Podcast Corner: Meet the winners of the first All-Ireland Podcast Awards

Shane Daniel Byrne (Young Hot Guys) and Hilary Barry (Headstuff) with hosts Louise Cantillon and Kevin McGahern at the inaugural All-Ireland Podcast Awards. Picture: Ruth Medjber

The inaugural All-Ireland Podcast Awards took place at the Woodlands Hotel, Adare, Co Limerick, last week, held as part of the new Sound.Waves conference. The awards sought to recognise “the immense talent, innovation, and storytelling impact of audio creators across the island”. Here’s a run through some of the winners.

The Real Carrie Jade took home the true crime prize, Where is Jón? claimed the runners-up spot, with Stolen Sister commended. All three are made by the RTÉ Documentary on One team, cementing their reputation as the standout powerhouse of the genre.

In documentary and drama, Cover: Stakeknife claimed top prize. Runner-up was KidCast School Tour, and Ireland Said Yes was commended. Cover: Stakeknife was a Second Captains/BBC Sounds collaboration as Mark Horgan and Ciaran Cassidy followed up the multi-award winning podcast Where Is George Gibney? by detailing the true story of a senior member of the IRA known as Stakeknife, whose double life as a British Army agent helped him to get away with murder. Second Captains was runner-up in the sports category, though the recognition for Stakeknife does suggest its future output could range wider than the sporting arena.

In the conversation category, The Laughs of Your Life with Doireann Garrihy reigned. The G Spot with Grace Alice was runner-up, and Family Flowers Only by Grief Ireland was commended.

Comedians Tony Cantwell, Killian Sundermann, and Shane Byrne aka Young Hot Guys (Headstuff) — which was among our picks for best podcast of 2024 — won the entertainment award. Runner-up was Lunchtime with Michael Fry and commended was Marty Miller’s Music History.

The judging panel (note: I was among the judges for one of the categories) comprised both international and Irish industry figures from Spotify and Patreon to BBC, Wondery, and Netflix. 

Head judge Dylan Haskins said: “The range and quality of entries we had shows there’s such a diverse mix of shows whether that’s from independent creators, commercial publishers or public service broadcasters — across the 32 counties. The winners of the inaugural awards have been recognised for their excellence — and awards by their nature involve competition, but the All-Ireland Podcast Awards are as much about having an annual moment of coming together and celebrating the work that’s been made.”