Hot Shots 2025: Alan Bradley

When the president of Ireland releases a statement saying: “There are so many reasons I could think of why this film should be seen in every household” – as Michael D Higgins did with Patrick: A Young Traveller Lost – the power of the film is clear. Its director Alan Bradley winning a Young Director Award for Documentary at Cannes only underlines the point.

Bradley’s RTÉ documentary delves into the overlooked topic of suicide in the Traveller community, as told through the death of 12-year-old Patrick McDonagh. Bradley interviewed only Travellers so the story is delivered purely through their lens.

It’s Bradley’s “empathy, investigative depth and cinematic execution” that marks out him as a heavyweight documentarian in his first years, says Ed Stobart, managing director of producer Alleycats TV.

From Cavan in Ireland and now resident in London, a collaboration with Alleycats TV has been key to Bradley’s rise. Together, they have shone a light on eating disorders (RTÉ’s Anorexia: My Family And Me, narrated by Angela Scanlon), incel culture (Invisible Men: Ireland’s Incels for RTÉ) and stalking (Stalked for Virgin Media Television).

It’s a winning formula: they picked up the Radharc Award Ireland 2024 and multiple RTS nominations along the way, and Bradley is the youngest director to secure a prime-time RTÉ One documentary slot.

The common thread between Bradley’s varied projects is “an ability to craft compelling, socially resonant stories”, explains Stobart. “Alan is an outstanding director, with a real touch for bringing the best out of contributors. He is a genuine rising star, and one of the brightest talents of his generation.”