Eoin O'Callaghan Radio Plays
2022 United Nations, by Guy Hibbert
2022 A Leap in the Dark, by Ron Hutchinson
2019 Base Lines, by Mark Lawson
2019 Hard Stop, by Peter Bleksley
2019 Read The Room, by Viv Groskop
2018 Holy Father, by Mark Lawson
2008 A Place in the World, by Harriet O'Carrol
2007 Expand This, by Mark Lawson
2006 Every breath you take, by Annie McCartney
2005 Nemesis, by Shelagh Stevenson
2004 Signs and Wonders, by Frankie Bailey.
2003 The good listener, by Neil Brand
2001 Faithful Departed, by Christopher Fitz-Simon: comedy -drama serial
2000 As I lay dying, by William Faulkner, dram. James Friel. Classic Serial.
1999 The Art Class, by Neil Brand (q.v.). Early nuclear fission.
1998 A painful case, by James Joyce. Classic Serial.
1998 Quartet, by Steve May. R3. Serial.
1998 Talkers, by Neil Brand.
1997 Ballylenon, by Christopher Fitz-Simon (several series; comedy drama)
1997 War and Peace: Tolstoy, ad. Marcy Kahan and Mike Walker in 10 parts. Classic Serial.
1997 Winter's Tale - Shakespeare, R3
1997 Fair Hearing, by Steve May. R3.
1994 Roman Epic, by Steve Walker (q.v.)
1993 Holus Bolus, by Steve Walker (q.v.)
date nk Dancing at Lughnasa, by Brian Friel
See also DAVID POWNALL page. E. O'C has produced many of his plays.
NOTES
THE UNITED NATIONS, by Guy Hibbert (R4, 1415, 8 and 5 Jun 22) was a two-part fictional drama set in a world undergoing political upheaval. Richard is head of the Oversight Committee, given the job of uncovering corruption in the U.N. One day a Pakistani named Fazal tells him that Pakistan has secretly moved three nuclear warheads into Saudi territory. Is the information true? Is it safe to assume that the information is unreliable because it cannot be verified? Richard considers how he might best respond... Richard was played by Jason Isaacs, Carol by Madeleine Potter and there were several other well-known names in the cast. Sound design was by Wilfredo Acosta and the story was adapted and directed by Eoin O’Callaghan; by Indie company Big Fish.
26 Feb 22: Saturday Play - A Leap In The Dark
By Ron Hutchinson, to celebrate the approaching centenary of the UK’s first ever radio play. In 1922, when producer Cedric Maud and his assistant Grace first proposed the idea of a play to be performed on the newly available wireless sets, the idea was initially regarded as impracticable and perhaps impossible to execute. How would listeners know what was going on if they couldn't see the stage?
A young writer, Richard Hughes, was commissioned to write a piece which would exploit the potential of the new medium. This play takes a humorous look at the way the first drama producers faced the challenge and invented a new art form which was destined to become very popular - radio drama. Nigel Playfair, stage actor - Alex Jennings, May Playfair - Jane Slavin, Cedric Maud - Rufus Wright, Grace Wise - Elinor Coleman, Hattersly - Clive Hayward, Billingsby - David Acton, Hughes - Jos Vantyler. Director: Eoin O’Callaghan. Indie (Big Fish). 60m.
21 Jun 2019: Base Lines
By Mark Lawson. A play about transgender individuals. Do men who have transitioned (been surgically altered) to become women have an unfair advantage if they take part in women's athletics? Secondly, are surgical and hormonal alternations sufficient for a person to become a member of the opposite sex? Peter / PJReaney: Rosie Sheehy, Sheila Reaney: Haydn Gwynne, David Harvey-Lane: Dermot Crowley, Rachel du Prez: Kerry Fox, Andy: Tom Glenister, with Adrian Decosta and Marieme Diouf. Producer: Eoin O'Callaghan.
30 May 2019: Hard Stop
By Peter Bleksley. Rpt. from 2017. An armed officer is told to intercept a criminal who is believed to be on his way to kill a rival. The officer believes the man is reaching for a gun and has no option but to shoot him. Now a court has to decide whether he is guilty of a crime. Very topical. PC Sam Jenkins, the armed officer: Daniel Mays, Jane Tucker: Andrea Lowe, Baba Oyedije: Dennis Alam, Quigley: Ron Cook, Prof. Moore: Robert Blythe, Insp. Martin: Peter Bleksley, Court usher: Sanchia McCormack, Herol Jackson: Khali Best, Judge: Chetna Pandya. Producer: Eoin O'Callaghan.
12 Apr 2019: Read the Room
By Viv Groskop. Sally seems to have obtained a key role in an important movie trilogy. The producer insists on meeting her in his hotel before confirming the deal. This does not go smoothly. Sally Hall: Melody Grove, Richard Donovan: Tim McInnerny, Kate: Dona Croll, Jack: Owen Findlay, Anna Kane: Rebecca Saire, Maddie: Katy Ellis. Producer: Eoin O'Callaghan.
