The Plastic Podcasts

Singer songwriter and family historian Ronan MacManus is the son of Ross and brother of Declan (aka Elvis Costello) but more importantly is something of a legend among the Diaspora of London and the South East, with his band Bible Code Sundays and their anthem Maybe It's Because I'm An Irish Londoner. We talk family…

Actor, writer, director, mentor, spiritual advisor, activist…the list of Chia Phoenix’s roles in life goes on and on. In her own words, she is a “Jack of All Trades, Master of All”. She brings a new and vital perspective to our podcasts as we talk about the historical and linguistic connections between the Caribbean and…

Bass player with the original line-up of Public Image Limited, alongside John Lydon and Keith Levene, John Wardle – dubbed “Jah Wobble” by Sid Vicious -went on to front Invaders Of The Heart, worked on the London Underground during lean years and returned to music to work with – amongst others – Brian Eno, Delores…

The only Irish Traveller to found and head a Gypsy And Traveller Exchange, Josephine (“Josie”) O’Driscoll talks visits to holocaust sites in Krakow, education, family and her hopes for community ownership among Gypsies, Romani and Travellers. Plus John Lee of Irish Stew Podcast raises author Peter Quinn onto The Plastic Pedestal

A journey across the Atlantic to meet two podcasting contemporaries making their own aural journeys across the Global Irish community. John Lee and Martin Nutty have just marked their half-century of interviews and to celebrate, we talk the difference between the diasporas in the UK and the US, the Connemara Patch, Kennedy, stereotypes and voices.…

Star of “Blood Brothers”, Chrissy Rogers in “Brookside” and – would you believe – Mrs Devaney in Jimmy McGovern’s “Broken”, Eithne Browne discusses memories of Mayo, her Master Mariner father and singer mother, changes in Liverpool and strange Irish coincidences. Plus Patrick Osborne raises James (“Big Jim”) Larkin onto The Plastic Pedestal https://the-plastic-podcasts.castos.com/podcasts/10219/episodes/eithne-browne-brookie39s-irish-queen-of-liverpool

Poet, playwright, novelist, horticulturalist, referee and self-proclaimed spoofer, Patrick Osborne talks family, 70s telly in Dublin, local football teams and the best of British and Irish cultures. All the while managing to slip an occasional reference to his debut novel "Baxter's Boys" - a mix of The Snapper, Fever Pitch and Shameless - into the conversation. Plus Fr Bernárd Lynch raises President Michael D. Higgins onto The Plastic Pedestal.

Born in Ennis, Co. Clare, Bernárd Lynch was ordained as a Roman Catholic priest in 1971. He founded the AIDS Ministry in New York in 1982, faced down the persecution of his own church and finally married the man of his dreams, Billy, in 2017. He has been honoured by both the City of New York and the President of Ireland, and now he honours us. Plus Brian O'Neill of Dimple Discs raises Sean O'Hagan onto The Plastic Pedestal

Co-founder of the Dimple Discs label - alongside the similarly named Damien O'Neill (he of The Undertones), Brian O'Neill has a roster of mostly Irish and Irish Diaspora artists including Derry's finest plus Sack, Eileen Gogan, Keeley, Jah Wobble and Telefis and many others. We talk music, Dublin of the 60s, Swastika Laundries, Sinn Fein picnics, The Beatles' works beano, pubbing with Nick Cave and so much more.

Designer Warren Reilly is a rising star in the world of textiles and fashion. A queer, gender-fluid artist of Irish and Afro-Caribbean heritage, his work examines the intersections of identity, taking particular inspiration from the 18th Century. He has been creative director of Fashioning Our History, a headliner for the Queer Georgian Social Season at Burgh House and is currently the curator of the digital exhibition By The Cut Of Our Cloth at The Mixed Museum. He also has strong views in gravy. And as we head towards our second birthday, we return to the first ever Plastic Pedestal - John O' Donoghue on Brian Behan

A tale of remembrance fighting against amnesia, Margaret Urwin works with Justice For The Forgotten, a campaign seeking to find the truth behind the Dublin-Monaghan bombings and other similar atrocities that took place on Irish soil during The Troubles of the 1970s and 80s. It is a tale as often overlooked in Ireland as it is in England and sheds a unique light on that turbulent time. Plus Plastic Pedestals provided by Chelsea McDonagh

An Irish Traveller with an MA in Education, Chelsea McDonagh is also an academic, a creative, a sportswoman, a loving granddaughter, daughter and aunt, a voracious reader, an intellectual powerhouse and one of the most incredible people we've had the privilege to interview.

