We had the good fortune of connecting with Jason Keelan and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Jason, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
The idea originated from an unusual source – a bus journey at the end of a holiday which began in Japan and ended in Ukraine! The bus was from Kiev to Chernobyl. I was listening to a podcast about Gaelic Games and they mentioned the GAA World Games 2019 and I was stunned that in all my travel to over 100 countries that I hadn’t come across a Gaelic Games team outside of Ireland! So I started to look and when I realised there were many and they received little or no coverage I decided to start the podcast to see if I could garner recognition for them
Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
My podcast is essentially a hobby that has grown. As a result of it, I have become involved in the media side doing newspaper sports reporting and commentary at local and national levels. I have also travelled to Belgium and Sweden for international GAA tournaments this year too. What sets me apart from others is that the Loaf of Bread GAA Podcast I run is the only fully global GAA Podcast in the world at present which is pretty cool! So far it has been a dream!
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Mullingar is a small town of about 22k people in the heart of Ireland. We are famous for many things however – musicians including Niall Horan from One Direction, Bressie, The Academic and many more. We have some of the best food spots in Ireland ranging from Oscars to JP Steakhouse to Silver Oak and beyond. The pubs of the town are famous and are said to be one of the best spots in Ireland to get Guinness! The town itself was also the host of the Fleadh Ceoil 2022 And 2023 attracting over 1.4 million people to the town!
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
To my family – wife Linda, little boys Tomás and Páidí. And to everyone in the GAA home and abroad!
Instagram: @loafpod
Twitter: @loafpod
Facebook: @loafofbreadgaapod
Youtube: Loaf of Bread GAA Podcast
Other: Linktr.ee/loafofbread