Daithi McMahon

Daithi McMahon

Type of Programming

Radio dramas, documentaries, features.

Overview

Daithi McMahon is a multi-award winning and critically acclaimed independent radio producer, writer and director.

Recent projects:

• Tom Crean – Endurance
  Due for broadcast August 2010, Radio Kerry
  Coming to Radio Kerry in late 2011 this feature length radio drama is a recreation of the dramatic events of the remarkable Endurance expedition under Sir Earnest Shackleton from 1914-1917 as experienced through the eyes of the Kerry Antarctic hero Tom Crean. This is the much anticipated sequel to the PPI award winning Tom Crean and the Terra Nova Expedition (see below) and charts the incredible story of resilience and determination in the face of severe adversity. Supported by the BAI.
• Derailed
  April 2011, i105-107
  This 45-minute radio drama follows the experiences of four friends as they travel Europe by rail in 1987. The youths must face into an uncertain future of unemployment and economic recession – a situation which resonates strongly with the youth of today. Support by the BAI.
• Living Memory: A Blasket Island Story
  October 2010, Radio Kerry

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  An audio drama set on The Blasket Islands of Co Kerry in the 1930s, this play focuses on writer Tomás Ó Criomthain and the mysterious events surrounding the death of one of his sons. The play also offers the listener an insight into the primitive, trying, and now extinct way of life of the islands. Supported by the BAI

• Living Memory: Behind the Story
  A 30-minute documentary featuring dramatic inserts, exploring the history of the Blasket Islands and the unique way of life of its people including storytellers and writers such as Tomás Ó Criomthain.
• Tom Crean and the Terra Nova Expedition
  Broadcast January 2010 & Christmas 2010 on Radio Kerry

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  This 90-minute production recreates Captain Robert F. Scott’s ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition between 1910 and 1913 in the race to be the first man to reach the South Pole. The story focuses on the hardships endured by the men on the expedition and in particular Tom Crean’s heroism and bravery. The drama won the Silver PPI Radio Award 2010 for Radio Drama. Supported by the BAI.
  
  ‘For its ambition alone, this drama is worthy of unreserved praise.’ -  Eithne Tynan – Radio Critic, The Sunday Tribune -

‘It had all the taut melodrama of the old Buster Crabbe 1930s Flash Gordon B-movie serials. In short, I loved it.’ - Quentin Fottrell – Radio Critic, The Irish Times -

• The Levellers
  Broadcast August 2009 & April 2010, Radio Kerry

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  A feature length drama set in East Kerry in the 1760s. It tells the story of a community torn apart by the formation of a secret society of ‘White Boys’ who use intimidation tactics and acts of vandalism against land owners to keep the local men in work and their livelihoods intact .
  Supported by the BAI
  ‘The Levellers was a fine piece of work, particularly its hard-hitting and moving script.’
  - Darragh McManus – Radio Critic, The Irish Independent -

• The Story of Kerry Music
  Broadcast Spring 2009, Radio Kerry
  A six-part musical documentary co-produced and presented by RTE/RNaG presenter Aine Hensey, the series is a musical journey through the history of traditional Irish music in county Kerry featuring some of the Kingdom’s best known and loved musicians. Supported by the Radio Kerry Access Series Fund.
• Sights and Sounds Around Us
  Broadcast December 2007, Radio Kerry
  Co-producer of a series of 10 short features on historical people and places in Kerry. Supported by the BCI New Adventures in Broadcasting Scheme.

 

Awards:

• Gold PPI Radio Award 2007 Station Imaging – Co-producer of A Sense of Place
• Silver PPI Radio Award 2010 Radio Drama – Tom Crean and the Terra Nova Expedition
• Bronze PPI Radio Award 2010 Radio Drama – The Levellers
• McNamee Award 2010 Sports Prog. – Production Assistant, The Greatest Day

Research:
2009/2010 – Masters Dissertation – The Role of Texting in Talk Radio.
Currently – PhD Thesis – The use of new media technologies to enable audience participation with radio in contemporary Ireland.