In a special one-off podcast for St Patrick’s Day 2022, we interview Jack Byrne, Liverpool-Irish author of The Liverpool Mysteries. “Across The Water“, the second part of this trilogy and sequel to “Under The Bridge” is published by Northodox Press today and sees Vinnie and Anne journeying to Ireland to discover the truth nature of…

Born in Waterford, and having moved to London at the age of 19, along with the rest of his family, Tony Frisby is a poet, raconteur and delight. His latest collection “A Boreen In Waterford” takes us from ancient Irish history to a childhood in Tramore and walks across the Sussex Downs, then back again. Seventh in a selection of six episodes for our fifth series. Plus Jessica Martin raises actor and writer Caroline Cooke onto The Plastic Pedestal

Born to an Irish Traveller family in Manchester, Chris McDonagh is the founder of Travellers Against Racism as well as Campaigns Officer for Brighton-based charity FFT (Friends, Families, Travellers). We talk about Channel 4 documentaries, the public perception of Travellers, the notion of being “settled” and his hopes for the future. Meanwhile Lorraine Maher, founder of IAmIrish, brings a unique and personal perspective to our Plastic Pedestals slot.

Jessica Cecilia Anna Maria Martin (to give her full baptismal name) is a writer, actor, singer, impressionist and illustrator. She was one of the voices of the original Spitting Image, a punk werewolf to Sylvester McCoy’s Doctor Who and spent two years starring in the West End in Me And My Girl. She has of late become an accomplished illustrator of graphic novels including her own illustrated memoir, Life Drawing. Plus Ruth McHugh raises a truly iconic Plastic Pedestal.

Born “the only black person in Ireland” in a small Tipperary town, Lorraine Maher has gone on to be a consultant, educator, trainer, creative and project manager. A director of Project 507 and Education Manager of Clean Break Theatre, she is also the founder of I Am Irish, which in five years has gone from photography exhibition to international support and training organisation, specialising in perceptions of Irishness, colour and identity heritage. Plus Geraldine Judge raises not one but two Plastic Pedestals

Dublin-based artist, photographer, film-maker and documentarian Ruth McHugh tells of her forthcoming project looking at the curious history of Liverpool Metropolitan Catholic Cathedral. Plus the mystery of “her grandfather’s Caravaggio” and the last days of the Ballymun towers. Meanwhile Anthony Ekundayo Lennon pays tribute to great-great-great-great grandfather James Doyle with his Plastic Pedestal.

Geraldine Judge (aka Geraldine Moloney Judge) is an outreach worker with Irish Community Care in Liverpool, as well as a writer and actor (the aka is her stage name). Born in Southampton, raised in Dublin and now a resident of Merseyside, she has encountered bigotry on either side of the Irish Sea – too English for some, too Irish for others – but has come through those incidents with determination, humour and compassion. We talk football, medicine, the need for specifically Irish community care, mishearing words, The Spy Who Loved Me and being taught by Roddy Doyle, as well as her solo show “Obscured View“. Plus Pauline Nevins raises a very personal Plastic Pedestal.

Born to white Irish parents in West London, but with the colouring and facial features of a mixed race child, Anthony's appearance led to family strife, police harassment,  and – eventually – accusations of “passing” as black in order to gain Arts Council funds. The subsequent media and Twitter storm – along with Anthony's lifelong struggle to be accepted for who he is – is as fascinating as it is emotional. We’re grateful to him for sharing his story with us. Plus Joanna (“Jo”) Neary raises Lucia Joyce up onto The Plastic Pedestal.

