Far-fetched fairy sightings across the UK and Scandinavia have helped Geelong West broadcaster Joel Carnegie win two international radio awards in New York on Monday.
His documentary won Best Announcer Presentation in the craft category and placed second in the history section at the New York Festivals International Radio Awards.
“The awards acknowledge the best radio programs from around the world, and I’m really excited and super grateful to receive these awards,” Carnegie said.
“Who would have thought that a seemingly far-fetched documentary about a society hunting for fairies would attract worldwide acclaim.”
Carnegie snared the radio gongs for his ABC Radio National documentary the Fairy Investigation Society, about a secret group investigating reported sightings of the mythical creatures in the UK.
“In 1927, a retired British naval officer established the secret Fairy Investigation Society to investigate fairy sightings and to categorically prove that fairies were real,” he said.
“But the society attracted notoriety for an ambitious post war project that ultimately forced it underground, only to re-emerge in 2015. This is their story…”
Carnegie also travelled to Italy and the Republic of Ireland for the documentary.
“For hundreds of years, a belief in fairies across Ireland, the UK and Scandinavia was an important aspect of cultural and religious beliefs,” he said.
“A big thanks to the crew at the ABC and also to Julia Barton who worked on the show.”
Carnegie presents weekly documentary Music in Time on ABC Classic FM 3pm on Mondays.
