Lahinch couple behind TG4 documentaries

A LAHINCH production company is behind the new TG4 series Farraigí na hÉireann, which began on Tuesday.
Ken O’Sullivan and his wife, Katrina Costello spent a full year filming for the programme, following sea creatures through their seasonal changes from feeding, mating, breeding and birth of their young.
The couple set up Sea Fever Productions in 2006 to produce ocean-themed and wildlife documentaries and this, their most ambitious work to date, will be shown over the next five weeks on TG4.
Producing an Irish ocean wildlife series has been a life dream for Ken and Katrina. Many years of development and two years of production have resulted in Ireland’s first dedicated ocean wildlife series, bringing the Irish magical underwater world into the living rooms of people in Ireland.
According to Ken, who is the producer, director and cameraman on the project, “Waiting for suitable sea conditions in which to film can be difficult in Ireland but when the seas are calm, the diving and wildlife can be some of the most beautiful anywhere on the planet.
“Oddly enough, some of the best dive conditions occur in winter, as the seawater is clearer when plankton descends to deeper waters. Naturally, this means pretty cold conditions.”
Tuesday’s programme dealt with why the temperate seas around Ireland are some of the most fertile in the world, looking at the abundance of creatures such as dolphins, basking sharks and jellyfish and explaining the ocean food chain beginning with plankton. It also looked at the history of man’s chequered relationship with basking sharks.
From here on, Ken and the crew examine the sea bed, coastal waters, birds of the sea and the changing use of the sea in upcoming episodes.
The series is broadcast on Tuesdays at 8pm on TG4.