Pauline Nevins is the author of Fudge, The Downs and Ups of a Bi-Racial, Half-Irish, British War Baby. Born the only mixed race child in a family of eight white children, hers is a story of family secrets, revelations and reunions. Raised in Wellingborough, and now a resident of California,. Pauline’s story has been featured in two exhibitions organised by The Mixed Museum, one in conjunction with the Association of Mixed Race Irish, the other focussing on the “Brown Babies” of World War II. Plus, Adrian Lunney selects Brendan Mulkere for The Plastic Pedestal

Jo Neary is an actor, writer, comedian, artist, puppeteer, singer…the list goes on. Nominated for a Perrier Award in 2004, she is arguably best known as Judith in the BBC series “Ideal”, starring Johnny Vegas. Born in Coventry, but raised in Cornwall, to an Irish father and Welsh mother, she talks accents, growing up below the poverty line, going untouched by school bullies, her mercurial Irish gran, dad’s naked yoga and the life lessons she’s passing on to her son. Meanwhile – over at The Plastic Pedestal – Patrick, Angela and Niall of Liverpool Irish Centre nominate the fab four of Tommy Walsh, Joe England, Phil Fitzpatrick and John Lennon https://the-plastic-podcasts.castos.com/episodes/jo-neary-cornwall-an-irish-granny-and-other-people39s-voices Photo (c) Steve Ullathorne

Writer, journalist, editor and PR guru, Adrian Lunney graduated in English at Cambridge and was EMAP’s feature writer of the year in 1991. He now runs Adrian Lunney PR. Born to Northern Irish parents in West London in 1960, Adrian’s story covers the rise of The Troubles on both sides of the water as well as left wing activism, the Catholic Church, the joys of Rory Gallagher and becoming reconciled to his identity and place in the world. There’s also talk of music masters, Henry Cooper, squeamish butcher’s sons and David Soul. Plus Mo O’Connell and Mary Tynan set the record for the largest number of Plastic Pedestals ever nominated in one episode… https://the-plastic-podcasts.castos.com/episodes/adrian-lunney-building-sites-fiddle-lessons-and-being-a-republican-in-purley

Patrick Gaul, Angela Billing and Niall Gibney of Liverpool Irish Centre talk about facing the challenges of Covid and staging virtual performances as well as the shopping lists you can fill at their Irish Shop. They also discuss the history of both city and centre, the question of being Irish, English or Liverpudlian, the centre's role in the wider community and the rise of the Irish-themed bar in Liverpool. All of this while waiting for The Logues to tune up. Plus Laurence Cox raises trailblazer Michael Dillon onto The Plastic Pedestal

Maureen (“Mo”) O’Connell and Mary Tynan are actor-writer-directors who went from Ireland to England for professional reasons and who both returned to Dublin and Galway respectively in 2015/2016. Mo is an award-winning film maker whose feature “Spa Weekend” is currently being feted with awards wherever it goes. She is also the founder of the Dublin International Comedy Film Festival Mary is the creator of Notes From Xanadu, “probably” the world’s first online arts centre, and its sister institution Xanadu Theatre Plus Nathan Mannion of EPIC: The Irish Emigration Museum raises Paul Boyton – the fearless frogman – onto The Plastic Pedestal

Dr Laurence Cox is an associate professor of sociology at the National University of Ireland in Maynooth. He is also one of the three authors of “The Irish Buddhist”, the story of U Dhammaloka and his clashes with the British Empire in the early 20th century. We talk about Dhammaloka (born Laurence Carroll in Dublin, or so we think), Buddhism among the Irish, going native, Kipling's “Kim”, the Irish in 19th Century America, and what stories like these mean in the aftermath of the Mother and Baby Homes report and the death of George Nkencho. Plus Zoe Lyons raises a small fleadh onto The Plastic Pedestal…

