Brian O’Donovan

WGBH Radio on-air host Brian O'Donovan at the WGBH Studios in Boston. Each week on 89.7 Boston Public Radio, host Brian O'Donovan explores traditional and contemporary music from around the Celtic world, connecting emerging artists to their deep musical roots.

Brian O’Donovan is a broadcaster, writer, and presenter best known for his work with Boston’s public broadcasting powerhouse, GBH.  He was born and raised in Clonakilty, West Cork in a family of 9.  Having completed his degree at University College Cork, he attended grad school at Emerson College. That was in 1980. O’Donovan fell in love with the city and then with his wife, Lindsay who he met at a music session in Brookline a week after arriving. They married in August of 1981.

Although Brian is widely known today for his work in broadcasting, music production, and as a curator for live events, his earlier professional career was in a very different world. He held management and executive positions with the New England Patriots, Foxboro Stadium, and the New England Revolution of Major League Soccer.

Brian and Lindsay live in Cambridge. They have four grown children: Aoife, Ciaran, Aidan, and Nuala, and two grandchildren, Ivy Jo Jacobsen of Brooklyn, NY, and Nomi Francis O’Donovan of Denver, CO.