RTE Today Show
Today with Maura & Daithi and Christmas Special December 11th
I was invited to be assistant to Chef Catherine Fulvio who was cooking live on both of these shows. All ingredients were packed and prepared at Ballyknocken Cookery School and we set off at 6am to take on the 3 ½ hour drive to Cork where the RTE studio is for the Today Show.
When we arrived, my first job was to assist unpacking all of the ingredients and select the cooking utensils and serving platters from the store room. I got to have a chat with both presenters Maura Derrane and Daithi O Se. It was really interesting seeing the autocue in operation. Everything went smoothly for the first show. Then there was an hours break, when we frantically set up for the 3 course meal which was to be prepared live no the Christmas special show. We had to be incredibly quiet as the camera and sound crew were also prerecording plugs for the show. And a local choir were rehearsing their Christmas carols.
Once the Christmas special went live, I was in the background plating samples of the cooked food for the choir to taste live. It was nerve wracking as I was working under so much pressure. I was also helping Chef Catherine to clear and reset during the breaks, so she would be ready for the next live segment. I really enjoyed the experience of live TV, though I could see that preparation is everything, as there were no second chances!
https://www.rte.ie/tv/programmes/913165-the-today/
I was invited to be assistant to Chef Catherine Fulvio who was cooking live on both of these shows. All ingredients were packed and prepared at Ballyknocken Cookery School and we set off at 6am to take on the 3 ½ hour drive to Cork where the RTE studio is for the Today Show.
When we arrived, my first job was to assist unpacking all of the ingredients and select the cooking utensils and serving platters from the store room. I got to have a chat with both presenters Maura Derrane and Daithi O Se. It was really interesting seeing the autocue in operation. Everything went smoothly for the first show. Then there was an hours break, when we frantically set up for the 3 course meal which was to be prepared live no the Christmas special show. We had to be incredibly quiet as the camera and sound crew were also prerecording plugs for the show. And a local choir were rehearsing their Christmas carols.
Once the Christmas special went live, I was in the background plating samples of the cooked food for the choir to taste live. It was nerve wracking as I was working under so much pressure. I was also helping Chef Catherine to clear and reset during the breaks, so she would be ready for the next live segment. I really enjoyed the experience of live TV, though I could see that preparation is everything, as there were no second chances!
https://www.rte.ie/tv/programmes/913165-the-today/
Lordes & Ladles
September 29th
Chef Catherine Fulvio is one of three presenters on the hit TV series Lords and Ladles on RTE. The concept is that the three chefs visit an historic house or castle in Ireland, which must be still owned by the original family. Then the chefs go about learning the family and house history, hunting and gathering and finally cooking an elaborate meal from an historic menu related to the actual history of the house. The production company Mind The Gap were filming the third series over the summer and needed to film Catherine operating her cookery school on September 29th.
As actors were recruited for the day to take part in a cookery class, it was also decided to film a corporate video for Ballyknocken House & Cookery School on the same day. I was therefore asked to assist on the day.
My job was to help set up for the filming in the cookery school. The morning consisted of a sushi making masterclass and the afternoon was allocated for filming a pasta making class. It was really interesting to see the film crew in operation. There was a producer, director, assistant producer, two camera and one sound operator. On the cookery school team there was Catherine and her assistant tutor, a home economist and me. Mostly everything was filmed twice, once from a distance and the second time close up.
The director has a list of “shots” required – from chef Catherine teaching and engaging with her cookery students to picking the herbs and vegetables in the garden. These sequences will be used at the opening of two of the Lords and Ladles episodes when Catherine is the chef. It was incredibly busy as we trying to stay one step ahead of the camera crew but the atmosphere was great, everyone was so relaxed and joking, which made the work seem easier and the day go faster.
https://mindthegapfilms.com/lords-ladles/
Chef Catherine Fulvio is one of three presenters on the hit TV series Lords and Ladles on RTE. The concept is that the three chefs visit an historic house or castle in Ireland, which must be still owned by the original family. Then the chefs go about learning the family and house history, hunting and gathering and finally cooking an elaborate meal from an historic menu related to the actual history of the house. The production company Mind The Gap were filming the third series over the summer and needed to film Catherine operating her cookery school on September 29th.
As actors were recruited for the day to take part in a cookery class, it was also decided to film a corporate video for Ballyknocken House & Cookery School on the same day. I was therefore asked to assist on the day.
My job was to help set up for the filming in the cookery school. The morning consisted of a sushi making masterclass and the afternoon was allocated for filming a pasta making class. It was really interesting to see the film crew in operation. There was a producer, director, assistant producer, two camera and one sound operator. On the cookery school team there was Catherine and her assistant tutor, a home economist and me. Mostly everything was filmed twice, once from a distance and the second time close up.
