#HerFrequency: Women Making Waves in Radio | Laura Wood | East Coast FM

We’re excited to launch the next episode of our interview series at IRS+, dedicated to celebrating and amplifying the voices of talented women in our network.

In this series, we highlight the journeys, achievements, and perspectives of women in radio, with the goal of inspiring other women to explore careers in this dynamic industry and to champion greater gender diversity in media. The stories of these incredible women within the IRS+ network are not just inspiring—they’re essential to share.

In this latest episode, we had the pleasure of interviewing Laura Wood, Breakfast Show Presenter, East Coast FM. Tune in to hear the interview or read about Laura’s journey below.

 

What inspired you to pursue a career in radio, and how did you get started in the industry?

Well, my Dad worked in RTE for many years, he was on the news. Kieron Wood was his name. He was Religious Affairs Correspondent initially and then Legal Affairs Correspondent. One day, while I was in work with him somebody said I had a nice voice asked me to do a voiceover for them.  So, I did my first ever voiceover when I was about 18 years of age. I think I’d just done my Leaving Cert. It was Guiney’s for Ladies in Tullamore. I’ll never forget it. The absolute nerves. You could hear them in my voice from the very beginning. I got a little bit of a taste for it then. Then I did my Leaving Cert. I did a PLC in Media in Bray and then Headed off travelling and I was travelling for a good few years. When I came back, I was sort of thinking about media and radio and I ended up becoming one of the Thunders for 98 FM so I was driving the Jeeps and it was great because it helped me learn about all the different parts of the city and it’s been really valuable to me to this day, because I wouldn’t know my way around Dublin half as well if I hadn’t been one of the Thunders.

Then I ended up doing a little bit of traffic for them, AA road watch stuff and the odd thing on air and then I got in touch with East Coast FM my local radio station because I’m from Greystones in County Wicklow. I got in touch with them and asked was there any work going. I started doing the Saturday show with Bob Conway, which was every Saturday 10am until 1PM. It was a mixture of lifestyle and entertainment, news and live music. It was a great introduction and I did that for a couple of years. Then I started doing the evening show on East Coast FM and then, 17 years ago I started the breakfast show. I started doing it with Rob G and I’m still doing it today.

Alongside voiceovers, I took a break to do some TV for a while as well. I’ve been involved in lots of media over the years, but I’ve absolutely loved all of my time in radio. I was only saying to someone the other day who was giving out about going to work, that I was so lucky to be in a job that I love so much.

 

What has been the most rewarding experience in your radio career so far?

We’ve held a Wicklow wide coffee morning for the last 15 years and it’s in collaboration with the local Cancer Support services in Wicklow. My job has been to go out and interview people whose lives have been affected by cancer and whose family members may have passed away from the disease. I got to see first-hand the impact that these Cancer Support services have had on them and that has been life changing for them and me.

Within the last 15 years of doing that, my Mum got breast cancer herself. I’ve seen her go on the journey. I’ve seen the effect that these services had on her. So, it was remarkable to be able to hear these stories. Hear the people crying, cry with them, and then in my own time have my own family feel the effects of cancer. Between us all we’ve managed to raise hundreds of thousands of euros over the years which is fantastic, but it’s been so humbling to interview those people.

I’ve also interviewed people on The Morning Show over the years, a couple in Wicklow whose son Stephen O Leary had been murdered. They were trying to look for his body and I stayed in contact with them along the journey. When you see people as vulnerable as that in the community, and you get to be a part of their journey, it’s extremely humbling.

Another example was Daniel Day Lewis, he was involved with Wicklow Hospice, so when he came over to do the Lincoln premiere, he agreed to do a single one-on-one, interview with East Coast FM. Everyone else got him on the red carpet, but we luckily got him alone. I got to interview him and at the Lincoln premiere in Dublin. We have a particular listener in East Coast FM that Daniel befriended in a sport shop in Rathdrum, where he has a house. They used to talk in the dressing room of the very old school shop called Avondale sports in Rathdrum. Bill would go over and get scones in the shop across the road and bring them over for him and Daniel Day Lewis to sit and eat. They always used to run together. So, I brought up some of those scones and we sat down, and we had a chat and it was absolutely lovely. I mean as we know he’s such a talent, such an incredible actor who has won best actor multitude of times.

