Irish Stew Podcast

Healthcare thought leader Michael J. Dowling returns to Irish Stew to discuss his new book The Aging Revolution: The History of Geriatric Health Care and What Really Matters to Older Adults , the launch of Northwell Studios to tell stories that humanize health care, and why he sees gun violence as a public health priority. Last on Irish Stew in April, 2021 , the Limerick-born Northwell Health CEO...

John Connell traveled far from Ireland in his 20s, and early in his career, his work yielded accolades in journalism and filmmaking. Yet happiness and contentment proved to be elusive. Returning to the family farm in Longford, one of Ireland's heartland counties, provided a restorative space to pursue a career as an author. Three books followed, notably The Cow Book , which achieved critical...

Our Irish Stew Drinks Party is back with PJ Rigney, founder of The Shed Distillery--home of the breakout star of the burgeoning Irish gin category, Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin, along with its Sausage Tree Irish Vodka, and Drumshanbo Irish Whiskey. The magic happened when PJ rolled the dice after an innovative career in the global drinks industry to strike out on his own. “To build a distillery...

Irish Stew delves into the rich world of Irish American literature through the eyes and pen of guest John Kearns, a New Yorker by way of Philadelphia and a relentless storyteller in short stories, novels, plays, poetry, screenwriting, and song. Our conversation explores John’s creative processes, the importance of maintaining cultural roots, the differences between Irish American identities in Phi...

In this episode of Irish Stew, hosts John Lee and Martin Nutty welcome Julie Breathnach-Banwait, a poet and child psychologist. Julie shares her unique journey from her Connemara home ( Ceantar an nOileán ) off the west coast of Ireland to the island of Tasmania off the south coast of Australia. Julie discusses her deep connection to the Irish language, her published works, her latest poetry colle...

This episode of Irish Stew features an in-depth discussion with Dr. Elizabeth Stack, the Executive Director of the American Irish Historical Society (AIHS).  Dr. Stack discusses her journey from Listowel, County Kerry, to her academic career in history and her role in developing the Irish American Heritage Museum in Albany and revitalizing the AIHS.  Recorded at the AIHS's historic Fifth Aven...

In New York for the annual New York New Belfast Conference, Máirtín Ó Muilleoir swung by the Irish Stew Global Headquarters for a transatlantic conversation with co-host John Lee. In this episode, the Belfast Media Group and Irish Echo publisher tells of growing up during The Troubles, watching gun battles on his Belfast street, his move into politics, the less-than-warm reception he got as a Sinn...

Vibrant Vivienne Sayers O'Callaghan is an Irish Gen Z entrepreneur, Irish language and culture advocate, and NYC social media influencer rapidly rising to the “top of the heap” as Frank Sinatra croons in “New York, New York.” Viv mixes lively chronicles of her New York adventures with spoon-sized servings of the Irish language and Irish culture, a formula which has earned her almost 40K Insta...

Is this one of our author episodes or should it fall into our Irish Drinks category because your co-hosts have grabbed a table by the pot-bellied stove at New York’s legendary McSorley's Old Ale House for a conversation with author, cultural creator, and impresario Charles R. Hale. Charles is known for curating lively artistic salons, producing eclectic concerts, and presenting original perfo...

Writer, performer, and force of nature, born Morag Prunty, but best known by her pen name Kate Kerrigan whisks us from London where she grew up with an Irish identity to Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way where she’s living with an English accent. In this episode, Kate spins tales of idyllic childhood summers in Mayo, the dynamics of being Irish in England during the turbulent 70s and 80s, her challenges...

In this episode, cohosts John and Martin dive into the world of Olympic shot putting with their guest, Eric Favors, an athlete representing Ireland. Born and raised in Rockland County, New York, with a rich Irish heritage, Eric shares his journey from trying various sports to specializing in track and field. He discusses the intricacies of shot put, a sport that demands not just brute strength but...

Irish Stew goes to Canada for a most “Global Irish Nation Conversation” with Jackie Gilna, who’s been Irish in Dublin, Spain, the Netherlands, and now she's Irish in Canada's capital, Ottawa. And through a new venture, she's Irish all around the world. Jackie launched We Are Global Irish this year to showcase Irish innovation, connect Irish businesses and organizations globally, dri...

