How to feed a Tour de France cyclist
For Monocle 24’s The Menu, Ian Wylie mees the chefs whose job it is to guarantee racers get the 10,000 calories they need each day to compete.
The journey of ‘The Journey’
A movie called ‘The Journey’ tells how the leaders of the warring tribes of unionists and nationalists in Northern Ireland risked the wrath of their followers to rescue a faltering peace process. It’s a narrative that should appeal to audiences at home and abroad but, as Ian Wylie reports from Belfast, the movie’s struggles to get a theatrical release – despite a highly regarded cast, experienced producer and film festival plaudits – demonstrate the increasing difficulty in bringing independent films to a cinema screen near you. (Monocle 24)
Backstage
For state-of-the-art concert venue Sage Gateshead, I plan, produce and present a monthly podcast – Backstage – where I interview some of the artists who will be performing there. Each episode has a different theme (eg. Departures, Appetites, Friends) and the pop, rock, soul, classical, jazz and folk artists interviewed so far have ranged from Candi Staton to Chris Difford, from Jon Hopkins to jon Boden, from Sophie Ellis-Bextor to Zara McFarlane. You can listen to the episodes here on SoundCloud or here on Apple Podcasts.
Changing Lanes
For Vauxhall Motors, I devised, produced and presented a pair of podcasts – Changing Lanes – about the emerging trends that are impacting the over-40s and their mid-life career decisions, encouraging them to take back control – exploring the opportunities and overcoming the challenges. (Management Today)
France’s shipping forecast
If Cromarty, Forth, Tyne and Dogger mean anything to you then you’re probably one of the hundreds of thousands of radio listeners who enjoy the UK shipping forecast, broadcast each night on BBC Radio Four. Like the UK equivalent, the rhythmic, almost poetic language of France’s shipping forecast has endeared it even to those who will never set foot on a yacht or trawler. But as Ian Wylie reports from Paris, budget cuts mean that the French are preparing to say au revoir to the meteo marine. (Monocle 24)
How to launch the perfect Irish pub
It’s reckoned there are more than 6,000 Irish pubs around the world, from Healy Mac's in Kuala Lumpur to The Wild Rover in La Paz. But what are the necessary ingredients for a good one? We sent Ian Wylie to Belfast to ask the founder of New York’s Dead Rabbit bar, Sean Muldoon, how to launch the perfect Irish pub. (Monocle 24)
Comic artists who make radio
You don't often hear Belgium and innovation in the same sentence. But the Belgians did invent the speech bubble and gave us Tintin - and one young publishing house in Brussels is giving airtime to a new generation of Belgian comic artists through a radio show dedicated to le neuvième art, or “the ninth art” as comics are regarded there. In Brussels, Ian Wylie caught a tram to meet two of the presenters of Radio Grandpapier. (Monocle 24)