Nolan

Tonight I attended a BBC taping of the Stephen Nolan show. Nolan has a daily call-in programme on BBC Radio Ulster, a weekly panel show on BBC TV (the one I attended) and he does a show called 5 Alive that I’ve never heard, but which promises: "Fierce topical debate, direct from Manchester.”

He’s fairly controversial because he takes on inflammatory issues and fans the flames (good for ratings!). He’s the type of populist who sides with, say, the person who’s been waiting a year for a hip operation against the politician who can’t give a direct answer on why there isn’t more money for the NHS. There may be a good reason why the hapless politician can’t wave a wand and get more money out of the UK, however Nolan is like a pit bull in his approach. And he makes more than 400,000 pounds a year for his efforts, a princely sum in NI.

The good thing about his show is he can get results for people--his show is the most listened to in N.I. and the politicians listen as well. But he also provides a platform for us’ns and them’uns. You hear some angry Protestants and Nationalists on his show. He’ll play devil’s advocate with both sides, but is essentially giving oxygen to very tired arguments put up by people who are immovable. I've heard that his show managers will call some of the regulars to get them to call in on a topic on which they are particularly incensed. That’s show business, I guess.

Most of this show was about the 1 billion pounds in blood money the DUP extorted from the Tories to keep Theresa May’s government from collapsing. Where’s the money? Nolan asked over and over and over. Northern Ireland has not had an executive for nearly a year (the nationalists brought down their DUP partners over a scandal involving a renewable heating incentive. Both parties have been fighting ever since over whether or not there should be an Irish Language Act).

While Nolan focused on the crisis of underfunding in the NHS, his Tory panelists, bravely, pointed out that NI has four hospitals within a 20 minute drive of each other. Politicians don’t have the balls to close redundant facilities so money is being pissed away on heating bills and duplicative administrative staff, rather than doctors, nurses, and equipment.

The thing that annoys me about Nolan is the argument goes around and around and not much light escapes from all the heat in the studio.
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