Another quite humbling are things like birthday requests. We do them every day, but someone sent me a video of a little girl the other day sitting in the back seat of a car, hearing her name being called out on the radio and seeing how genuinely happy she was nearly brought a tear to my eye. I’ve gone from having no children starting this show to having three children so I know what it’s like when children get excited about stuff like that and the video just showed her and her eyes opened wide as she saw her name being called out on the radio on her birthday. And it was just amazing to see. Something like that, can really be so powerful and can remind me how happy I am to be in this business.

 

Laura Wood and Daniel-Day Lewis

 

What are your thoughts on the current representation of women in radio?

My thoughts on the current representation of women in radio… Well, I’ve been in radio for 20 odd years, and I can guarantee you now that it is entirely different than it was 20 years ago. Almost every Programme Controller I’ve ever had has been a man. One exception is Carol Dooley, who was entered into the Hall of Fame at the IMRO Awards this year, which was lovely to see. Everything has changed. These days you don’t see as many women in leadership roles but when I started, there was hardly any women on air. I used to occasionally hear people say that women were very annoying on air, and the jocks were nearly all men. That was the way it was and women weren’t being given the opportunity, they just weren’t. To be honest nowadays I wouldn’t have too much of an issue about the role of women in media. I think female voices are better represented than ever before.

 

In your view, what steps do you think could be taken to have female voice in media more equally represented?

I think that we could do with more women in leadership roles. Editors, producers, directors and I suppose there’s sometimes a bit of an unconscious bias in reporting and content creating, so maybe that could be looked at. In fairness though it has changed significantly in the last 20 years and it’s still evolving and still changing, so long may it last.

 

What advice would you give to women aspiring to enter the radio industry?

Well, first thing I would say is consider formal education if you can. I headed off travelling after my leaving cert and came back to radio after I was done. I then managed to get into the business which is a lot harder to do these days because there’s less jobs. I then went to college as a mature student and did a Masters in TV and Radio broadcasting in IADT while I was in my 20s. I was very enthusiastic, putting my hand up every few minutes, which is far cry from the way I’d been in school. But it helped. It helped to have an understanding of the formal aspect of radio.

In an ideal world you would get yourself an internship in a radio station. I managed to get into Mater Hospital Radio, did some work there, also community radio, local radio. You know, maybe you’ll look up a sound production course or get some script writing experience or do a workshop. There’s lots of radio specific training. If you’re not going into it through the formal education route, there are shorter courses you can do and if not, knock on the doors, get into the radio stations, try and talk to the programme controllers. Prove that you are eager, that you’re a hard worker, that you’re interested in and have a passion for radio.

If you’re persistent and resilient, I guarantee that it probably will pay off. Also stay informed about the industry. Make sure you’re on top of what’s happening. What radio stations have been sold to whom, all of that information is valuable so that if you do talk to the programme directors and the CEO’s, you sound like you know what you’re talking about. Don’t stop knocking on doors. Do toastmasters, breathing workshops. All of that. If you’re planning on presenting all of that is going to help towards being the best possible presenter that you can be.

 

Laura and Rob G – Sports Star Awards

 

What role do you believe radio plays in today’s media environment, especially with the rise of digital platforms and podcasts?

Well, radio is an exceedingly powerful medium that I don’t think is going anywhere. Real time communication, alongside the likes of local engagement and news and entertainment. Right here where I work in East Coast FM, we have the breaking news, we have the traffic, we have the weather and there are huge queues every morning on the N11/M50 with people getting into work. They’re able to access instantly what’s happening on that road with the updates that we’re giving them. Breaking news, the weather..The Wicklow Mountains is covered in snow, no one can get through, anything like that. They come to us, we can tell them as it happens. We also have the connection, the audience interaction. They can get involved, they can come on air with us.