Nathan Mannion is the senior curator at EPIC, which stands proudly on Custom House Quay in Dublin. Founded by Neville Isdell in 2016, EPIC tells the story of Ireland's emigrant people throughout the ages. IOT's been visited by some 750,000 people in its first four years and was voted Europe's Leading Tourist Attraction for an unprecedented two years running in 2019 and 2020 at the World Travel Awards. It's a far-ranging and fascinating discussion taking in Spitfire Paddy (Brendan Finucane), Margaretta Eagar, tutor to the last of the Romanovs, Lord Haw Haw and Eamonn Andrews. Plus, Rosemary Adaser places Edna O'Brien on The Plastic Pedestal

One of the country’s leading stand-ups, Zoe Lyons tones’ have been heard on everything from Clive Anderson’s Chat Show to Just A Minute. A fixture on the comedy circuit, her 2007 debut show “Fight or Flight” saw her nominated as Best Newcomer at Edinburgh Fringe. A second generation member of the diaspora, she recorded a personal documentary series “Zoe Lyons: Passport Paddy” for Radio 4 in 2018. 2021 will see her game show, “Lightning” broadcast on BBC2. Plus Dame Elizabeth Anionwu raises Conrad Bryan onto The Plastic Pedestal

Rosemary is the founder and former CEO of AMRI, the Association of Mixed Race Irish, a campaign and support group with members in Britain, Ireland, the US and China. Born in Ireland to a white mother and Ghanaian father, her childhood was a series of foster homes and industrial schools. After moving to London at the age of 20, she gained a Masters in Social Policy and worked in Social Housing before forming AMRI. Hers is a remarkable story of fighting injustice and seeking visibility in a society that has for too long ignored or neglected her and others like her. Plus Tommy McLaughlin and Liam Thompson of Leeds Irish Centre do a double Plastic Pedestal.

Professor Dame Elizabeth Anionwu is, in her own words, “a black British woman of Irish-Nigerian heritage, thank you very much”. She is an activist, health care administrator, lecturer, and Emeritus Professor of Nursing at University of West London, where she created the Mary Seacole Centre for Nursing Practice. Her memoir, “MIxed Blessings From A Cambridge Union” tells of how her parents met in 1947 and how she was subsequently raised in convent schools and by her grandparents. Inspired at the age of four to take up nursing, she has been a leader in the research and treatment of sickle cell disease and thalassemia, has been granted a CBE and a damehood, been cited as one of the 100 most influential women in the world in 2020 by the BBC and, to top it all, appeared on Desert Island Discs earlier this year. And now she’s here with us. Plus journalist and writer Sheron Boyle raises a pair of personal Plastic Pedestals

Journalist and writer Sheron Boyle – along with chairman Liam Thompson and manager Tommy McLoughlin – share stories of Leeds Irish Centre and talk about what it’s meant, not just to the diaspora but to the whole of the community, as it marks its golden anniversary with a book. Tales of Gabby Logan, Chris Moyles and Oasis abound – along with the finest three words ever uttered on a podcast. Plus performance poet SuAndi offers a unique take on The Plastic Pedestal

Poet and performer SuAndi, OBE, is a third-generation member of the diaspora with a grandmother from Wicklow and a Nigerian father. She is the freelance Cultural Director of the National Black Arts Alliance, has been awarded honorary degrees by Lancaster University and Manchester Metropolitan University and a Lifetime Award by Manchester BME Network. Her one-woman show, The Story of M, is a tribute to her Liverpool Irish mother and is featured in the Mixed Museum’s online Exhibition of Mixed Race Irish. SuAndi’s own story starts and ends (so far) in Manchester, but takes in Lemn Sissay, Sir Laurence Olivier and Eartha Kitt. It’s quite the ride. Plus Cherry Smyth raises Lauren Kinsella onto The Plastic Pedestal

A pleasure: a genuine pleasure and privilege to talk to the poet and author of “Famished”. In the usual freewheeling Plastic Podcast style we get to talk about voices and finding your own, about Covid and The Potato Famine, about America and Northern Ireland. Plus a genuinely beautiful idea. All of this and Tony Murray goes rogue with The Plastic Pedestal. What more is there to ask?

