THREE YEARS AGO at a wedding, I bumped into a friend.
He was always considered a black sheep of his family, a little odd but very entertaining with some of his oddball views about extra-terrestrials, shady Government officials and shapeshifting humans.
The kind of person you’d be selective about introducing to others.
His inspiration was an author called David Icke. A quick internet search confirmed my suspicion at the time – most critics seemed to agree that Icke was a nutjob and I quickly slotted into their camp too.
Until I had my Ayahusaca experience and began to question the nature of reality.
With a solid background in journalism, over a decade and a half of presenting in the mainstream media, and a fellow Irishman to boot, the next guest of #Reid2Write seemed the perfect bridge to consider these new ideas. Concepts which, when I scratched a little deeper, not only intrigued but seemed to make sense.
Richie Allen is the host of the Radio and TV show of the same name. It is the most listened to independent news show in Britain with nightly audience figures of 40,000. Downloads of the podcast reach in excess of 80,000 per month.
I’ve been an avid listener for the past year, and after reaching out to Richie, he was very kind to free up some time on his busy calendar. So without further ado-
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Welcome Richie! Congratulations on a successful 2015. Can you tell us more about your television and radio show?

Hi Aidan. After the ultimately unsuccessful TPV (The People’s Voice) project, David Icke suggested I produce and present a nightly live talk radio show, which would be hosted on davidicke.com. I would feature men and women, specialists in their fields, but whose opinions precluded them from national/commercial media. So we launched it in September 2014 and asked people to fund it if they wanted it. They did and continue to do so.
As of January 2016, the show is available on davidicke.com, fabradiointernational.com richieallen.co.uk and alternatecurrentradio.com. The television show is separate and is produced in Manchester by beyondvisionmedia.tv and is a weekly critical review of commercial media, hosted by myself, with the assistance of Hayden Hewitt from LiveLeak.

Why is the alternative media important and why do programmes like your own exist?

The media, which was originally meant (allegedly!) to challenge authority on behalf of the people and hold governments to account, has become co-opted by massive corporations.  These corporations decide what we watch on television, what we eat and drink, the opinions we hear and sadly, whom we get to choose from on election day.
The media is the PR department of the system or the agenda, or whatever you want to label it. It is the systems greatest tool of control. So in the absence of a media working for the people, the independent media is vital.

When did you first realise that things weren’t quite what they appeared to be?

Like so many people it was 9/11. I reported on it while it was happening. It was a surreal experience, trying to reach reporters and witnesses in NYC to come on our show, the competitiveness of it all, trying to be ahead of your rival stations and remaining calm at the same time.
It was a year or so after it happened, that I read a copy of David Ickes book, “Alice in wonderland and the world trade centre disaster” and took a hard look again at what we had claimed to be true in the wake of the attacks. I began to realise that I had played a part in selling the story to the public, even though I wasn’t aware of it at the time.

Who/What were your earliest and biggest influencers when you began to question things?

David Icke and Jim Marrs. I began to read David’s back catalogue and came across “Crossfire“, by Marrs.

In your opinion, what is the best way to inform the masses about what is happening behind the scenes within Government, Politics, Media and Finance?

By introducing them to credible men and women who have worked in/around public life, or medicine and who have the courage to stand up and tell the truth about their experiences. There are so many of them and they only want to be heard. That’s where I come in and others like me.

What resources would you suggest newcomers read/watch without causing the expected knee-jerk reaction to some content which, can initially be very discomfiting?

I never recommend anything or anyone. It’s up to people to do their own digging. I could say David Icke, Jim Marrs, Mike Rivero, but it’s up to people to read and look at as much as they can by themselves. Listen to as many indy radio shows like mine. Ask questions of the presenters and the guests. Treat the indy media with the same healthy skepticism as you would commercial media.

The alternative media movement has grown considerably in the last decade, your show a testament of that fact, enjoying stronger listening figures with each passing month. How do you decide who to interview and whether they’re credible?

There are certain news websites that I pay attention to and writers I hold in high regard. I regularly read stories from researchers I trust. I’ll take an interest in someone featured in a story and will check them out independently. I also get a lot of requests from activists to come on the show. I’ll check out the veracity of what they are telling me and will invite them on or not as the case may be.

What has been your most memorable interview and why?

There’s not one I could say is the most memorable, which is a boring answer, but it is true. I was thrilled the first time I interviewed David (Icke) and nervous because I didn’t know how it would go. But I’m regularly amazed at the courage and convictions of my guests. I chat to amazing men and women every night.

Who have been your personal favourite interviewees in the 10+ years you’ve been presenting? (either mainstream or otherwise)

Again, too many to mention, but I’ll drop a few names. Brian May, David of course, Gerard Celente, Jim Marrs, Rima Laibow, Cynthia Mckinney, Jim Corr, Edwina Currie, John Perkins and of course the wonderful Jordan Maxwell.

Who would be your dream interviewees? (either to tear them a new one, engage in a healthy debate, or pick their brain)

I’d never want to tear anyone a new one, the listeners learn nothing and you come off as a bit of a muppet yourself. I’d love to have a go at Kissinger, Alistair Campbell, Blair, Dick Cheney, to name a few, but only if they were compelled to tell the truth.
They wouldn’t tell you the truth of course. It’d be great to get some of the living Rothschild’s in a studio, but again you’d want to inject them with some sort of truth serum to make it worth your while!

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The Richie Allen Show is broadcast live Monday – Thursday (8pm GMT). More information can be found here:
Website – www.richieallen.co.uk
Twitter – @richieallenshow
Facebook – therichieallenshow
Youtube – Richie Allen Show
Further Reading – Archive of #Reid2Write Interviews

image attribution davidicke.com