former Irish politician. He was first elected to Dáil Éireann as a Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála in 1977. He was returned at each subsequent election until 1993...

. At the centre of the show was the relationship between the then Taoiseach

Taoiseach

The Taoiseach is the head of government or prime minister of Ireland. The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas , and must, in order to remain in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil.The current Taoiseach is...

 Charles Haughey

Charles Haughey

Charles James "Charlie" Haughey was Taoiseach of Ireland, serving three terms in office . He was also the fourth leader of Fianna Fáil...

 and "P. J." "Mara", a fantasy figure based loosely on the Fianna Fáil

Fianna Fáil

Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party , more commonly known as Fianna Fáil is a centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland, founded on 23 March 1926. Fianna Fáil's name is traditionally translated into English as Soldiers of Destiny, although a more accurate rendition would be Warriors of Fál...

 political advisor P. J. Mara

P. J. Mara

Patrick James "P.J." Mara is an Irish public affairs consultant and former senator. He was best known as a political adviser to former Taoiseach Charles Haughey. He served briefly in the Seanad on two separate occasions, in 1981 and 1982. On both occasions, he was nominated by the Taoiseach...

. A number of Irish cultural figures came in for a lampooning on a regular basis such as broadcasters Mike Murphy when a presenter of RTÉ Radio 1's "Arts Show", Gay Byrne

Gay Byrne

Gabriel Mary "Gay" Byrne is a veteran Irish presenter of radio and television. His most notable role was first host of The Late Late Show over a 37-year period spanning 1962 until 1999...

 and Bibi Baskin

Bibi Baskin

Olive "Bibi" Baskin is a former television and radio presenter for Raidió Teilifís Éireann . She is "RTÉ's legendary redhead". She has also been a magazine and newspaper journalist and writer. She is now running a heritage guest house and hotel in Alleppey, Kerala, India.Baskin left RTÉ in the 1990s...

. Amongst politicians of the time, versions of Gerry Collins and Michael Noonan

Michael Noonan

Michael Noonan is an Irish Fine Gael politician and has been the Minister for Finance since March 2011. He has been a Teachta Dála for the Limerick East and later Limerick City constituencies since 1981....

 featured regularly, as did then president Mary Robinson

Mary Robinson

Mary Therese Winifred Robinson served as the seventh, and first female, President of Ireland from 1990 to 1997, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, from 1997 to 2002. She first rose to prominence as an academic, barrister, campaigner and member of the Irish Senate...

. Others regularly lampooned include journalist and commentator Eamon Dunphy

Eamon Dunphy

Eamon Martin Dunphy is an Irish media personality, radio and television presenter, author, sports pundit, as well as a former professional football player. He is best known as a soccer analyst on Raidió Teilifís Éireann 's coverage of the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League. He was paid...

.

The show was very popular with listeners and there were accusations of political interference when it was dropped by RTÉ.

A 4-CD set of selected extracts from the show was released by RTÉ in 2007, the first two CDs covering general extracts, and the second two CDs covering Charles Haughey ("CJ") and P. J. Mara, the two main targets of the show.