The director has a list of “shots” required – from chef Catherine teaching and engaging with her cookery students to picking the herbs and vegetables in the garden. These sequences will be used at the opening of two of the Lords and Ladles episodes when Catherine is the chef. It was incredibly busy as we trying to stay one step ahead of the camera crew but the atmosphere was great, everyone was so relaxed and joking, which made the work seem easier and the day go faster.
https://mindthegapfilms.com/lords-ladles/
Helping The Homeless with Tiglin
On Thursdays, I go out to town in Dublin with Tiglin Outreach and help the homeless. I can say hand on my heart, this has been one of the best experiences of my life. You come across all walks of life doing this and I love making teas and chatting with many of the homeless people that we pass on our walks through the streets of Dublin and when they come up to the bus, which is named 'Nobucks', a good play on 'Starbucks'. I love meeting all of these new people and trying to make their day that little bit better. It is both heart wrenching and amazing at the same time. Everyone I meet their are lovely and I am especially grateful to Hayley, Dee, John and Chris! They are the most lovely people to be around. It makes my day going up to see them and do what they do.
http://tiglin.ie/home/
http://tiglin.ie/home/
The Today Show - America
We travelled to New York for St Patrick’s Day as chef Catherine Fulvio was appearing no NBC Today Show, the biggest breakfast show in the USA. It was a live cooking slot and 11 million people tuned in. Having experienced live cooking on TV in RTE earlier in the year, I thought I would have to set up for the slot. But I got lucky – they have a big team working in the background of NBC Today Show. When we arrived for rehearsals on March 14th, the team were well on their way to having everything prepared. The table where the cooking was to take place live the following morning was covered with Post-Its showing exactly where each ingredient, plate, glass etc. would be placed for the live show. The planning and preparation for the live slot was amazing
The following morning, we were picked up from our hotel at 6.30am and Chef Catherine was in the makeup studio for 6.45am, while I watched the rehearsals of other guests. A group of bagpipe players who were taking park in the St Patrick’s Day Parade in NYC were rehearsing – a bit difficult to listen to at that hour in the morning, but they were great!
We were shown to the green room, where Karlie Klass was rehearsing for here segment. She is known as a Victoria Secret model but she’s also a real inspiration for women as she has set up a scheme to teach young children coding.
So as I didn’t have to help with the setup, my role was to take little video clips and photos for Chef Catherine’s social media. The live slot was hilarious – the presenter Carson was really witty and everything ran really smoothly. Our day’s work was complete by 9am! So off we went to Brooklyn to try a traditional American diner followed by a visit to the Statue of Liberty and the Museum of Modern Art, which was a highlight for me.
https://www.businessinsider.com.au/flatiron-school-raises-9-million-2015-4
The following morning, we were picked up from our hotel at 6.30am and Chef Catherine was in the makeup studio for 6.45am, while I watched the rehearsals of other guests. A group of bagpipe players who were taking park in the St Patrick’s Day Parade in NYC were rehearsing – a bit difficult to listen to at that hour in the morning, but they were great!
We were shown to the green room, where Karlie Klass was rehearsing for here segment. She is known as a Victoria Secret model but she’s also a real inspiration for women as she has set up a scheme to teach young children coding.
So as I didn’t have to help with the setup, my role was to take little video clips and photos for Chef Catherine’s social media. The live slot was hilarious – the presenter Carson was really witty and everything ran really smoothly. Our day’s work was complete by 9am! So off we went to Brooklyn to try a traditional American diner followed by a visit to the Statue of Liberty and the Museum of Modern Art, which was a highlight for me.
https://www.businessinsider.com.au/flatiron-school-raises-9-million-2015-4
Purple House Cancer Support
I did Purple House in Bray as one of my work experiences and as a result of this the C.E.O, Veronica O'Leary, asked me if I could continue working with them in the future! I absolutely loved working with Purple House , it was an amazing and unforgettable experience. I am now volunteering there every Wednesday to support them in any way I can. The people there are absolutely lovely and so kind. I am so excited to see what the future brings with Purple House!
http://www.purplehouse.ie/
http://www.purplehouse.ie/
East Coast FM & Purple House
On the 19th of April, I spent the day in East coast fm packing hampers for a charity event, which I am also attending, the next day. The charity is Purple House which is amazing because I am working with Purple house every week and I will be working with East Coast fm during the summer, as I was offered a job there when I did one week of work experience with them back in December of 2017. It was good fun packing the hampers as I had not seen any of the crew from East Coast fm since December so we all had a wonderful time catching up.
On the 20th of April, I am going to the Martello in Bray with East Coast fm and Purple House for the event. There is live music, an auction. a raffle and other fun activities. I am thoroughly looking forward to it!
On the 20th of April, I am going to the Martello in Bray with East Coast fm and Purple House for the event. There is live music, an auction. a raffle and other fun activities. I am thoroughly looking forward to it!
Bray hockey Club
GThroughout the year I have been doing hockey with Bray Hockey Club. It has been a very successful year, as was last year with the club. I have loved meeting new people and taking part in all of the training sessions and matches on Friday nights and Sundays. Last year we won the plate and this year we won the league so it has been a very good year for us this year! I also put Bray Hockey Club down for Gaisce. The season is over until next year but I enjoyed every minute of it and hope to continue with it in the years to come.
Piano
This year i thought was a great opportunity to take up a new instrument. I took up piano at the beginning of this year and do it every Thursday evening. I am surprised at how far I have come in just under a year but it is going very well! I love it. I also put it down as part of Gaisce. I have thoroughly enjoyed it and will definitely be continuing with it until my Leaving Cert and hopefully after that as well.