In Search of Iconic Audio
Getting ready for Radio Days 2024
This week we’re taking a break from RTE chat, although a nod of respect to the former Chair of RTE, Siun Ni Raghallaigh, who accused the Media Minister of setting out to “traduce” her reputation over the ongoing RTE scandal.
I’ll be honest, I had to look up “traduce”.
It’s actually the perfect word for the situation, and I’ll devote myself to finding ways to drop it into sentences throughout the week.
Radio Days
I wanted to mention Radio Days Europe, which starts with a series of interesting events on Sunday 17th of March, in Munich and runs on Monday 18th and Tuesday 19th.
I’m fortunate enough to be taking part in a number of sessions, including a “Meet the Experts” session moderated by James Cridland as part of Sunday’s Podcast Summit.
And then on Monday and Tuesday, I’ve been invited to be part of a new initiative for Radio Days, called the “Audio Room”.
The Audio Room
It’s a really interesting idea, inspired by a visit Nik Goodman made to a client in Norway, where they ran collaborative group audio sessions.
Picture a table with 7 sets of headphones, and a host with 3 pieces of iconic radio or podcast audio, you’ll get to listen to the audio and then have a group discussion about what you heard, what the best and worst aspects of it were and what we could learn from the audio.
I know as a PD, it can be hard enough to listen to everything on your own station, and it’s rare that you get to hear other audio from your market, or the best audio from round the world.
I’m one of a number of audio experts who are selecting different pieces for the groups to listen to and it’s been a fascinating exercise trying to find audio that demonstrates something different and has plenty of conversational potential.
With two UK experts, Des Paul and John Simons on the panel, I steered clear of UK radio audio, although there’s been plenty of really good stuff to choose from in the last year.
My Therapist Ghosted Me
Instead I’ve gone for a mixture of radio and podcast audio. I’m fascinated by the difference in tone and structure in podcasting compared to traditional radio, and the podcast that interests me most is “My Therapist Ghosted Me”, which features Vogue Williams and Joanne McNally.
Vogue is reality TV famous, married to Made in Chelsea star and minor royal by marriage, Spencer Matthews, and this pod features her and best friend Joanne McNally, an Irish comedian.
They launched in April 2021, and they claim to get 3 million listeners per month, that is jaw-droppingly successful as a podcast, and they’ve branched out into live shows and a UK and Ireland arena tour.
That all makes Vogue and Joanne arguably one of the most listened to, non-radio shows in the UK and I think it’s worth listening to what they’re up to and how they interact.
Radio doesn’t really put two women together on the air as a rule, it’s become more common to see crew shows which have two females hosts and one male, but it’s still pretty rare to see a double act with two females.
This show sounds like nothing on the radio, and the clip I’ve picked demonstrates why and how they connect with an audience outside of radio altogether.
If I was launching a station in the UK tomorrow, I’d put them on Breakfast.
PJ & Jim on Radio Nova
The second clip is from Dublin’s Radio Nova. I’ve been working with the station, alongside my partner in crime, Dave Kelly for just over three years now, and we’ve been absolutely delighted to see it rocket up the ratings.
It’s currently No. 2 Music Station in Dublin on Market Share and the Breakfast Show has really started to drive the station.
The Breakfast show has only been on the station for three years, in fact, one of the first things Dave and I did was to perform a Breakfast transplant between Radio Nova and sister station, Ireland’s Classic Hits Radio.
PJ & Jim (PJ Gallagher is a comedian and Jim McCabe is an accomplished radio presenter), were on the Classic Hits station, but it just felt like they were a much better fit for Nova. They’ve helped to drive the station to record numbers, while also managing a personal crisis for PJ.
The audio I’ve chosen is an episode of their podcast called Glory Daze, in which PJ tells the story of his own mental health struggles, and how Jim kept the show running for three months while PJ was in hospital. It’s an incredible story, and the bond between the two, along with the honesty PJ brings to a discussion on mental health is truly remarkable.
We actually broadcast the full podcast episode on hour (with some bleeping), because it was incredibly powerful, and it won PJ & Jim Silver for Radio Moment of the Year in the IMRO Awards.
I’ve dropped the link to the episode below
Christian O’Connell
I felt for the final piece, I needed some really good traditional radio, so I turned to one of the great Breakfast presenters, Christian O’Connell.
I have so much admiration for Christian, he was a huge star at XFM, at Absolute Radio and then, at the age of 46 moved to Australia and became a huge star in a brand new market.
That takes an extraordinary level of talent and dedication, and frankly balls of steel.
I’ve picked two bits from Christian’s Gold FM show which demonstrate his brilliant ability to use audio, seamlessly manage his crew and integrate listeners, young and old into entertaining morning radio.
Learning and Listening together
What excites me most about the sessions though is what we’ll discover when we discuss the audio together. Much like a brainstorm, a collective listening session can take you to places you’ve never considered and getting the chance to compare impressions and ideas on audio with a group of fellow professionals is a genuinely exiting proposition.
So, if you’re coming to Radio Days, have a look for the Audio Room, you can book in on the official Swapcard app, or turn up on the day. I’m 100% certain that my fellow panellists will have some intriguing audio to share and discuss too.
This has been the 36th official edition of the RAudio Newsletter.
Apart from writing newsletters, I also consult to radio stations and podcasts, so if you have a question, or a project you need help on, drop me an email – liamathompson@gmail.com
I’m am of course attending RadioDays in Munich, so let me know if you’re going and we can catch up.
You can also send feedback, questions or potential topics – you can also get me on Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/liamthompsonconsulting/ or on Twitter @Maxliam