Manchan Magan
Presenter of GLOBAL NOMAD
Having spent 15 years travelling the world, Irish writer and television presenter, Manchán Magan, has seen more of the peoples and cultures of the world than most.
His first journey was to Africa in 1989. He spent 8 months crossing the entire width and half the length of the continent from Morocco to southern Kenya. In the process he gathered stories and research that formed the basis of his first book, An Engagement with Africa.
Since then he has travelled extensively through the Americas, Asia, the Middle East, the Far East, Europe and China, sometimes with a television documentary crew in tow but more often without. All in all he has travelled 43,000 miles overland.
In Ireland Manchán is best known for the series of 30 documentaries he made with his brother Ruán Magan about cultures around the world. These documentaries are based on the experiences he's had while travelling independently, and on the immense research he undertakes in advance. His documentaries have been applauded by critics and viewers alike and are hugely anticipated. They premier annually at the beginning of Irish television channel TG4's New Year schedule.
Manchán is a regular contributor to television and radio with RTE, TG4 and the BBC among his credits. He lives in a self-built straw bale house in Co. Westmeath where he tends to his forest of broadleaf saplings.
For more information on Manchán Magan visit www.manchan.com