A truly marvellous chat with the charming and thoughtful Tony Murray. Director of the Irish Writers in London Summer School and curator of the Archive of the Irish in Britain. We talk punk, walking the streets during lockdown and the nature of the London Irish. Plus Niamh Lear raises Samantha Barry onto The Plastic Pedestal

After a week away we’re back in full flow with Niamh Lear, whose current PhD thesis at Newcastle University studies the curious phenomenon of “Passport Paddies.” Reviving the spirit of the salon, we talk geography, history and Boyzone, plus our unexpected family connection. Also, Jess Moriarty places the legend that is Edna O’Brien on The Plastic Pedestal…

The full plastic of our interview with Jess Moriarty, writer and academic. We talk writing courses, grandmothers, Brexit, Covid, seeing her dad literally play God. Oh, and witches… Plus Craig Jordan-Baker raises Moy McCrory onto the Plastic Pedestal…

Writer, lecturer and self-confessed folkie, Craig Jordan-Baker tells all on the eve of the launch of his debut novel, The Nacullians (published by Epoque Press). We talk grandparents, Nazis, Flann O’Brien, Samuel Beckett and fantasy islands. Plus Doug Devaney adds another Plastic Pedestal…

The full plastic with Nick: singer, songwriter, playwright, documentarian and anarchist. It’s a freewheeling, at times hard-hitting, discussion, drawing in music, politics, medical care, home, hearth, family and an old bloke taking a dump on the street.

Actor Paul Moriarty has been a constant in our lives, whether with The Gentle Touch, Ashes To Ashes, Pride and Prejudice or as George Palmer in EastEnders. He has also had a distinguished theatre career, working with Caryl Churchill, Alan Bennett, Peter Brook and Lindsay Anderson, to name just four. Not bad for a boy from County Kilburn… Plus Bridget Whelan raises Shane McGowan onto The Plastic Pedestal

Journalist, novelist and teacher, Bridget Whelan’s career took her from Catholic weekly The Universe to working with Paul Foot on The Daily Mirror and beyond. It’s a fascinating story and in it we discuss changes not only for the Irish in Britain but also in the role of newspapers in this country, as well as the courtship of her parents in postwar Britain and the meaning of that deceptively simple word: “home.” Meanwhile, at The Plastic Pedestal, Janet Behan pays tribute to the actress Brig Brennan

The daughter of Brian and the niece of Brendan, Janet Behan is a playwright, actress and seaside gardener. She’s also thoughtful, funny and occasionally potty mouthed*. We talk Brendan and the IRA, Brian and the Communist Party, republicanism, booze and fame, typecasting, women writing in their sixties and her plays “Brendan At The Chelsea”, “Why Shouldn’t I Go” and the forthcoming “Kathleen and Me”. Plus Paddy O’Keeffe raises George Bernard Shaw onto The Plastic Pedestal. *Nothing your average fourteen year old couldn’t handle. Trust me.

Trade union activist, campaigner, playwright and performer, Paddy O’Keeffe has worn a number of hats since arriving in England in 1964. This is the full bells and whistles podcast, and is a fascinating talk with a man blessed with optimism and humanity. Plus, John O’Donoghue raises Brian Behan onto The Plastic Pedestal

Poet, author, publisher, academic. We’re proud to have John as our first interviewee. This is the podcast with all the bells and whistles. In it, John discusses literature and depression, the London Irish and winding your neck in, and lock-down eyebrows. Featuring our first ever Plastic Pedestal (not to be found on the mini-casts). John’s award-winning memoir “Sectioned: A Life Interrupted” can be found here: Sectioned https://www.hachette.co.uk/titles/john-odonoghue/sectioned/9780719520549/ While all the news that’s fit to print about The Wild Geese Press can be accessed at its homepage, via: Home https://www.thewildgeesepress.com/h