Joe Mahon: ‘It is a great privilege to make Mahon’s Way. I don’t take that lightly’

Joe Mahon is instantly recognisable on the airwaves for his gentle commentary full of genuine wonder at Northern Ireland’s unceasing surprises, whether it’s the raw beauty of an abandoned island, the discovery of a piece of captivating history, or the majesty of lush landscape.

His contagious, rhapsodic enthusiasm and warm conversational style creates a rapport with devoted viewers, who will be delighted to learn that the second series of Mahon’s Way kicks off on Sunday evening.

Of course, the self-effacing Londonderry man, wouldn’t be so bold as to suggest he’s the ‘star’ of the show, nonetheless, he’s a relatable and reliable presence on our screens.

“The programme is not about me, it’s about the content,” he says, speaking from Donegal, where he’s on holiday with his family.

“But I think I am a trusted kind of guide. If I am going to say something, I hope I have got my facts right. Our subject matter, history and archeology and geology, heritage, needs a bit of explaining and a bit of contextualising background.”

Now 71, he adds: “I suppose now that I have accrued wisdom, so to speak, I am allowed to have opinions about things,” he laughs.

But, if his fervour for a subject takes him off on a tangent, or if he starts to “prattle on a bit”, his son Patrick, the show’s producer, is there to rein him in.

“He’d sometimes say ‘you’re getting a wee bit Open University here, or you’re getting a bit complicated, just keep it simple’.

“We get on very well. We talk about the programmes constantly. I have to respect his judgement because he is the producer and there’s times when he’ll tell me something is a bit cheesy and he’s usually right. His taste and his judgement is probably closer to the audience.”

The new series of Mahon’s Way once again sees Joe travel the length and breadth of Northern Ireland (and sometimes a bit further), exploring the rich veins of heritage, history and culture which make this place so unique.

It has everything, ancient townlands and castles; stories of trailblazing people who helped shape so many places; flora and fauna of rivers and lakes; and history and stories behind poetry and songs. From Malin to Moneymore, Garvagh to Greyabbey and everywhere in between, Joe uncovers yet more fascinating stories of Northern Ireland’s heritage.

The series kicks off with Joe spending time on the Ards Peninsula at Portaferry. He finds out about the discovery of an ancient community that archaeologists can trace back 5,000 years, and also spends time in a beautifully restored Presbyterian church. Now a performance and exhibition centre and renamed the Portico of Ards, it also remains a place of worship for the local Presbyterian congregation.

“We are all over the Province again, but what is different about the series in the last couple of years is that I have discovered, late on in life, the advantages of drone photography for aerial shots.

“The first show in Portaferry starts in a wee place called Millin Bay over the other side of the Ards Peninsula.

“The reason the drone was so useful there was that if we had done that in the past, you couldn’t possibly say why it was strategically important to have a big settlement there 5,000 years ago, but when you have the drone it comes in from the sea across the coast and you can see exactly why they put it where it was because it is the first thing you see when you come into the land.

“Senior archaeologist Liam McQuillan was showing me the photographs of the original excavation that was done there in the 1950s and they found this extraordinary display of human bones and skulls, not just randomly buried, but buried in a very ceremonial way......5,000 years ago, you’re talking the time of the pyramids... sorry, I’m getting carried away, but I still find it absolutely amazing and exciting..that’s like finding another mummy in a pyramid.”

It’s that sense of authentic child-like wonder which makes for televisual gold and offers balm for weary souls when we are swamped with so much bad news and perhaps have had a week of slate-grey urban drudgery on crowded buses and claustrophobic offices.

But Joe is keen to stress the shows aren’t meant to be pure escapism.

“It is a great privilege to be able to do these programmes, but it’s not something that you take lightly. The aim is to give people something of value to them. I hope this doesn’t sound terribly pompous, but it’s not just half an hour of craic that is forgettable, it’s real substance, real information that they will carry away with them. We are looking at the real world, but we are looking at it in a lyrical way. So it’s not just straightforward history or geography, or whatever, there’s also my personal take on it.

“I am still learning all the time, and I know that sounds like a terrible cliché, but it’s absolutely true. I learnt something new from each of the 14 programmes and I got new insights that I simply did not have before. That excitement is still there. I think that’s what keeps you alive. I am still reasonably fit and healthy, so as long as I can walk and talk and think and climb (and occasionally fall down a sheugh), I’m grand.”

*The first episode of Mahon’s Way is on Sunday, July 24 at 7pm on UTV and on catch up on www.itv.com/utvprogrammes