Meeja WAtch
BY LLOYD GORMAN
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PERTH RADIO WENT GA-GA FOR ST. PATRICK’S DAY
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There was no mistaking the fact it was St. Patrick’s Day on the ‘wireless’, with many stations joining in for the Irish festivity. Mix 94.5’s breakfast crew Pete, Matt and Kymba broadcast their morning show live from JB O’Reilly’s until 9am, by which stage the craic was already well underway. Talk and news station 6PR certainly gave the occasion a good spread. On his breakfast show Gareth Parker took several calls from people celebrating the day. Amongst them was ‘Dan’ from Durty Nelly’s, who was gave the watering hole a good spruiking as a place to come for something to eat, drink and be entertained. He also told listeners that for the first time its Guinness garden was open for business. About a week earlier Parker put Mark McGowan’s election promise to create a new public holiday if his government was returned to power out to listeners for their feedback. If there’s one thing Aussies love, its a bank holiday weekend and plenty of suggestions flowed through to the talk back show. Caller Barney came up with our favourite (not that we’re biased or anything) idea for a an extra day off for the wider
16 | THE IRISH SCENE
Above: 6PR’s Liam Bartlett with Irish Scene editor Lloyd Gorman. Right: Cassie from the 6PR front desk in her green dress community. He floated the idea of March 17 as a good date for the new holiday. Parker picked up on Barney’s brogue and motivation for the proposal, but said the idea had some ‘merit’. The radio presenter revealed that he had met his wife on St. Patrick’s Day but didn’t divulge too much more about it, so perhaps we will follow up with him to find out more in a future edition of the magazine. As it happens Mr McGowan visited the Irish Club less than a week later on St. Patrick’s Day and judging from the reaction he got, you would be forgiven for thinking he had already declared the day a public holiday for all West Australians (see page 8). Meanwhile, Liam Bartlett, who fronts the station’s Morning programme, also had a good 20 minute segment with Irish
