- Letter To America
Letter To America (often abbreviated to LTA) is a weekly spoken
podcast produced principally inBelfast, Northern Ireland by the Americantelevision director andartist Jett Loe . It is also the name of an associatedweblog , which describes the podcast as a "dispatch from the heart of Belfast, Northern Ireland". The blog has also been described as "a behind the scenes look at the podcast" and the podcast has been described as "a behind the scenes look at the blog".Loe is normally accompanied by one co-host; in early 'chapters' these were usually
female friends ,colleague s and ex-girlfriends, or the occasional one who was all three. In several episodes listeners themselves have co-presented the show, either viainternet telephony or because they have taken up Loe's offer to "come to Belfast, Mr. Tourist, I'll let you sleep on my couch". The first edition of the podcast was published on3 September 2005 . Since early2006 , the podcast has been co-hosted by Wayne "Ordinary American" Van Ry, another American resident of Northern Ireland who Loe met while on atrain . Wayne contributes to the show with his unique and frequently under-researched "Northern Ireland Story of the Week"feature . He has also acted as Loe's driver and chaperone.Loe and the podcast have been profiled on
BBC Northern Ireland 's "Inside Out" television programme andBBC Radio Ulster 's "Arts Extra".LTA is an annual nominee for Best Blog and many other awards at the [http://awards.ie/blogawards/ Irish Blog Awards] [ [http://awards.ie/blogawards/2006/02/20/irish-blog-awards-short-list/ Irish Blog Awards shortlist] ] .
Recurring Themes
*Welcoming the new listeners who have listed themselves on the Frappr map.
*Advertising ClementsCoffee (to which Jett is addicted/dependent) and other seemingly sponsoredproduct placement s
*Recording the show in unusual locations (including the smaller of the twolifts in Loe'sapartment block , and theNorthern Ireland Railways train to Bangor).
*Offering wildly inaccurate information about "all things Irish",. aimed at tourists who want to come toBelfast
**On how to order a pint ofGuinness in an Irish pub: "Walk up to the bar and say 'Barkeep ! Give me a stein of your finest Flatley'."
**Insisting that theRepublic of Ireland uses the "Eiro" (c.f.Eire andEuro ) as its official currency
*Inviting listeners to join them in Belfast, with the offer to "come to Belfast and sleep on Jett Loe's couch". (To date, only one listener has taken up the offer, and they stayed in a localhotel , only posing for a photo on the couch.)
*Making light banter with guests
**Winding up regular co-host Wayne for not adequately preparing his "Big Northern Irish story of the week" segment
**“Are you doing material?”
**"F#ck you, this is a family show."
*Jumping forward/backward in time to hear from Jett and Wayne in the future (a trick ofediting ).
*Making passing references to Loe's supposed past life and jobs.
*Pronouncing a pithy closing thought - often on the theme of love.
*Easter eggs following the closing music.References
See also
*
Podcast
*Belfast, Northern Ireland External links
* [http://lettertoamerica.blogs.com Letter to America] (behind the scenes blog of the podcast)
* [http://waynorama.wordpress.com Wayne Ordinary American]
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