Michael O'Doherty (publisher)
Michael O'Doherty | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Irish |
| Occupation | Publisher |
| Employer | Self-employed |
| Known for | His publishing business |
| Spouse | Single |
| Parent(s) | Father (d. France, 2008) two brothers, one sister |
Michael O'Doherty is a television talent judge, newspaper writer and the publisher of the financially troubled VIP magazine group in Ireland.
From a family in Killiney in County Dublin, O'Doherty was educated at Sandford Park School [1] and studied English and French at Trinity College, Dublin to undergraduate level.
O'Doherty's publishing business includes magazines such as VIP,[2] TV Now, Kiss, Stellar and The Dubliner Magazine. The flagship publication in this stable remains VIP, until recently edited by Elaine Prendeville, who was replaced by another employee, Martha Connolly, in March 2014.
In September 2014 it was reported that Minjara Limited, the company which published VIP, was insolvent and that a creditors' meeting had been called with a view to liquidation. The same article reported that Minjara's licence to publish VIP had been withdrawn the previous month and that a new company, VIP Publishing Limited, had been set up to take over publication of the magazine. The identity of the person with the authority to grant the licence was not stated. Mr O'Doherty stated that he was in the process of communicating with staff and suppliers of Minjara and did not want to discuss the situation further until this had been completed. To date there has been no official comment from the creditors of Minjara Limited. The directors of Minjara Limited, who as directors of an insolvent company are Michael O'Doherty and his sister Sarah O'Doherty. As directors of an insolvent company in liquidation, they will potentially be liable for restriction orders under the Companies Act 1963 following its liquidation.
In addition to the ongoing insolvency of Minjara Ltd, O'Doherty has had two failed publishing ventures, New York Dog and The Dubliner.
O'Doherty has also written for the Evening Herald newspaper.[3] He served as a judge on TV3's reality television show Total Xposure.[4]
Career
Early ventures
O'Doherty's first solo publishing venture was Level3,[5] a magazine aimed at university students in Ireland. The first issue of Kiss launched in Ireland on 31 October 2002, aimed at a teenage market. His previous magazine launches - Magill in 1997, VIP in 1999 and TV Now in 2000 - were alongside his business partner, John Ryan, whom O'Doherty bought out in 2002 with loans from members of his family i[6]
New York Dog collapse
The idea for the magazine came from a joint business venture by Irish magazine publishers O'Doherty and Ryan. Ryan's publishing company inititally owned the publishing venture Stars on Sunday which folded with losses, whilst O'Doherty still maintained VIP. New York Dog magazine was promoted on The Late Late Show, and was set up alongside a New York City-based website, blogorrah.com, which was described by the Irish Independent as "a sort of Phoenix without portfolio".[7] The site was edited by Derek O'Connor but stopped filing new posts in July 2007. Its closure, and that of New York Dog, was extensively covered by the Irish media, many of whose members had been satirised on Blogorrah. Surprisingly, given his initially much-heralded involvement with 'New York Dog, this coverage failed to mention O'Doherty's joint ownership of this publication, or his role in its demise.
The Dubliner failure
O'Doherty also failed to make a success of The Dubliner magazine, purchased by him in 2008, which ceased publication as an independent magazine in January 2012, eleven years to the day after the first edition hit the newsstands.
References
- ^ http://www.herald.ie/national-news/city-news/ive-been-called-a-ponce-a-cretin-and-a-tosser--anonymous-bloggers-are-the-ultimate-cowards-1924607.html I've been called a ponce, a cretin and a tosser ... anonymous bloggers are the ultimate cowards - Evening Herald
- ^ "Tomorrow never dies, but VIPs live for today". Sunday Tribune. 16 April 2006. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
- ^ "Have a nice fight". Evening Herald. 6 August 2009. Retrieved 12 August 2009.
- ^ http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/weekend/2009/0815/1224252579275.html Filling an Empty Space, the Irish Times
- ^ http://www.victoriamaryclarke.com/articles/O%20Doherty%20Michael%20.html Interview with Michael O'Doherty - Victoria Mary Clarke
- ^ "Ireland's 'Kiss' takes on 'Bliss'". Sunday Tribune==. 27 October 2002. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|work=(help) - ^ "Andrea gives Ryan some dog's abuse". Irish Independent. 29 October 2006. Retrieved 12 January 2009.