Ep 13: The Song Seamstress with Marcella Detroit from Shakespear’s Sister

Ep 13: The Song Seamstress with Marcella Detroit from Shakespear’s Sister

In this episode Gearoid chats to singer songwriter Marcella Detroit who is well-known for her solo records and her time in Shakespears Sister (sic). Before she was a recording artist in her own right she was also a respected songwriter, session singer and backing vocalist working with greats such as Aretha Franklin, Better Midler, Burt Bacharach, Belinda Carlisle and many more. She toured extensively with Eric Clapton and was responsible for some of his best loved songs (she co-wrote “Lay Down Sally” and more with him).

Marcella chats about the highs and lows of Shakespears Sister. The heady period where they attained the longest-running number one for a female artist, a record still unbroken today, to the awards ceremony where it all imploded as they picked up a best album award.

She ruminates on the changes in the music industry and her pride at producing her own records in her home studio and constantly reinventing her sound. She recalls the heady glamour days of lear-jets, live-aid and Elton John. The constant in all of that is her consistently brilliant music.

Ep 12: Gobstopper with Nina Conti

Ep 12: Gobstopper with Nina Conti

In this episode Gearoid meets ventriloquist Nina Conti the morning after her sold-out show for the Galway Comedy Carnival. She is mid-way through her largest tour to date. She chats about her start in ventriloquism, her puppet Monk and why she never wants to be an actress. Nina is a prolific comedian and documentary maker. She received a BAFTA nomination for her film “Her Master’s Voice” in which she took the puppets of her deceased mentor Ken Campbell to Vent Haven in Kentucky. Nina has won a British Comedy Award, stormed Live at the Apollo, Russell Howard’s Good News, Sunday Night at the Palladium – all without even moving her lips.

Ep 11: Behind The Mic with Mike Stock (Stock Aiken & Waterman)

Ep 11: Behind The Mic with Mike Stock (Stock Aiken & Waterman)

As part of Stock, Aiken and Waterman, Mike Stock is the most successful writer producer in British chart history. His music was the soundtrack to the late 80s and early 90s he wrote some of the most enduring floor-fillers, revived the flagging careers of legends like Donna Summer and Cliff Richard, created stars from the boys and girls next door and turned an actress into one of the worlds biggest pop stars.

Mike talks about the intensity of the period where at one point they had five studios working 24 hours a day churning out hits for artists. Hence is responsible for 54 top ten hits in the UK, 18 number one hits worldwide and over 100 top 40 hits.

He continues the Stock, Aiken and Waterman ethos of giving music fans what they want and recently produced a crowd-funded album for Shayne Ward.

Ep 10: A Noble Calling with Stephen Bradley and Deirdre O’Kane

Ep 10: A Noble Calling with Stephen Bradley and Deirdre O’Kane



Stephen Bradley is the writer and director of the recent bio-pic of Christina Noble. In this fascinating chat he takes us on the journey from the lunch where the project began, right up to the eve of it’s American release. The film has had a stellar run at film festivals winning numerous awards along the way. Stephen tells us of the logistics of shooting a film on 35mm half-way around the world, the obstacles of capturing a huge life on film; when a staggering reality can be more unbelievable than fiction. I also chat to Deirdre O’Kane about playing a real person and shadowing Christina Noble in Vietnam to prepare for the role.

Ep 9: Paris, Frances with Frances Ruffelle (Tony Award Winner)

Ep 9: Paris, Frances with Frances Ruffelle (Tony Award Winner)

Tony award winner Frances Ruffelle is a singer, actress, mother, francophile and cabaret chanteuse. She originated the iconic role of Eponine in the first production of “Les Miserables” and took it from the West-End to Broadway and won a Tony award in the process.

Last Year I met her smack bang in the middle of London’s West-End. She had just finished a run in a new musical and the very first run of new cabaret show “Paris Original” to follow her Edinburgh smash hit “Beneath The Dress”.

We talked about her return to the stage after a long sabbatical for motherhood, the bizarre record deal where she never recorded a not but got paid a fortune and why she no longer sings her “Les Mis” showstopper.

Ep 8: Wilson Farrelly with Carnie Wilson of Wilson Phillips

Ep 8: Wilson Farrelly with Carnie Wilson of Wilson Phillips

Carnie Wilson is a singer that went into the family business. She and her sister Wendy and their childhood friend Chynna Phillips make up the group Wilson Phillips. In the early ninties they achieved massive success with a string of hits following the footsteps of their famous parents. They disbanded and remained apart for almost a decade. I chat to Carnie about growing up as Brian Wilson’s daughter and following in his musical footsteps. The heartbreak of the unexpected demise of her group and returning to celebrate their parents music. Carnie Wilson really is a dream-guest.

Ep 7: Coffee Actually with Pauline McLynn from Father Ted

Ep 7: Coffee Actually with Pauline McLynn from Father Ted

Since 1995 Pauline McLynn is seldom mentioned without a reference to tea. I offered her tea and then accidentally gave her coffee. Pauline tells us about her time in Trinity College, her first performance and her secret Eurovision fetish. Our chat takes us from a parochial house on Craggy Island to Clatterford with Jennifer Saunders and she even reveals a stage role she has her eye on. Pauline is an actress, an author and an absolute delight.

Ep 6: Politics Of The Heart with David W. Ross (Film-Maker / Bad Boys Inc) and John Lyons

Ep 6: Politics Of The Heart with David W. Ross (Film-Maker / Bad Boys Inc) and John Lyons

When David W. Ross was a frustrated closeted member of a boy-band he never dreamed that almost 20 years later his movie, about equal rights for gay marriages, would be in cinemas at one of the most important points in the struggle for marriage equality in the US. He talks about how photographing proposition 8 rallies led him to turn what was originally a gay marriage-themed comedy, into a heartfelt, romantic drama. Also Irish politician John Lyons speaks about taking a stand for himself and everyone else in the midst of Panti-gate.

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