{"id":473054,"date":"2025-10-04T07:29:13","date_gmt":"2025-10-04T07:29:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/473054\/"},"modified":"2025-10-04T07:29:13","modified_gmt":"2025-10-04T07:29:13","slug":"con-air-banter-box-podcast-its-not-about-big-names-its-about-people-from-here-with-something-about-them-they-need-to-be-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/473054\/","title":{"rendered":"Con Air \u2013 Banter Box podcast: \u2018It\u2019s not about big names, it\u2019s about people from here with something about them… they need to be game\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Conor Quinn, the Belfast man behind the popular Con Air: Banter Box podcast on finding his voice, going live on the road, and what makes a perfect guest\n<\/p>\n

Conor Quinn (30) from Cliftonville started out behind the camera, but is now the face of chat show-themed Con Air: The Banter Box, which sees him interview a wide variety of guests.<\/p>\n

The podcast, which began in April 2023, is one the most listened-to home-grown productions, and its live show version sells out venues.<\/p>\n

A photographer by profession, he set up shoots, cut video and built logos, but initially kept his voice off-screen.<\/p>\n

He told the Belfast Telegraph: \u201cI never spoke on camera \u2014 ever.<\/p>\n

\"Conor<\/p>\n

Conor Quinn at one of his live shows<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople still say this, they\u2019ve watched me from the start and I was proper shy.\u201d<\/p>\n

During lockdown he began going live on TikTok with his sisters, discovering an audience who liked the loose, quick-fire way he bounced off other people.<\/p>\n

A chance job with a Belfast artist nudged him further.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were like: \u2018You should start a podcast\u2019. I said no at first. I didn\u2019t even watch podcasts. But the more I went live, the more it made sense.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Con Air: The Banter Box launched, it was visually-led from the outset, with Quinn teaching himself the nuts and bolts of filming, editing, graphics and promotion.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do everything, of course I\u2019ve people who press the buttons for recording, make sure the cameras are running, but I edit, do the photoshoots and the graphics,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cHosting came after. I\u2019m not a storyteller; I\u2019m quick-fire. I\u2019ll bounce off someone and keep it light.\u201d<\/p>\n

The first YouTube episodes quickly gained traction, building a subscriber base that carried through from short TikTok clips to longer conversations.<\/p>\n

Part of the appeal lies in his guest list. Rather than chasing celebrity names, he looks for personality.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re not obviously huge people,\u201d he said. \u201cThey\u2019re people from here with a little something about them: big on TikTok, interesting, funny. Personality is everything. I need energy, I need someone who\u2019s game.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d never bring anyone on to be torn apart. I\u2019ll challenge people, but in a way they might not even realise. I want them to leave feeling looked after, and for the audience to maybe change their view of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

That approach has translated naturally to the stage, where the podcast has taken on a second life.<\/p>\n

What began as a single invitation to try a live show snowballed into a string of dates \u2014 Union Street, Thompsons, The Devenish, the Ardoyne Club and in Derry (which featured Big Brother star Jenny Baird as a guest). Each show is built around a theme, and each has sold out. Rather than attempting to replicate the podcast exactly, Quinn designs the evenings as something closer to a variety show.<\/p>\n

Guests are balanced across two halves, music and games are added to break up the conversation, and the atmosphere is deliberately loose.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not like sitting down for a TED Talk,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cNobody wants to hear a lecture, they want something they can relate to \u2014 nostalgic stories, holidays gone wrong, the kind of things that make everybody laugh because they\u2019ve been there themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

The first outing, he admits, was far from slick.<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone was so nervous and I ended up drunk. It was chaotic, but people loved it because it felt real,\u201d he recalled.<\/p>\n

Later editions refined the formula, without losing the spontaneity.<\/p>\n

A Christmas show was a particular highlight, with festive songs and games creating the kind of atmosphere Quinn had always imagined.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe did songs, everybody joined in, it was just a proper night out,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Away from the stage, the north Belfast man continues to run his creative agency, pulling in freelancers when needed but handling much of the design, editing and promotion himself.<\/p>\n

\"Conor<\/p>\n

Conor Quinn on his Con Air: The Banter Box podcast <\/p>\n

Every event is supported by tailored graphics, skits and social media campaigns that keep audiences engaged long before they arrive at the venue.<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cIf someone drops out it throws everything, so I keep notes on my phone with back-up topics and ideas \u2014 the show has to keep moving.\u201d<\/p>\n

The question now is whether podcasting could eventually become his main career.<\/p>\n

Quinn is cautious, preferring not to map things out too rigidly.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the right opportunity comes up, I\u2019ll go with it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not going to rule anything out, but I\u2019m not chasing controversy or trying to go viral. It has to feel like me.\u201d<\/p>\n

After a run of three shows in six weeks earlier this year, he plans to take a short break after a live stage show this Halloween. He will then return focus to the online side of the podcast, particularly YouTube.<\/p>\n

Still, whether in front of a camera or on a stage, he insists the aim is unchanged.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not about big names. It\u2019s about people from here who have something about them \u2014 funny, different, interesting. If you\u2019ve got that, the audience will listen.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Conor Quinn, the Belfast man behind the popular Con Air: Banter Box podcast on finding his voice, going…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":473055,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5011],"tags":[2378,1249,6570,1144,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-473054","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-northern-ireland","8":"tag-belfast","9":"tag-kurtis-reid","10":"tag-north-belfast-news","11":"tag-northern-ireland","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115314725413288055","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/473054","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=473054"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/473054\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/473055"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=473054"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=473054"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=473054"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}