Who is Stephen Nolan?

Stephen Nolan, a prominent radio presenter, was cleared this week by the BBC after investigations into more than 100 complaints it had received over his taking a politician off-air during an angry discussion.

The Sunday World reported that a BBC complaints committee found Nolan justified in throwing out Social Democratic and Labour Party or SDLP member Matthew O’Toole during a programme in March this year. Sunday World reported that the BBC had received 115 complaints against Stephen Nolan.

Who is Stephen Nolan?

Stephan Nolan, 49, is a Northern Irish presenter for BBC Radio Ulster, Radio Foyle, and BBC Radio Five Live. He hosts the Stephen Nolan Show on BBC Radio Ulster, and is reported to be the organisation’s highest paid presenter in the area. He was reported to have earned 405,000 pounds in 2020-21.

Stephen Nolan is from the Shankill area of Belfast. Nolan lives in Mahee Island, County Down. He joined the BBC in 2003 after working at the Belfast CityBeat radio station. In the ltwo decades that he has hosted his eponymous show, Nolan has won won considerable acclaim and eight Gold Sony Radio Academy Awards since 2002.

Since July 16, 2005, Nolan has also been hosting a weekend phone-in show on BBC Radio Five Live, which airs on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Until 2017, he also presented Question Time Extra Time, a simulcast of BBC One’s Question Time, followed by extended debates on Five Live.

His often confrontational and persistent interviewing style has also sparked controversy and some criticism and Stephen Nolan has taken legal action against online trolls who made defamatory comments about him on Twitter, resulting in substantial settlements.

The Sinn Féin had boycotted his shows, particularly following his coverage of Bobby Storey’s funeral during the Covid-19 pandemic. The SDLP had boycotted The Nolan Show after Matthew O’Toole was abruptly cut off.