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Sam Boal
Podcasters
The 2 Johnnies bank almost €500,000 as 'GAA Catfish' podcast attracts millions of listeners
The busy year for the firm resulted in remuneration for the two rising by 25%.
3.12pm, 2 Feb 2025
34.1k
45
‘GAA CATFISH’ SENSATION podcast hosts and former 2FM presenters, The 2 Johnnies, are laughing all the way to the bank after sharing directors’ pay of almost €500,000 at their firm last year.
In a bumper year for the two comedians Johnny Smacks McMahon and Johnny B O’Brien, accounts show that post tax profits at the pair’s Big Ball Small Ball Productions Ltd increased by 68% to €453,682 for the 12 months to the end of April last.
Only a few weeks after the end of the company’s financial year, the two announced their shock departure from 2FM as afternoon hosts.
Since then the 2 Johnnies’s podcast popularity has soared with its recent ‘GAA Catfish’ episodes achieving global popularity – the podcast enjoyed over two million streams across the globe over four days last month.
The profits of €453,682 for last year are a 68% increase in the €269,533 profits for the prior 12 months.
The profits for last year resulted in the company – owned and controlled by 2 Johnnies, John O’Brien and Jonathon McMahon – sitting on accumulated profits of €857,205 at the end of April last.
During their time at 2FM, the Co Tipperary two increased their audience to 150,000 making it the most listened to show on 2FM at the time.
The busy year for the firm resulted in remuneration for the two rising by 25% to €485,447 including pension payments.
Pay to the two last year increased by €374,183 to €405,543 while the firm paid an additional €79,904 to the directors in pension contributions.
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The firm employs four in total including The 2 Johnnies and wages and salaries for the four totalled €568,175 that included the €79,904 in pension contributions.
The buoyant year for the firm also saw the company’s cash funds almost doubling from €327,066 to €618,026.
The value of the company’s tangible assets increased from €47,250 to €205,247.
During the year under review, The 2 Johnnies recorded a box office of €702,170 for their gig at the 3Arena in December 2023 when 12,791 fans paid out to see the two.
Box office receipts are shared between performer, promoter, ticket seller and venue operator.
The two added to their coffers last Summer with a series of dates in Dublin and the US.
The 2 Johnnies Podcast hosted ‘Two Pints in a Field’ at St Anne’s Park, Raheny on 8 June last.
The two are looking to repeat the success of last year with Pints In A Field 3 returning to St Anne’s Park Dublin on 7 June next with The 2 Johnnies and The Junior B All Stars with special guests Vengaboys and Basshunter.
The pair also brought their The 2 Johnnies podcast World Tour 2024 to San Francisco, Vancouver, Toronto, Chicago and New York City last year before bringing the show to Australia last August for a number of city dates that included Sydney, Brisbane and Adelaide.
The two also added to The 2 Johnnies revenues with the sales of books, merchandise and music.
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@Daniel Skelton: Fair focks to them but I find them as funny as a fly in my soup… oh sob!! Did you read about RTÉ looking for €255k funding to get Doiren back?!
@gordon o loughlin: Not my cup of tea but fair play to them. Nice to read some success for Irish people in the media, rather than hearing about someone quoting the “Irish” Sun or “Irish” Daily Mail or some other English source.
Do Michael Lowery or the Healey-Raes next. Far bigger public in seeing their tax returns broken down then these two lads. In fact, do the whole Oireachtas and top Civil Servents
I love them. They are Refreshingly honest The Lock in a good laugh. However the Podcast over-milked if u forgive the agricultural term. Dublin 4 Irish times crew ,hate them Cos they are generally liked but voices like theirs were never really heard before So it novel that rural Ireland gets a look in as usually swallowed up by more sophisticated types Shows podcast to democratising choices
Ya fair play lads ! But tbh I genuinely really don’t get a lot of the stuff they’d be prancing around doubled over in stitches at.. and good luck to the wonderful Ryan tupperware over yonder
Martin's big outing was all laughs and smiles - but Irish public may not have found it as funny
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