Long-time local television personality Mike Ahern is coming back to the small screen.

Ahern, who retired as anchorman of WISH-TV Channel 8 evening news broadcasts in 2004, will be hosting a new show, “Mike Ahern: One on One,” starting May 12.

The show will air on Thursdays at 10:30 p.m. on WNDY-TV Channel 23, WISH’s sister station. Ahern’s show will follow WISH’s 10 p.m. newscast airing on WNDY. The show will re-run on WNDY at 7 p.m. Saturdays.

“In the past, I’ve reported what the news is, now I have the challenge to go in-depth with people whose names we know, but their stories may surprise us,” Ahern said in a prepared statement.

Ahern, 72, joined WISH-TV in 1967 and became one of the most well-known news anchors in Indianapolis over four decades. Readers and editors of Indianapolis Woman and Indianapolis Monthly magazines named him best news anchor more than 10 years in a row.
 
WISH officials declined to say who would be featured on Ahern’s new show, but said the guests will include political leaders, sports figures, business executives and people who rarely do media interviews.

“Because of his credibility, people will talk to Mike that you don’t always normally hear from,” said WISH spokesman Scott Hainey. “He’ll talk to a lot of well-known people that viewers want to hear from, but also a lot of people who have a big impact from behind the scenes.”