A founding music producer of RTÉ Radio 2, Ian Wilson was relentless in connecting new & live Irish music with radio, through the Fanning Show, Lark in the Park, Beat in the Street and Dance Sessions Tours. He went on to revive the EBU’s relevance to young listeners, leading to the Eurosonic Festival, Europe’s pre-eminent new music event, reinforcing the link between public service radio and young music makers.
Later this month, Ian retires from RTÉ after a glittering career in radio that spans four decades; we're taking the opportunity to revisit the tribute paid by his friend and longtime producer Dave Fanning, originally published when he won the 2018 IMRO Radio Awards Hall of Fame award, alongside tributes from other radio cohorts.
Happy trails, Mr. Wilson - we can't wait to hear what happens next.
Ian Wilson is mad. He’s strident and opinionated. He annoys people.
By way of balance, I’m sure he also has some bad points but I don’t know what they are.
Ian’s always had a vision for RTE that’s fiercely grounded in a noble sense of what’s best for a Public Service broadcaster and its audience. You’ve guessed it…this is, alas, too often at odds with those who actually make the big decisions but just because that door is always closed doesn’t mean you can’t keep knockin’!
Most of Ian’s time has been spent making sure that radio programmes are as great as they can be-much less a ‘why’ than a ‘why not’ kinda guy. Let’s not get carried away here; he was, of course, only doing his job but, driven by the commitment and belief I mentioned earlier, it’s a fact that he consistently did it better than most.
In the Seventies I went to UCD. Ian was a student of genetics in Trinity. He was Ents Officer there, staging everyone from Planxty to The Clash. I met him when we worked at In Dublin magazine in ’78, the year before we started a truly fantastic two-decade journey on night time radio.
In a nutshell, Ian Wilson is unique and quite brilliant.
Throughout and through some of the greatest times a music fan could ever have, Ian was a colossus in my corner. One of my big things on pirate radio was playing demo tapes of Irish bands; Ian fought hard to take it to the next logical step. RTÉ had always used its state-of-the-art facilities and top-of-the-range sound engineers to record major classical works with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra pretty much annexing the lavish and spacious Studio 1 for rehearsals and performances. However, the smaller and more rough ‘n’ ready Studio 8 was frequently empty, so Ian donned his public service hat to demand that we be allowed use it for sessions by up-and-coming groups.
He met opposition – ‘The sessions will cost money, and we won’t make any!' - but as with a hundred other endeavours, Ian was on a mission and deserves the utmost credit for his prescience and persistence. Thanks to Ian, The Fanning Sessions proved their worth. So did the festival recordings, The Lark in the Park, The Beat on the Street, and other Wilson innovations too numerous to mention.
In a nutshell, Ian Wilson is unique and quite brilliant.
Aine, Ian’s partner in life and broadcasting, was honoured with this award a few years back – a first for a couple. They are indeed the Posh and Becks of Irish broadcasting, but in that comparison, Ian’s legs fail miserably.
That said, this award is thoroughly deserved.
Damien O'Reilly, presenter of RTÉ Radio 1's Countrywide programme, adds:
When Ian Wilson was assigned to Countrywide as Producer, I initially thought there had been a mix-up. How could a man so associated with music be assigned to a programme essentially about farming? Well, what I didn't realise is that Ian is more of a farmer than me. He grew up on a farm, and his knowledge of how farming and rural Ireland works was actually the perfect fit for Countrywide. Add in his scientific background and Countrywide is the better for it. His enthusiasm, mischief and laid-back attitude is infectious, and no task is too complicated. His services to music are now being honoured with his induction into the IMRO Hall of Fame. What shouldn't be forgotten is his qualities as a radio producer, too. Congratulations, Dr. Wilson.
And Dan Hegarty, RTÉ 2FM presenter, adds:
There are so many funny stories that I could tell you about Ian Wilson, but I'd either get myself or him in trouble if I repeated the majority of them! For those who don't know, Ian is one of the guys who has been working away in the background holding things together and making things happen – live music, sessions, championing Irish music, the list as they say goes on. 2fm and RTÉ have been absolutely blessed to have him for so many years. Many words that come into my mind when thinking of Ian; hilarious, kind, loyal, maverick, mischievous, but the first one is always friend.
