Broadcaster Claire Brock believes that while women are well represented on TV, Ireland is still run by “the men in the room”.
The current affairs presenter was speaking ahead of the return of co-host Ciara Doherty to The Tonight Show in the coming weeks, making it an all-female team.
She added: “I’m glad to say that on our TV screens there is gender equality. We’re very conscious of it in Virgin Media.
“But when it came to pandemic restrictions, it was all men in the room who were listed.
“You had Green Party leader Eamon Ryan, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly, Taoiseach Micheal Martin and Tanaiste Leo Varadkar. The Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan and the deputy CMO Ronan Glynn.
“The key decision makers were all men. Looking back on this time we will think there has to be more parity of the sexes there.”
But things are going in the right direction on The Tonight Show.
Seasoned presenters Claire and Ciara will take turns hosting the station’s flagship nightly current affairs programme – a change from the show’s previous presenters Matt Cooper and Ivan Yates.
Claire said: “Ciara is coming back, so it will be dual presenting with the two of us. I’m really looking forward to having her back.
“She’s a fantastic presenter and colleague so I can’t wait.”
The mother of three, who is married to rugby player Trevor Hogan, has little patience for the routine question of how do you juggle it all.
She said: “It’s very cliched. Why are the women always asked this? Nobody asks my husband. It is asked so much it has become a cliche.
“Despite all the progress and the targets we’re reaching when it comes to gender equality, the burden around childcare still rests with the woman. I guess that’s why – but it’s very equitable in our house.”
Claire took over the role of Tonight Show host when Ciara went on maternity leave last year. She initially hosted for two evenings a week, while Matt Cooper did the other two.
Then when Matt left, news anchor Claire stepped into the role full time, becoming one of Ireland’s best-known presenters.
Viewers appreciate her warm personality, her fearlessness in asking questions and her approach of allowing guests the space to speak. Plus she is clearly well-informed on all the big issues of the day.
Carrying the show alone has been a learning curve. She told the Irish Mirror: “I
went from anchoring the news at eight to presenting a current affairs show to running it and presenting it on a full-time basis.
“I love the job – it’s a challenge.
“We like to get the mood of the country, there are so many angles around Covid. Two weeks ago they announced the lifting of the restrictions. It never fails to keep us on our toes.”
The presenter from Dublin’s Glenageary started her career in TV3 on a placement 20 years ago.
She then went to regional radio
and did a stint at UTV Ireland before returning to TV3, now renamed Virgin.
The pressure to look good on screen, she believes, is “just TV”, adding: “We are judged more than men are judged, that goes for women in everyday life and the pressure on women in society generally. It’s just reflective of that.
“You can’t help being conscious as it is a visual medium. It’s just the nature of the business.”
Revealing her modus operandi
in interviews, Claire said: “I’m very conscious as a host to let people speak and to tell their story.
“You let politicians have their spake and make sure you let the other side get their oar in.
“There’s a lot of bluff and bluster. There’s always room for robust
discussion but I think at the end of each interview you learn something or come away with something.”
And, while always remaining professional, she is not afraid to show emotion.
Many viewers noticed how Claire was visibly moved by the national vigils held after the murder of Ashling Murphy last month.
She also recalls Sinn Fein TD Pauline Tully’s recent interview about her husband Pearse McCauley as an emotional one.
Claire said: “We’re not immune to emotion in the job. Pauline Tully was a victim of domestic violence at the hands of her husband, who stabbed her multiple times. Pearse McCauley was jailed for 12 years but he’s out later this year.
“I approached that interview very carefully, I was very conscious of this incredible and painful story.
“But from her perspective, she had a story to tell and a message to give other women.
“She had something she felt very strongly that she wanted to share, so I learnt from this never to be afraid
to ask those hard questions. People want to talk about difficult times to get powerful messages across, such
as, in Pauline’s case, we need more refuge spaces for victims of domestic violence.
“I’m a tough critic, I would be hardest on myself. After the show I’ll ask, ‘Could I have done this better?’”
Asked if she would she consider a move over to the national broadcaster in the future, Claire replied: “I’m really happy at Virgin Media.
“I’ve worked fronting the news
for so many years but to have the opportunity to pivot into current affairs programming has been a great opportunity. I admire Claire Byrne hugely. I worked with her in TV3.
“I really admired her going to Newstalk and taking the plunge, taking these risks and chances and how she went from there to RTE.
“There’s nothing I want to shy away from. I think it’s really important in life that if something scares you, get on with it and do it.”
- The Tonight Show airs Monday to Thursday on Virgin Media One at 10pm.
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