A new independent Irish Podcast Awards (IPAs) is being launched by the same team behind the British Podcast Awards and the Australian Podcast Awards.
The IPAs will celebrate the rich diversity of Irish podcasting from kitchen podcasters to radio broadcasters and from non-profits to large publishers. The purpose of the Awards is to drive awareness of Irish podcasts and help the sector grow and prosper.
It will be open to all podcasters – big and small – across the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland and will be judged by over 50 audio practitioners.
The Irish Podcast Awards will open for entries in March 2022 and culminate in an Awards ceremony in September held in Dublin. As well as a whole host of categories adjudicated by the judges, there will be a special Listeners’ Choice Award voted for by the general public.
News of the awards is already causing excitement; Angela Scanlon, host of Thanks A Million podcast and RTÉ One’s Angela Scanlon’s Ask Me Anything will be lending her ears to the judging process, with more names to be announced.
Angela said: “There are so many incredible Irish podcasts from so many exceptional people, so I’m beyond delighted to see the Irish Podcast Awards are coming in 2022! I can’t wait to wrap my lugs around every one of them.”
The British Podcast Awards were founded 5 years ago and has become a staple in the audio industry calendar recognising the best podcasts in Britain. Attended by the biggest names in audio from My Dad Wrote A Porno and Fearne Cotton and attracting podcasts fans including Michael Sheen, previous winners include George The Poet, Grief Cast, Shagged Married Annoyed and Grounded with Louis Theroux.
This year, media coverage of the awards reached 90million people. Winning a British Podcast Award puts a spotlight a podcast, giving it a new platform, allowing it to reach new audiences and elevating it to a new level. It’s for this reason that the founders are launching the Irish Podcast Awards.
Matt Hill, Co-Founder of Irish Podcast Awards said: “The Irish podcast sector has seen enormous growth in the past few years with brilliant shows from established operators like RTE and Bauer, companies doing audio for the first time like The Independent and the Irish Times and a whole host of amazing talent like Blindboy, Doireann Garrihy, Niall Breslin, Charleen Murphy and Ellie Kelly. It’s time these Irish shows, and more were recognised.
“Now is the perfect time for all of the Irish podcast community to come together, celebrate their successes and grow their audience. We’re focused on creating a truly independent awards that can reflect the breadth of Irish talent.”
Roy Martin, Managing Editor of Radio Today Ireland said: “The Irish radio sector has made such a splash in podcasting, it’s the right time to reflect their work – as well as all the amazing content from new creators too. We’re excited to be involved and help spread the word about fantastic Irish podcasts.”
James Cridland, Editor of the podcast newsletter Podnews said: “Ireland’s podcast consumption has always been among the highest in the world according to data we’ve reported, and the quality of shows have always been impressive. I’m delighted to see a new podcast awards for the country to recognise its creators.”
There will be more information about the awards in the new year and podcasters can sign up to be the first to hear about it at theirishpodcastawards.ie.