18 Jul 18: Holy Father
By Mark Lawson. Is this a repeat? I seem to remember it, but no repeat indicated in RT. In the Vatican in the near future, 120 cardinals gather in the Sistene chapel to elect a new pontiff. For the first time since 1159, he might be English. Cardinal Faber: Nick Dunning, Cardinal Simouri: Jude Akuwudike, Rachel grealish: Lisa-Ann MaLaughlin, Martha Keen: Scarlett Brookes, Tom Graham: Patrick FitzSymons, Cardinal O'Callaghan: Pat Laffan, Padro Antenucci: Faolan Morgan. Producer: Eoin O'Callaghan.
A PLACE IN THE WORLD....2008
By Harriet O'Carroll. 45m. Following the 30 years war; Clara and Tobi flee their native Germany for the promise of a better life in Ireland. But what they find there is far from the Promised Land. Tobi ...... Paul Rhys, Clara ...... Lia Williams, Marianne ...... Sarah Dillon, Walter ...... Richard Howard, Sunderland ...... Miche Doherty, Aunt Mags ...... Stella McCusker, Donal ...... Luke Griffin. Producer Eoin O'Callaghan.
EXPAND THIS....2007
By Mark Lawson, (R4, 1415, 26 Mar 07) - a rather unsettling 45 minutes about the power of the internet. A man is giving a lecture about what happened to his son and daughter, after his daughter was unknowingly photographed performing a sexual act at a party. The photo ends up on a website, Dad's job is affected, and the situation escalates as the picture is duplicated and circulated around the world. And in spite of the consequences, including the breakup of a family and a death, no-one had done anything illegal. I had doubts about it as a radio drama, but it was a reminder about what can happen if the wrong material gets onto the web or, for that matter, into an email. More than one employee has lost his job by making online comments about his boss. Alex Jennings, Haydn Gwynne and Lynne Seymour starred, and the director was Eoin O'Callahagn.
(N.D., VRPCC review, Apr. 07)
Shelagh Stevenson brought
us the superb Experiment with an Air Pump a couple of years
ago on Radio 3. Recently we heard Nemesis (R4, 2102, 11 Nov 05
). The physicist Robert Oppenheimer, working at Los Alamos, won the
race against the Nazis to make the atomic bomb. He was regarded as a
hero in the scientific community and elsewhere. But later, when the
full horror of Hiroshima and Nagasaki became apparent, and the war
had ended, Oppenheimer was isolated and reviled in America, even
though the decision to use the bomb was not his. Nemesis
focuses on his attempts at damage limitation, as one by one, he
unintentionally betrays his colleagues. He is academically astute but
politically naive, and once the process of betrayal has begun, he
can't stop it. Colin Stinton was Oppenheimer, Amanda Donohoe was
Frances Tyler, Andrew Sachs was Bernard Peters, and Eoin O'Callahagn
directed.
The Good Listener....2003
By Neil Brand. Cath Davis, head of an MI5 surveillance team is renowned for her skill in using the most advanced listening techniques. But when she finds herself detailed to bug a close friend from her past, she can have had no idea of what she is about to discover. With Haydn Gwynne, Margot Leicester, Charlie Simpson, Gerard Murphy, Nicholas Murchie, Susan Brown. Produced by Eoin O'Callaghan.
As I Lay Dying ....2000
By William Faulkner, dramatised by James Friel. Successive episodes in the death and burial of Addie Bundren are recounted by various members of her family circle, as they cart her coffin to Jefferson, Mississippi, in order to bury her among her own people. With Lorelei King, Mary Ellen Ray and Bob Sherman. Director: Eoin O'Callaghan.
TALKERS....1998
Early days of the film industry. Jack Warner et. al.
Quartet ....1998
Serial by Steve May about four musicians just out of college who forge a radical and somewhat unlikely quartet. With Amanda Gordon, Ian Jeffs, Alex Lowe, Colleen Prendergast, Robert Harper and Rachel Atkins (3/12). (clarinet), Charlotte Eksteen (cello). Director Eoin O'Callaghan.
Fair Hearing....1997
By Steve May. Sunday play. During the Second World War, Charlie, a young violinist, finds a place in Michael Tippett's Voluntary Employment Orchestra. LIke the man he so admires, Charlie wants to be a virtuoso musician and a conscientious objector, but for a poor kid from Peckham, even to get a fair hearing is not that easy. With Julian Rhind Tutt, Samuel West, Gavin Muir, Bill Wallis, Tessa Worsley and Denys Hawthorne. Director Eoin O'Callaghan.
compiled by Nigel Deacon / Diversity website
