COMMENT: The 2 Johnnies were right to take the Irish Prison Service's €20,000 plus VAT

Tipperary comedy duo The 2 Johnnies were right to take Irish Prison Service's €20,000 plus VAT to host a show on the attractions of working as a prison officer.

And the IPS were smart to use The 2 Johnnies' platform to attract prospective candidates but the controversy over the payment is rumbling on. 

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The Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan and Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly have now weighed in after comments made on Wednesday evening's Six One News on RTÉ. 

The IPS - whose members generally don't put a foot wrong in their day-to-day operations despite endless overcrowding and under-investment in our prisons - are facing criticism for the payment. 

Minister O'Callaghan said: "I'm out there launching garda recruitment campaigns down in the Ploughing Championships, the Commissioner does it, we don't get paid €25,000 for doing it, not that we should..."

Meanwhile, Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly told RTÉ's Six One News: "We actually did the same podcast last year and we didn't pay anything for it."

The sponsored podcast featured prison staff speaking about life working in an Irish jail and the advantages of a job in the penal system.

The report by Ken Foxe, who does excellent work around Freedom of Information requests and my issue is not with the information coming to light, transparency is important, but it's the reaction to the podcasters receiving the fee. 

Ken reports that the IPS confirmed that a fee of €20,000, plus €4,600 in VAT, was agreed with the two Tipperary showmen. 

The IPS said "editorial adjustments" had been made before the podcast was released to ensure none of the content compromised security.

Internal emails describe how The 2 Johnnies were "very interested" in working with the prison service and offered a bespoke deal to promote careers there.

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A message said: "[The] bespoke commercial package would be a feature interview on the podcast - ie two officers - one male, one female, one that is newly recruited two-three years' service and the other 10-15 years' service being interviewed … about their roles."

Two officers were given a primer by the Irish Prison Service on questions to expect and suggested answers.

These included the earning potential of up to €70,000 in their first year of service, based on starting pay as well as allowances for additional hours and a seven-day roster. 

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Johnny "Smacks" McMahon and Johnny "B" O'Brien have earned their fame and fortune through hard work and graft.

They are not overnight successes. They are people who have worked hard, tackling serious and light-hearted societal issues in Ireland.

Basically, a lad from Roscrea and another from Cahir who have come from being a butcher, a wedding band performer and hurley maker (nothing wrong with those careers by the way) to household names up and down the country with over 700,000 listeners to their The 2 Johnnies Podcast weekly.

Sell-out shows, family friend shows even, at stadia and venues across Ireland. 

They have come to earn big money, along with being hugely successful and popular, but in Ireland, that means we try to take them down! They can't be getting that big, we need to take them down a peg or two. 

What is it with this country?

With the report of the payment, why are more people not saying fair play to them, good on them and more success to them. 

But when you look at the comments section on social media of the national news articles about the payment, the auld Irish begrudgery never dies! 

This isn't the first time people have had a pop either, with cancel culture just waiting in the long grass for these two and it will continue to wait. 

Who remembers back in 2022? When The 2 Johnnies landed the big time when they thought they got the big gig in RTÉ, not The Late Late Show, but the other big gig. The drivetime show on RTÉ 2FM. 

And then the knives came out. 

The pair had begun presenting the show on the Monday but by Thursday, February 24, they were issuing a statement apologising for offensive content which they posted to their social media accounts.

Now, it was offensive. But worse things have been said online. 

In a statement, Johnny O’Brien and Johnny McMahon said: "We would like to apologise for the content which appeared on our social media, these posts were offensive and should never have been published.

"This is not who we are nor what we stand for. We aim to do better in the future, we are not perfect and we are learning all the time."

The video posted by the comedy duo contained several crude references and featured quotes from a series of vulgar car stickers sent into them by listeners of their podcast.

It was removed from all their platforms. They were almost cancelled in the wake of the controversy just days into their career in the supposed "big time", and their show didn't air in the wake of the controversy and after a review by RTÉ they were allowed to continue with their RTÉ 2FM show. 

Meanwhile, in Ken Foxe's report on the IPS fee, much of which is outlined below, in discussions with The 2 Johnnies, the IPS also said they would require oversight of the final product for security reasons.

A message to them from the podcast said: "The editing process is done in one day, so that will leave plenty of time for edits".

"The way it works, I’ll ask you on the day are there any parts you want taken out, and we take them out in the edit. That’s how it worked with the guards and army, and there was no issues."

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The 2 Johnnies said the price for the podcast would be €20,000, before VAT, and it would reach an enormous audience.

A visibility package said: "Uniquely straddling the worlds of parish feuds, geopolitical dynamics and riding, the 2 Johnnies Podcast has grown to become an accomplished podcast machine signing up new subscribers and listeners every week with 700,000 weekly listeners."

Asked about the podcast deal, an IPS spokesman issued a statement to Ken Foxe and said: "The Irish Prison Service aims to recruit 300 new recruit prison officers in 2025 and received 1,774 applications as part of this year's campaign.

"Since 2021, the Irish Prison Service has recruited over 805 recruit prison officers.

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"Participation in The 2 Johnnies podcast allowed the Irish Prison Service to reach a broad national and international audience, highlighting the career opportunities available and the diverse roles the service can offer potential applicants."

The spokesman said that as was standard with all Irish Prison Service media engagements, editorial adjustments were made post-recording.

He said: "[This was] to ensure that no content was released which could prejudice or impair the security of any prison, its staff, or prisoners, while also maintaining alignment with our communications protocols and participant consent."

That sounds like a public body using due diligence and common sense.

And for €20,000 plus VAT, the lads were a bargain!