Whether alongside Emma Doran on the hilarious podcast And Another Thing!, or next to Tommy Bowe on the Ireland AM couch, there’s a whole lot going on for Muireann O’Connell – who still managed to find time for a chat about what she’s up to!
Yourself and Emma Doran make quite the team on And Another Thing! How did ye end up working together?
We met through work, having interviewed her, and then we started hanging out. I obviously come from a world of audio, and I’d missed it – but I wanted to do it on my own terms. And sure, she was sitting in front of me! “Y’wanna do a podcast?’ Sure, doesn’t everyone have a podcast at this stage, so why not us?! Once you love audio you’re always going to love audio. I’m a huge consumer of radio and podcasts – and I’m just obsessed with the chatting. I find it really lovely, and it really was lovely to go back…
Is there much of a crossover from your on-screen work?
Haha, I do think that some of our very lovely viewers from Ireland AM might tune into the podcast and think “Wait, what’s going on here?!” You’re very much yourself on a podcast; I’m a Marmite person as my television self, so I’d say I’m even more Marmite when I’m doing a podcast. Zara King wants her mother to stop listening, put it that way. Which I absolutely love, for the record; if I’ve got Zara King’s mother as a listener, then I’m delighted!
The day job – or morning job, as it were – is of course as host of Ireland AM. What ungodly hour does the alarm go off?
I used to be the best girl in the entire world – when I started. The alarm is set for 4.05am – but increasingly I’ve been pushing it, hitting the snooze button a few times. It depends on the night before! But I’ve never actually slept it out – which, to be honest, is what everyone was worried about. I’m known for not being able to get up, so it’s a bit of a surprise that I’ve been able to do it…
Getting up is one thing, but how do you manage to get in gear to present three hours of live television?
I think it’s like anyone, where if you’re smiling when you start work it’ll hopefully go a bit quicker for you! When we arrive in the morning, there’s a lovely bunch of people here; some who’ve been doing this shift for 20 years like Derek, one of our camera operators and floor managers. So when you’re surrounded by people who are in a good mood, you just feed off each other. Having a nice group working with you makes things so much easier…
Chief amongst them, your couch buddy Tommy Bowe – a good teammate to have?
Absolutely delightful! Going into something that was such an institution – I’ve seen Ireland AM since its inception, and you don’t want to come in and step on people’s toes – but the two lads were just so unbelievably welcoming. We laugh every day – I’m sure some people want us to stop laughing so much! He’s just great fun; Tommy always looks for the fun in things, and he’ll find it, and you can’t help but react positively to that.
The show covers just about every issue, from the super-serious to the light-hearted; is it a challenge to stay across the lot?
But sure, isn’t everyone sort of interested in everything? If you’re sitting at home thinking about getting a mortgage, you’re probably attuned to things in the European banking sector and interest rates, and the knock-on effects of what’s happening in the Ukraine war, and how there’s less money in your pocket because of inflation…it’s all so inter-connected. People at home have a wide area of interests – and I do as well – and so whether it’s equality or entertainment, I love the nature of not sticking to one topic.
Could you pick a favourite?
No! I don’t like the kitchen, because I don’t understand food or cooking. I love the chefs – who are fabulous – and I love eating the food, but I feel like an absolute gombeen in that kitchen. I’m a fish out of water over there, and I’d say they love saying, ‘Look at her, she doesn’t have a clue with this.’
Tommy once told us he’ll happily polish off plates full of food at 8am…
Oh, he does. Some days they have to change how the segments ends because he can’t reach the break while he’s eating his second dinner. It perks him right up; you should see him being like, ‘Oh, food time!’ Delighted with life!
When you get time to yourself, what floats your entertainment boat?
I’ve dedicated my life to the church of Taskmaster. Every time we have a guest comedian who’s been on, our producers have to warn me that I can’t talk about Taskmaster for seven minutes, because I could actually happily talk about that show for the rest of my life. I have an unhealthy attraction to Greg Davies, and I think everyone should be watching it – just to make their lives better. And for podcasts, I’m obsessed with Real Dictators at the moment. It’s narrated by the actor Paul McGann; his voice is amazing, but the whole thing is so well done. Yes, it is harsh – you’re talking about everyone from Robert Mugabe to Stalin – but you also get all these weird facts about the bonkers lives that these guys led.
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