Stephen Holland - Multimedia Journalist

This radio series, that originally aired on Flirt.FM a licensed student radio station for NUIG, takes one particular type of music, subculture, sub-genre, or moment in time each week and examines it in detail. Listening to some of the best or underrated music of that time and looking at the history behind it. Episode 12 is the legendary women of blues and jazz! Starting with the earliest blues recordings made over 100 years ago. Come with me on a journey through musical history, featuring some of the greatest female artists of all time. Listen: Here (Originally aired 29/02/21)

The current lockdown situation is a difficult time for everyone. It can lead to feelings of isolation and hopelessness. When people are separated from their friends, family and loved ones, it’s easy to feel emotionally and spiritually bereft. Books are one source that can help ease the burden of seclusion. A truly great novel can teach us things about ourselves and help to give us strength and resilience that we never knew we had. Here are just a few books that I read when I feel like I need some guidance on this earth. I think each of these stories in their own way have something to tell us about the nature of the human condition, what it means to be alive, and how even when you’re feeling your most hopeless, there can always be a light at the end of the tunnel.  The Five People You Meet in Heaven This heart-warming novel by Mitch Albom examines what it means to exist on this planet and the events that unwittingly effect our experience of being alive. It follows the life and death...

You hear it all the time: Cinema is dying. In the age of streaming who’s still going to the cinema? Why would you spend all that extra money when you can watch new movies from the comfort of your own home? Or even, if you’re feeling lazy, from the comfort of your own bed. As lockdown continues and movie theatres have had to shut their doors, we don’t have a choice, we need to stay home and see what’s on the tube, or Netflix, or Amazon Prime, or Disney+, or NowTV. It goes on and on. But when restrictions are lifted, will we all flock back, or have people become too dependent on streaming services to return to the cinema?  Warner Bros. seems to think that they have, announcing plans to release all its films on HBO Max throughout 2021. This decision affects major releases like The Matrix 4, The Suicide Squad, and Dune . This game changing decision may have significant ramifications for the big screen if other studios decide to follow suit. Exclusivity has always been seen as the bigge...

Billionaires around the globe have increased their wealth in this pandemic by nearly a trillion euro. At what point is it too much and how did the world even get like this in the first place? The birth of modern capitalism as we know it can be traced back to the Industrial Revolution in the late 18th and early 19th century. New manufacturing processes meant that production could be ramped up to unprecedented levels. But It wasn’t the workers benefiting from this, it was the factory owners and the ruling elite. This led to huge profits and excessive wealth. It’s after this time that we begin to see the beginnings of huge income disparity between members of the general population. This level of imbalance would have previously only been attainable by royalty. The age of the multi-millionaire beginnings with John Jacob Astor, an investor who smuggled opium into China and used the profits to invest in real estate around New York City. At the time of his death in 1848, he was the richest per...

This radio series, that originally aired on Flirt.FM a licensed student radio station for NUIG, takes one particular type of music, subculture, sub-genre, or moment in time each week and examines it in detail. Listening to some of the best or underrated music of that time and looking at the history behind it. In episode 11 me and Ryan are discussing the 2003 video game Tony Hawk's Underground and playing a couple of our favourite tracks from the soundtrack. Listen: Here (Originally aired 22/02/21)

This radio series, that originally aired on Flirt.FM a licensed student radio station for NUIG, takes one particular type of music, subculture, sub-genre, or moment in time each week and examines it in detail. Listening to some of the best or underrated music of that time and looking at the history behind it. Episode 10 aired on Flirt.FM one day after Valentine's day. Me and Ryan go through some of our favourite alternative love songs together. Listen: Here (Originally aired 15/02/21)

This radio series, that originally aired on Flirt.FM a licensed student radio station for NUIG, takes one particular type of music, subculture, sub-genre, or moment in time each week and examines it in detail. Listening to some of the best or underrated music of that time and looking at the history behind it. Episode 9 is Early 2000s Rock and I am joined by Ryan O'Gara as discuss all thing indie, metal, pop-punk, and emo. Studded belts, wallet chains and guyliner, what a time to be alive! Listen: Here (Originally aired 08/02/21)