PO PARENTS
Beaming mums and dads want the spotlight on themselves, says Scarlett Dargan
routines. Cue Netflix offering the fatherson duo a TV show – Travels With My Father – which led to a joint podcast and a book deal.
‘I’ve got a nepo dad,’ Jack told The Times last June. ‘He very much took his opportunity… He’s off doing his podcast and appearing on shows with my mum, and they’re talking about going on tour themselves. Insane.’
It is insane, when you think about it. Michael Whitehall might be quite funny as the stereotypical annoying dad when he’s messing around with Jack, but do we really need the pensioner to embark on his own nationwide tour? He can’t sing, dance or even conjure up a book about a badger – although he did once manage Christopher Biggins. Do that many people really want to pay to listen to the minutiae of Biggins’s antics?
It would be understandable if we turn out to be even less enamoured of nepo parents than we are of nepo babies. For starters, the trend represents something of an unnatural inversion. At least Boomer parents giving their Gen Z kids a leg up is in the natural course of things, whether you’re a celebrity or a civilian. Added to that, it’s just not as much fun laughing at a septuagenarian as it is at 24-year-old Brooklyn Beckham’s dismal attempts to photograph an elephant for his own picture book.
There’s only one nepo parent I truly love: Linda Clark, the mother of presenter Rylan. Despite the 71-year-old stealing the show whenever she appears on Celebrity Gogglebox, she doesn’t have Instagram and appears genuinely confused when awestruck fans ask her for a selfie. She’s actually funny, making sure she embarrasses Rylan at any given opportunity (the true job of any parent, nepo or not). Like when she was unable to pronounce tzatziki (‘tatiki’), or when she mistook Paddington Bear for a puppet and asked, ‘Who’s got his hand up it?’ while watching the iconic Queen’s Jubilee sketch. That’s a stand-up tour
I’d pay good money to see.
NEPO-FABULOUS MAMAS AND PAPAS
Name Anne Twist
Famous offspring Harry Styles
Then Philanthropist
Now Children’s author
Instagram followers 2.6 million
Name Robert (Rob) Grant
Famous offspring
Lana Del Rey
Then Web-domain investor
DO WE NEED TO SEE JACK WHITEHALL’S DAD EMBARK ON HIS OWN TOUR?
Now Musician
Instagram followers 250,000
Name Michael Whitehall
Famous offspring
Jack Whitehall
Then Retired theatrical agent
Now TV star, podcast host and author
Instagram followers 534,000
Career advice and guidance borne from experience is one of the most important things anyone can receive – but it is so often rose-tinted and doesn’t tell the real story. So what if you could get honest, no-nonsense input from some of Ireland’s most successful women? Sarah-Jayne Tobin set out to find just that and she is now the proud presenter of a new podcast that has been like a labour of love for almost two years. Inspire is a ground-breaking new series, on which Sarah-Jayne speaks to some of Ireland’s most influential women in various sectors, removing the filtered versions of career success.
‘In 20-odd years working as a journalist, despite myself, I developed “favourites” when I was working on various stories,’ she admits. ‘What I mean by that is, reliable people who I found myself returning to time and again for evidencebased opinions, sage advice and considered predictions that generally came true.’
Sarah-Jayne is a content editor with DMG Ireland’s Evoke.ie, the website that reaches over a million Irish women each month. But now, in association with sponsors HerMoney.ie, she is branching out and bringing its inspiring content to a new podcast platform.
‘In my day-to-day on Evoke, I’m so lucky to speak to some of the most inspirational people, but obviously not every nugget of information can be transcribed, it would go on for years,’ she laughs. ‘I’m not going to lie, I get stuck into interviews and I have to remind myself that the more questions I ask, the more work I’m creating for myself.’
But for Sarah-Jayne, the questions still come, and the answers still surprise and ultimately inspire. Joining forces with her colleagues in SpaceTo studios, they set about working on the concept of Inspire, a podcast series of inspirational conversations that will act to educate, empower and encourage people in various sectors all across Irish society.
‘The concept is very simple really,’ she says. ‘We partnered with HerMoney.ie for this series, because our ethos is the same, it’s all about empowerment.
Really empowerment starts with knowledge – who better to learn the lesson from than someone who has literally walked the walk and survived all the trials and tribulations? I was a little humbled when I started reaching out to my “dream list” of interviewees to find out they were as excited as I was about the idea of real-life career guidance.’
Sarah-Jayne has been working as a journalist for more than 20 years. In her current role at
Evoke, she writes entertaining and informative articles for the leading website on entertainment, lifestyle, business and women in sport.
She’s also worked as a broadcaster on radio stations nationwide – in your car, shop and kitchen for decades. However, she has seldom stepped out from the shadows, preferring to just be the one with her finger on the pulse. Until now.
Among the guests on Inspire
‘NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE WHEN GIVEN THE RIGHT DIRECTION’
this season is Labour leader Ivana Bacik, who recalls how her childhood influences shaped her dogged determination for equality that led her to be defended by President Mary Robinson at the European Courts of Justice.
‘I spent many years working in news and current affairs and I thought I knew her,’ says Sarah-Jayne. ‘But listening to Ivana talk between the news lines about her experiences, how it really feels to be the villain in one person’s story and the hero in another, it was very eyeopening. Who’d be a politician? But her passion is enticing, that’s for sure.’
Restaurateur Sallyanne Clarke speaks about the responsibilities associated with employing a large staff and learning how to separate home life from work life, despite working closely with her husband, famed chef Derry Clarke.
‘We all know the story of how Sallyanne and Derry lost their beloved son Andrew to suicide, as a mum myself I genuinely felt her heart as she spoke about him,’ says Sarah-Jayne. ‘But with so many other families relying on her for their income stream, I cannot exaggerate her strength. Her journey through life made her this way. It’s pretty incredible, she’s experienced so much.’
Finance is, of course, one of the big reasons why people opt for the ‘safe’ path with their careers, and Inspire also addresses the concept of taking a chance on yourself, without taking a big risk. Financial advisor Carol Brick, managing director of HerMoney.ie, gives advice based on her own real-life experiences as one of the top businesswomen in Ireland.
‘Carol gets real about the possibilities available, at any stage, to anyone considering a move who wants to future-proof their career and their life choices,’ Sarah-Jayne explains. ‘I’m a bit of an ostrich when it comes to financial planning but she pulled my head out of the sand.
‘Our interviewees have single-handedly revolutionised their industries and made a massive impact on society. I honestly cannot wait for our listeners to get stuck in, you won’t believe some of the stories. Even though I had researched and prepped for each show, I was still struck by the passion and knowledge divulged.’
Liz Doyle, group head of female brands at DMG Ireland, including EVOKE, says: ‘Inspire is a labour of love for us at Evoke. We have long championed women in business, and this is merely the next step, to continue to nurture growth in every sector. With over one million women in Ireland on Evoke every month, this is the perfect platform to empower women to follow their life goals.
‘These conversations are inspirational, they’re entertaining, as a listener they make me believe that nothing is impossible when given the right direction and the right support. That’s exactly what Inspire is all about.’
Inspire, charting women’s success across business, is on all streaming platforms now, with a new episode released every Thursday