Ep 21: Where Are They Now? with Jo Youle from Scarlet / CEO of Missing People

Ep 21: Where Are They Now? with Jo Youle from Scarlet / CEO of Missing People

Jo Youle has lived two lifetimes. In the 90s she was part of the band Scarlet who had a massive hit with the song “Independent Love Song”. Her life was writing and recording music and a whirlwind of promotion, photoshoots and the terrifying prospect of playing live to huge audiences. 

Alongside her music career Jo also worked as a volunteer at the Samaritans. Scarlet’s pop stardom ended, after their ill-fated second album. Jo continued volunteering at the Samaritans and then went on to become a director of Helplines at Missing People;  a UK charity which is a lifeline when someone disappears. In 2012 she became the organisation’s Chief Executive. 

As well as having a very unusual career path, chatting with Jo was fascinating because of her passion and commitment to her work.

Ep 20: Woman Aloud with Mo Gaffney from Absolutely Fabulous

Ep 20: Woman Aloud with Mo Gaffney from Absolutely Fabulous

Mo Gaffney from Absolutely Fabulous joins Gearoid to chat about comedy, her career and put the world to rights. Mo is a very respected actress, writer, comedian and activist. She began her career as part of a double act with Kathy Najimy with whom she wrote two smash hit off-Broadway shows; Parallel Lives and The Dark Side which were subsequently were filmed for HBO and won a string of awards. She has appeared in a string of sitcoms in the US including Friends, Mad About You, That 70s Show and most recently 2 Broke Girls and Veep. In the UK she created the hapless Taffy Turner for Ruby Wax’s BBC series The Full Wax and of course appeared in every series of Absolutely Fabulous.

Jennifer Saunders recently declared Mo the funniest performer she has ever worked with.

Mo is a longtime activist and has written and spoken extensively on the rights of Women and the LGBT community. She is an all round good egg and is an absolute delight

Ep 19: Finding Naimee with Naimee Coleman

Ep 19: Finding Naimee with Naimee Coleman

In this episode Gearoid (with a little help.. ok a lot of help from Dave Moore)  tracks down Irish singer songwriter to find out what became of the Dundrum songstress after her second album.

Naimee made her first record soon after she left school and her debut album “Silver Wrists” was a hit in Ireland and around Europe and had hits with “Care About You”, “Ruthless Affection” and “Sometimes”. 

No-one was more surprised then Naimee when she discovered on a promotional trip to Japan that she was huge there.  After her second album Naimee went off the grid and moved to Los Angeles where she continued to work as a singer songwriter. 

Naimee Coleman is lovely, funny and full of great stories. She tells Gearoid how she ended up songwriting with Chesney Hawkes in a french castle, eating her lunch next to a Beatle, performing at the Hollywood Bowl with a few hours notice, touring with a Bee Gee and writing music for US telly.

Ep 18: Queen of Puddings with Lilly Higgins (Great Irish Bake-Off Judge)

Ep 18: Queen of Puddings with Lilly Higgins (Great Irish Bake-Off Judge)

In this episode Gearoid heads to Cobh (the new Kinsale) to chat to “Great Irish Bake-Off” judge Lilly Higgins. Lilly is a food writer, chef and photographer with a background in art and design. With a CV like that it is no surprise that her books are so beautiful.

Once it is established that Lilly is not in a girlband they chat about her new venture into the world of food production. Gearóid learns about cacao, Lilly talks about Mary Berrying on “The Great Irish Bake Off” and working with her comedian sister Maeve on their cult comedy cooking show “Fancy Vittles”. Then in a dark turn Gearoid and Lilly both conspire to commit defamation in what became the first beeped out moment on this podcast. 

Lilly is one of the most delightful people you could hope to meet. She has produced two cook books “Make Bake Love” and “Dream Deli” and writes a weekly column in The Irish Times.

Ep 17: La Vie Edele with Edele Lynch from B*witched

Ep 17: La Vie Edele with Edele Lynch from B*witched

In 1998 the Spice girls were busy dealing with over-exposure and the departure of Geri Halliwell.  Their crown was deftly snatched away by an Irish foursome who jigged and twinkled their way to the top of the charts pumping out hit after hit.  B*witched struck hard and fast and world domination followed. For Edele it was the beginning of a punishing schedule and unrelenting hard work. A few years later with the world at their feet and two double platinum albums under their belt the record company pulled the plug on the girl’s third record essentially ending their careers with a phonecall. 
Over the years relationships between the girls became strained. Edele continued to work behind the scenes as a songwriter until ten years later an offer came to reunite B*witched. They patched up their differences and returned to the spotlight with new music.  Edele chats about her time in the band and how her life has changed since the reunion.

Ep 16: Little Treasure with Paula Lambert and Bosco

Ep 16: Little Treasure with Paula Lambert and Bosco

If you were a child of 80s Ireland, Bosco was almost certainly a big part of your childhood. Bosco has now been off the air for 20 years, and there hasn’t been a new episode in 30. Yet, Bosco remains as much a part of our Irish identity as the shamrock or stew. In her first ever interview, Gearóid talks to Paula Lambert who has been the hand and voice behind Bosco since the early 80s. 

They chat about making the series, the hallowed “inside Bosco’s box” scenes, merchandise and that record. Gearóid finds out how much of a fan he was by talking to someone who knows best and Bosco even makes an unscheduled appearance. 

This is a schmalzy nostalgia-fest. Enjoy with wine.

Ep 15: Mama I Want To Sing with Keyone Starr and Hallie Ridgeway

Ep 15: Mama I Want To Sing with Keyone Starr and Hallie Ridgeway

In this episode Gearóid chats to two stars in the making; Mark Ronson’s latest protege Keyone Starr (vocalist on his grammy winning album) and Dubliner Hallie Ridgeway.
Keyone Starr has already caught the attention of Mark Ronson when he travelled the bible belt in search of a gospel singer for his song “I Can’t Lose”. He was blown away by her voice and she recorded the track on his grammy winning album “Uptown Special”.

Ep 14: Leading Man with Killian Donnelly (Olivier Award Nominee)

Two-time Olivier nominated Navan-man Killian Donnelly is one of the West-End's brightest stars. His versatile singing voice has helped him rack up numerous starring roles on the London stage. He has also appeared in the movie of " Les Miserables" (correct Navan pronunciation please!) and performed at the Oscars.

Two-time Olivier nominated Navan-man Killian Donnelly is one of the West-End’s brightest stars. His versatile singing voice has helped him rack up numerous starring roles on the London stage. He has also appeared in the movie of “Les Miserables” (correct Navan pronunciation please!) and performed at the Oscars. Last year he was nominated for an Olivier award for the role of Hughey in “Memphis The Musical” where he starred opposite Beverly Knight. Gearoid popped along for a chat in his dressing room at the Adelphi Theatre where he is currently wowing audiences in his award-winning role as Charlie in the London premiere of Kinky Boots. With a career going from strength to strength in the UK Killian chats about the importance of the amateur scene in Ireland, getting star-struck and his desire for a gig on home turf.

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