In the mid-1990s, McDermott was the Information officer of the Cork Music Resource Co-op, established in 1994 to "provide information to [local] musicians and bands on all aspects of the music industry."[1]
McDermott began to produce audio documentaries in the early 2000's. Describing the Five Go Down to the Sea? documentary "Get That Monster Off The Stage, parts I & II", broadcaster Mike McGrath-Bryan said that they "comprehensively cover both the legacy of Finbarr Donnelly and really the post-punk scene that was operating out of [Cork in the early 1980s]. [The documentaries] lead to an increased knowledge of the history of the Cork music scene; the relative ahistoricality has been shaken off".[2] The documentary won the "Radio Production of the Year" award at the 2002 SMEDIA Awards. Myles Dungan, chairman of the judging panel, said: “This is a fascinating snapshot of the vibrant Cork music scene of the 80’s. The producer constructed a compelling account of cult rock hero Finbarr Donnelly. The program itself is an excellent weave of music and the spoken word, and is unobtrusively informative." The documentary was re-edited in 2008 to include contributions from band guitarist Ricky Dineen. In a later interview, Dineen said that he had withdrawn from playing music until the revival of interest created by the documentary.[2]
McDermott's 2017 documentary on Microdisney, "Iron Fist in Velvet Glove", was described by The Guardian as "brilliant",[3] while Hot Press wrote it was "the stellar work of [a] post-punk historian".[4] "No Journeys End" debuted in August 2019 on RTÉ lyric fm, and covers the life of Michael O'Shea, a travelling street musician from Carlingford, County Louth, whose only album, the self-titled "Michael O'Shea", was released in 1982.[5] A review in the Irish Times described the documentary as "retracing the picaresque life of innovative street musician Michael O'Shea to fascinating effect".[6]