They may have the option to stream and podcast, but at the same time they’re not going to get that instant interaction like on the likes of East Coast FM. We also support local artists and talent, be it musicians or performers, and I suppose we provide that sort of safe space for music lovers to come and connect, be it with local artists or indeed with new music as well. So yeah, I just, I think it’s the immediacy of it and the fact that on a connection level it’s instant and it’s there. For me personally I’ve done TV over the years… But you need to worry about the way you look. Thankfully, we’ve insisted there’s no camera put in our studios.  So, no one can see Rob and I. So, we can literally do the show in our pyjamas and can be in a totally relaxed state and be ourselves, which is the key to good radio, being yourself. If you’re thinking too much, if you’re nervous, if you’re thinking too much about what you’re going to say next. If you’re caring too much about what other people think, it’s not going to work. You literally must be yourself. I believe the best presenters in the country are the ones are themselves in a relaxed environment on the radio.

Well, I suppose podcasts have sort of transformed the radio experience and loads of radio station stations are now producing them. They’re making them cater to certain audiences and specific topics. Obviously, it’s had a big impact on radio in the current media environment. Lots of people are now streaming, they’re listening to podcasts, but the important factor is they’re still listening to radio. We’ve seen the listenership figures, we’ve seen the volumes of people that are still listening to radio.

The cinemas are a lot emptier now because people are streaming a lot of stuff and staying at home but people still want that instant audience interaction and connection that radio gives them, and I don’t think they’re going anywhere.

Also, from that perspective as well as far as brand building is concerned, radio is still serving as a platform for brands and people that are advertising to reach their audiences. So, there’s always that ability to build a connection with the listener and make it a really good medium for anyone looking to advertise, be it locally or nationally.

 

Can you talk about any mentorship experiences you’ve had, either as a mentor or mentee, and how they’ve impacted your career?

I’ve had plenty of people who have guided me. Also I think there’s nothing nicer that when you get somebody in for work experience or someone on an internship that has a real passion and love for radio and when you see it, it’s really nice to be able to take those people under your wings  because you can see that they’ve huge amounts of potential.

I have had people throughout my career that have championed me that have helped me, that have encouraged me by assuring me that I’m good at what I do. There’s been areas where maybe I didn’t receive as much training as I would have liked, and I taught myself a few bad habits, but the likes of Declan Mehan, who’s been in the business for a long, long time has always championed me. He has always said – you’re good at what you do and given me confidence when I needed it. I’ve often filled in for him on his morning show. It’s a privilege to have done so over the years and interviewed so many interesting people. When he come back instead of having an issue as maybe some people would, when you fill in with their show, he’d be nothing but encouraging and always has. On the occasions that I’ve spoken to him over the years about the view of some people that maybe women aren’t as competent in the world of radio he would always poo poo that and say it was utterly ridiculous and be nothing but encouraging. I’m very, very grateful for that encouragement over the years.

Also, Dave Harrington, the current Programme Director of East Coast, he’s brilliant. He’d send me a video about how to do things that I’m unsure of. When I make a mistake, he always would talk to me about it in a very encouraging way. Say OK, maybe try it this way the next time. So yeah, it’s the way you deal with people. You want to be told what you’re doing wrong, but at an appropriate time after your show, not during your show. And it’s the way it’s said, and I found he’s always dealt with that so helpfully and so professionally.

 

What projects are you currently excited about?

Well, talking about podcasts….I have absolutely no intention of stopping doing my breakfast show anytime soon. I mean, we’re 18 years this year, so at the very least, I plan on making it to the 20, I’ve come this far! Apart from that, I have a friend who’s a writer. We are both Gen X and currently producing/presenting a podcast. We’ll be looking at similar people who have found themselves unfulfilled at a crossroads when they get to the middle-aged crew, the tail end of Gen X, who’ve had to adjust to so much tech, sea swimming as a hobby instead of a punishment, healthy living, all of that type of stuff. So yeah, it’s a humorous look at that. I’m looking forward to it. We’re working on it at the moment, so hopefully it’ll come to fruition soon.

 

Laura Wood, Breakfast Show Presenter, East Coast FM

 

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