Extra! Extra!
Richard and I were invited to do a presentation about podcasting to the Radio Academy, at their Radio At The Edge conference at London's Milbank Tower today. We thought, in the spirit of what we do, we should record it as a podcast, and Collings & Herrin Podcast Number 37a (it may take until tomorrow morning to be loaded up) is the bonus result. It's not an official podcast, as it's just us explaining how we do what we do and why we do it, to an occasionally baffled, occasionally amused audience of about 100 or so radio professionals. They were very nice to us, and let us have a free beer afterwards, and - just for context - the presentation before ours was a Transatlantic Skype link-up with a really impressive Californian tech guy called Leo Laporte who does about ten times the amount of podcasting we do, and runs it as a profitable business, thus making us look like amateurs. But we have more fun than him, swearing. And look at how few radio professionals are prepared to sit in the front row at a conference.Ooh, and look at these nice pics, taken, respectively by Byrion (that's all it says on Flickr) and Steve Bowbrick (that's the great thing about being at a conference aimed at radio tech people - they have really good cameras in their phones and post stuff really quickly):
And if you wish to see the full results of the podcast survey: they are here. I warn you now, you'll have a lot of scrolling to do, what with 1,442 respondents, but the pie charts are really good. Thanks to all who responded.
posted by Andrew Collins @ 10:58 PM
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22 Comments:
I see John Gaunt's been suspended!
Did the first question about getting back onto the radio come from someone at the BBC? Were they testing the water? Are you free on Saturday nights, I believe there is a two hour slot on BBC to fill.
I really really enjoyed this - and felt that you came into your own. It's usually Richard that comes to life in the live arena, but it sounds like the crowd was yours this time. It's interesting how the Richard-bullying-Andrew (and lets not mince words here) dynamic works in front of a beered up crowd in Kings Cross, or comedy fans in Edinburgh (crowds that are used to the podcast and the content) but do it in front of a different bunch and it falls a bit flat.
I think the person from the BBC was the one who asked, "Are you just waiting for something better to come along?"
I can confirm that nobody offered us a job afterwards.
It's weird listening back to it, as so much of it is essentially serious, but I'm glad we did it.
Yes, Jon Gaunt: suspended after calling a councillor a "Nazi" on his Talksport radio show. Odd that he should be carpeted for calling someone right wing.
I'm listening to it now, and as well as being as entertaining as ever, it's also educational, which is probably the last time that particular adjective will ever be used in relation to the Collings & Herrin podcast...
I would point out something: Andrew, you talked about download stats from your hosted site, and then said something about that being "without iTunes".
iTunes itself doesn't add ay additional downloads to your stats: the store part of iTunes is just a directory. Every podcast listed in iTunes is downloaded from its original host, so the people who find your podcast through iTunes are already counted in the stats.
As far as I can tell, if you subscribe to a podcast series from the links in the iTunes store, the checking of episode availability and download of future episodes occurs only between the iTunes application on your computer and the server that hosts the podcasts, so Apple's podcast chart is based solely on people who either click on the "subscribe" link in the iTunes directory, or who click on the episode lists within the directory itself.
Scott (a passive aggressive bastard who is in no way funnier than you)
In my opinion, this was the most enjoyable podcast yet. It was by no means the funniest, but it was really interesting for someone who has listened to the podcasts from virtually the beginning.
Thanks for the latest addition of the podcast or behind-the-podcast, it was interesting to learn of the circumstances of how it all started up and what your thoughts are around where it is all going, for yourselves and the future of broadcasting.
Have you come across The Long Tail theory http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Long_Tail#Cultural_diversity?
Put into this context your podcast sounds like it is at the forefront of a global cultural change or it could just be two blokes chatting in an attic. That's the beauty and simplicity of what you and Richard do.
all the Lee and herring shopws(and banter) are available to download from fist of fun which is interesting.
"at the forefront of a global cultural change or it could just be two blokes chatting in an attic"
I'd be tempted to replace that "or" with an "and" myself.
It'd be nice if there was some way in which listeners could choose to pay an arbitrary price for the podcast if they chose to do so, although I'm guessing that would be a logistical nightmare.
Wow, I am one of only 2 Henrys to listen, how humbling.
I wish I had time to read all the responses - can somebody who does compile a "funniest answers" list?!
Well, regarding the podcast survey: it's heartening to know that so many fellow listeners find Danny Wallace as irritating as I do. But depressing to see my 'amusing' answers repeated by about another 300 people.
What possesed me think that answering 'podcast' to the question, 'Describe the podcast in one word' would be in the least original and amusing? And here's me slagging off Danny Wallace. He's a comedy genius compared to me. Thank God I'm using a pseudonym, that's all I can say.
Enjoyable podcast, though I was a bit shocked to hear you say cunt in front of an audience - that is, I would have thought the setting was a bit more formal...
The survey results could do with tidying up as many of the answers are the same, but written differently, so most of the 'other' answers would actually fit into one of the other categories. But I guess it would be a bit of a chore to do it. Interesting nonetheless.
Wearing your News 24 outfit, I see.
I kind of prefer Richard's version of you there: "He was riding high on having described some pie charts to some people who might give him a proper job on the radio - had he not told them to go fuck themselves in the first two minutes."
Funny - I'll have to listen now to see if you really did.
I think this latest podcast may well be the start of a whole new podcasting trend: Poshcasting, in which you sit in front of an invited audience of awkward and mainly humourless introverts/ex-army colonels/local conservative party activists and talk shite with as many swear words as possible until you eventually wear them down. It's an interesting new sociological phenomenon.
it's interesting that the "George Lamb
offensive Gypsy-hating/Ray Davies baiting cunt"
comments got the laughs & applause-
hasn't Lesley Douglas just been appointed head of this very Radio Academy?
it's amazing how much power she has-
despite spouting garbage like the justification of the appointment of George Lamb being to appeal to women's "more emotional reaction to music".
and an incredible article has just
appeared in the Independent claiming that "George Lamb is the future of radio".
friends in the right places, I guess.
V. interesting podcast, do you think the radio people understood what you were doing and why?
You keep mentioning beer and newspaper sponsorship but have you thought about gambling companies? They like original stuff and tend to have rather a lot of money.
Enjoyed this one, but am I the only regular who felt a bit like a kid outside the headmaster's office on parents night? The podcasts are very natural and conversational and it was a different to hear you guys discuss us as your audience when normally it feels like you're talking to us more directly. (Or maybe I'm just weird).
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Someone mentioned the "long tail". I hadn't heard of it until I saw this article earlier this week. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/11/07/long_tail_debunked/
i'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one who bought expensive microphones but be foxed as to how to use them.
I solved this problem by getting an iMic and two of those nubbly things that allow you to plug two microphones/headphones in one socket.
Nice and simple. But we use those headphones with mic bits - making us look like we work in call centre. which isn't very rock 'n' roll.
This was super. I wanted it to go on until 1 hour and 6 minutes and 36 seconds so we could continue to hear the muffled talking as you packed up and went to the free bar.
Entertainingly, all the sessions from Radio at the Edge are now available as downloads except yours:
http://www.radioacademy.org.uk/record.jsp?type=optionalPage&ID=9
According to their newsletter, that's because it's "uncompliant!"
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