My Career: TV producer and musician Maggie Carty

Did you always want to be a TV producer and musician?
I grew up in a musical family spanning four generations, so I think I was always destined for music and loved the stage. TV came much later. My parents were involved in producing a documentary on fiddle player Brian Rooney, An Godfather, for TG4 and this sparked my interest in all things production. 

In college, I studied… a BA in Irish Studies at NUIG. I lived in Galway for four years and had the most wonderful time in such a creative city. 

My most formative work experience was… I worked as a production assistant with artist Vera Gaffney in the workshop creating her artwork prints. She has an eclectic music collection, so each day we listened to something different which definitely influenced my music career too. 

My first real job was… teaching a Media Course in Gael Linn in Dublin. It was my first time living in the capital, and I loved my time there. 

The most invaluable thing I learned early on in my career was… to own your mistakes and, in music, often less is more.

A common misconception about what I do is… sometimes in music, people think it’s all great fun and that it must be all parties. Sometimes this is true, but mostly the reality is quite different. While it is great fun and we meet amazing people, a lot of work goes into putting on a great show and I’m usually the first one home after it’s over. Similarly, in TV, it’s not all the glitz and glamour people might think!

My main responsibility in work is to… make people happy and enjoy the concert or on TV, the show! Music is escapism, and if someone’s at my gig I want to make them happy.

The biggest risk I have taken in my career so far is… presenting on TG4’s Fleadh’22 last year. It was my first time presenting and to go straight to live TV was like jumping off the deep end! It was such a great experience and I hope to do more of this in the future. I wish every success to the show this year. 

Do you have a career mentor or someone you look up to/seek advice from?
I work with an amazing production company in Melbourne, JAMTV, with amazing female producers who inspire me every day. Last year I worked with Doireann Ní Ghlacáin on Fleadh’22, it was fantastic to work with a powerhouse female presenter. In music, Irish singer-songwriter Áine Tyrell is a huge influence who I look up to here in Australia, and I would seek advice from her in forging the path as an Irish female musician here. 

I wake at… 6:30am most mornings. 

The first thing I do every morning is… have a cup of tea!

My morning routine is… have a cup of tea, catch up on all the WhatsApp messages that have come in overnight from friends and family in Ireland, go to Pilates, have breakfast and then straight to work. 

I can’t go to work without… my Airpods and my Pawpaw (Aussie lip balm!).

I travel to work by… mostly by train. On shoot days or if I’m touring, I’ll drive. 

On an average workday I… will prep for studio days by doing auditions, casting contestants and writing palm cards. I’ve started doing more post-production too and have been getting to grips with Avid editing software. On top of this, I’ll do my own music admin for various projects.

I start my working day at… it really varies, but mostly 9am. On studio days, I’ll start at 7am. Music gigs can start anytime!

The first thing I do at work is… check my emails and make another cup of tea.

I usually spend the first portion of the day… at my desk catching up on emails, I’ll then head to the edit to do some post or, if it’s a studio day, I’ll be on set all day. 

I break for lunch at… 1pm and usually have leftovers from the night before or a salad. 

The most useful business tool I use every day is… Google Drive!

I save time by… writing lists. I love them, I write lists for everything. 

I rarely get through my working day without… making a phone call. Email is great and everything, but nothing beats picking up the phone to get the answer you’re looking for. 

The best part of my day is… meeting amazing people.

The most challenging part of my day is… sometimes the commute – Melbourne traffic is no joke.

I know it’s been a good day if… I’ve completed my to-do list and have had a few cups of tea.

I usually end my day at… 6pm.

I switch off from work by… playing music with friends or reading a book.

Before I go to bed, I’ll… drink a peppermint tea… I may have an addiction to tea!

I often prepare for tomorrow by… having my breakfast and lunch made. I don’t work well if I’m hungry so having this ready helps make my day stress-free. 

After a long work week, I de-stress by… playing music with friends. I play at The Drunken Poet in West Melbourne once a month, and we always have such a lovely time. That and getting into nature for a bush walk. 

If you want to get into my line of work, my advice is to… work really hard and take your time. Things don’t happen overnight, but if you prove yourself to be a hard worker with ambition there’s nothing stopping you!

The accomplishment I’m most proud of is… I am so proud to be part of the Melbourne Céilí Band who will make history this year by travelling the furthest distance to enter the céilí band competition at the All Ireland Fleadh in Mullingar. 

I’ve just finished working on… in my TV world, I’ve just finished a series of Millionaire Hot Seat and this year produced the 2,500th episode of the show. In music, I have spent the past six months putting together The Melbourne Céilí Band and we are travelling 1,7262km to Mullingar this August. We will be the first-ever Australian entrant at the senior céilí band competition and look forward to competing on Sunday 13 August.

If you’re interested in seeing The Melbourne Céilí Band perform at the senior céilí band competition this August, you can find out more information and get your tickets here. Feature image by Eamon Ward, additional imagery by Adam Purcell.