Kildare podcast gets Taoiseach scoop — and kids’ approval
What’s On: Kevin Dowling from Kildare takes a look at the latest films, series and documentaries
There are perhaps few better ways to road test a new podcast for kids than to actually sit down with the show’s target audience and listen to it together. So it was last week when I sat down with my own kids and started to listen to KidCast, which is a ‘show created by kids, for kids’.
The show’s producer Céire O’Donoghue is a Naas local who has over 20 years voiceover experience, and has also made appearances in TV shows like Vikings and Striking Out. The concept began with an investment in a home studio and was followed by a stint in the Today FM School of Radio, where she honed her production skills and the embryonic idea for the podcast emerged.
The fact that Céire has begun her own podcast is perhaps little wonder, given that her grandfather was a sound engineer for RTÉ in the 1960s, so, as they say, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
The show is aimed at a specific gap in the broadcasting landscape: a podcast where children are given the reins and empowered to host and create their own show. Each week, there is a guest host who compères along with Céire.
Amongst other things, each episode has a news round, an ‘around the world’ slot, mystery sounds, book reviews and interviews with guests. You get the sense that the hosts are speaking with the target audience, not at them. The age appropriate news items covered will get youngsters engaged with what’s going on in the wider world around them.
Each week the show has a different host and newsreader and so on, thus giving a chance to a disparate group of kids to have their voices heard and their talents showcased. Céire has also managed to get a lot of interesting guests to come on and be interviewed by the kid hosts, but surely its biggest scoop to date must be in Episode Two.