Search
25 Sept 2025
Search
25 Sept 2025
Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content.
Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist.
If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter .
Support our mission and join our community now.
To continue reading this article, you can subscribe for as little as €0.50 per week which will also give you access to all of our premium content and archived articles!
Alternatively, you can pay €0.50 per article, capped at €1 per day.
Thank you for supporting Ireland's best local journalism!
The 2 Johnnies
The 2 Johnnies have appeared to hit back and make light of the news that broke earlier this week that the podcasting duo received €20,000 plus VAT from the Irish Prison Service to host a show on the attractions of working as a prison officer.
The sponsored podcast featured prison staff speaking about life working in an Irish jail and the advantages of a job in the penal system.
The IPS confirmed that a fee of €20,000, plus €4,600 in VAT, was agreed with the Tipperary duo in an effort to promote the career path of an Irish prison officer to a national audience.
READ NEXT: Clonmel band Charcoal Greys land Whelan's gig after becoming viral TikTok sensation
The move from the IPS has been received with a mix of positive and negative reactions, with some arguing it is money well spent given the 2 Johnnies popularity and profile, while others declaring it an ill-advised misuse of taxpayer money.
Minister for Justice Jim O'Callaghan has said he was "surprised" by the news, adding "I'm out there launching garda recruitment campaigns down in the Ploughing Championships, the Commissioner does it, we don't get paid €25,000 for doing it, not that we should..."
Johnny "Smacks" McMahon and Johnny "B" O'Brien have taken to social media today, Thursday, to indirectly express what they seem to deem as an overreaction to the story.
The pair posted a copy of this week's edition of The Nationalist newspaper to their near 1 million followers on Facebook and Instragram, where the pair have been commended for hosting the third instalment of their annual mini marathon in Cahir.
In both posts the caption simply read: 'Nice to be in the news again'.
Darren Hassett, the Regional Editor for Iconic Media in Tipperary, has penned an opinion piece arguing that the 2 Johnnies were right to accept the payment from the IPS, you can read that here.
READ NEXT: €24 million nursing home in Tipperary stays empty as bureaucracy drags on
Subscribe or register today to discover more from DonegalLive.ie
Buy the e-paper of the Donegal Democrat, Donegal People's Press, Donegal Post and Inish Times here for instant access to Donegal's premier news titles.
Keep up with the latest news from Donegal with our daily newsletter featuring the most important stories of the day delivered to your inbox every evening at 5pm.
This publication supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice of the Press Council. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at www.presscouncil.ie, Lo-call 1800 208 080 or email: info@presscouncil.ie.
