Without PBS, Celtic Woman would not even exist, therefore, without PBS, there would not be a group to have the hype.
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Celtic Woman and The High Kings, as we know and love them, would not exist but for the Public Broadcasting System.
A bit of history, for those who haven't followed CW from the start.
Celtic Woman was the brainchild of Sharon Browne and David Downes. The original concept was to tap into the
American marketplace's taste for Celtic music and culture. The idea was pitched to PBS, and they agreed to produce and finance the taping of the original Helix concert on 15 September 2004. The intent was for this to be a one-off event, to be televised only in the US (and, by proximity, Canada) during PBS pledge drives. On 27 January 2005, PBS and Clear Channel Entertainment (CCE), a leading producer and marketer of live entertainment events, announced that they had joined forces to create an exclusive live touring partnership and television production deal. The agreement provided CCE with a first right of refusal to mount live tours of performance shows produced for PBS stations' membership pledge drives. The first incarnation of this new arrangement was the summer 2005 concert tour of Celtic Woman. Local PBS stations promoted ticket offerings for the live engagements during their March 2005 "begathons." CCE presented 20 shows of Celtic Woman between 8 July - 7 August in theaters and amphitheaters.
As soon as the Helix concert aired on PBS, videos (usually captured in violation of copyright) began popping up all over the Internet. The buzz spread by word of mouth (and email), and those videos quickly went viral. CW made little or no effort to market themselves outside North America, so those videos, blog posts, emails, etc., were largely responsible for spreading the CW gospel in other parts of the world.
So there is a sharp line of demarcation apparent. If you survey the American fans, you'll find a huge number who "discovered" CW while channel surfing and stumbling across a PBS telecast of their Helix concert. Overseas, they owe their fame and popularity to digital media and the Internet. But the basic fact remains that, without PBS sponsorship, there never would have been a "Celtic Woman."