Settle in for a spirited episode of Irish Stew with two pioneering women in the Irish spirits industry, Alice Carroll--the proud Limerick distiller and co-founder of Foxes Bow Whiskey, and Maura Clare--the Queen of Poitín and creator of the Smuggling Nun brand. They swap notes on their journey into the spirits business, the challenges and opportunities of operating in traditionally male-dominated...

Michael Meade spent over 20 years on Wall Street and then stepped away from the pressured world of high finance to do something totally different. Some, in his circumstances, may have opted for plenty of time on the golf course and cracking open a few brews, that’s not the kind of person Michael Meade is.   Intrigued by a visit to Ireland, Michael wanted to build a business that would connect to h...

As Chief Executive of the Western Development Commission (WDC), Allan Mulrooney is a tireless advocate for the Western Region of Ireland, promoting social and economic development for the counties of Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo, Mayo, Roscommon, Galway, and Clare. Why go west? Allan points to the region's mix of the old and the new, how it fosters a work-life balance,  the contrast of beautiful n...

In the first of our “Irish Libations” series, we welcome Michael McKillop, who branched out from the 36-year-old Glens of Antrim Potatoes business to launch Glens of Antrim Distillery with its Lir line of Irish Whiskeys, amidst bucolic surroundings in Cushendall, Northern Ireland. We get a professional’s view of the growing, shipping, and marketing of Ireland’s favorite crop, and how his company i...

Launching Season Six, we go behind the scenes of the woman-strong Irish film Lies We Tell, a brooding tale of angels and demons, light and shadow, manners and mores, family secrets and family crimes, which The Guardian called “a tightly laced, elegantly cut gothic period drama.” A total rethinking of Irish writer Sheridan Le Fanu’s 1864 novel Uncle Silas, the film centers on Maud Ruthyn, brilliant...

When we last talked with Dan Mulhall, he was Ireland’s Ambassador to the United Stares. Since then, he retired after a 44-year career in diplomacy, but he’s been busier than ever as we learn in this check-in episode with Martin Nutty focused on his new book on W. B. Yeats. Recent invitations to New York University, Cambridge, and Harvard, provided opportunities to engage with students and pursue r...

With a computer programming background and an instinct for reporting, Malachy Browne is on the vanguard of a new form of data-driven news coverage that is revitalizing journalism. Co-founder and enterprise director of the New York Times Visual Investigations team, Malachy is pioneering the use of digital sleuthing, collecting and analyzing troves of video and audio, satellite images and other data...

Ted Smyth, former diplomat and C-Suite and current President of the Advisory Board of Glucksman Ireland House NYU,  joins Martin Nutty for a discussion on Irish and American politics. What does the recent November 2023 American mid term election presage for 2024?  How differing are the American and Irish views on Gaza?  How should we understand the recent Dublin riots and the relationship between...

Fin Dwyer of Irish History Podcasts pays a return visit to Irish Stew. We last hosted Fin two years ago .  Since then, Fin has continued to fascinate his listeners with in depth episodes on a broad range of Irish History topics.  Despite this frenetic pace, Fin has found time to publish a book titled:  A Lethal Legacy - A History of Ireland in 18 Murders . We'll be talking about two cases det...

Join us in a westward journey to the Irish enclaves of Butte, Montana and on to a chicken coop on Maryland’s Eastern Shore as Marybeth Shea guides us along little-known paths of Irish migration and through little understood profession of technical communications. She describes herself as a humanist and cites her Catholic education, specifically with the Jesuits, as foundational to her worldview an...

So why learn Irish? "Studies have shown that learning your native language, learning any language, but especially your ancestral tongue, brings feelings of comfort and freedom. And especially when considering our past and our heritage, learning Irish is very revealing and very healing," says our latest guest Mollie Guidera, the Irish language teacher for Global Ireland. She grew up “with...

Join us as we travel from Ireland all the way to New Zealand to explore a vision of Ireland from centuries ago in our conversation with Brian O’Sullivan. He’s an author, cultural researcher, strategic analyst, and founder of Irish Imbas, the only Irish publisher specializing in fiction and non-fiction based on the ancient Irish cultural knowledge and belief patterns of authentic Irish mythology. H...

A Trinity College graduate in economics and politics, he represented Irish business abroad, led The Ireland Funds for almost two decades, and now Kingsley Aikins combines his fervor for networking and diaspora engagement in the mission of The Networking Institute.  “Kinger,” as he’s known to his friends, talks of how rugby became his global passport and the lucky break that landed him in Sydney, A...