Documentary on One Podcast

What happens when people stop having trust in the system? Two people who lost faith in the things they previously believed are Phil and Jean. Phil is a former conspiracy theorist. He spent over a year believing things like that 9/11 were a hoax. Jean used to get all her news from traditional sources. During Covid, Jean lost faith in this, and she turned to online alternative sources...

In 1977, a giant ship named Skyhope paid a visit to the west Kerry village of Baile na nGall or Ballydavid. The ship was calling into the village on the promise of a few pints having helped out some local fishermen. Their overnight stay turned into a week-long stay which brought great crowds to the village and fantastic exotic fun. But ultimately, the visit took a turn for the worst, resulting in...

Irish man Gerard Mooney vanished near his home in Sydney, Australia in 1996. Despite extensive searches, a major investigation by Police and television appeals, the only trace of him found was his racing bike. 27 years on, Gerard’s sister Rita believes an answer to this mystery can be found. She submits her DNA to be checked against unidentified remains found in Australia but believes the answer t...

Why climb Mount Everest? " Because it's there". The words of explorer George Mallory in New York in 1922. But was he the first person to reach the summit of Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world, 29 years before Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay? Unique diaries from Mallory’s mission, written by Irishman Richard Hingston, may just shed some new light on this question (2023) Narrated...

In 1972, Maura O'Reilly walked up the aisle wearing a wedding-dress her mother had made for her. It was white, lace crochet, with a high neck and bell sleeves. 50 years later, her niece walked up the aisle wearing the same dress – unaltered. In between, 8 other brides of the O’Reilly family have worn the same dress at their weddings in Cavan and Italy. This is the story of an incred...

Ten years ago, actor Conor Madden was stabbed in the eye, on stage in front of an audience of hundreds. He was playing the part of Hamlet when a fight scene went badly wrong. When he fell to the ground, the audience thought it was part of the show – but the accident changed Conor’s life completely. (2023)  Narrated by Michael-David McKernan. Produced by Michael-David McKernan and Nicoline Gre...

The Irish Civil War was shrouded in silence for decades. In one of the last atrocities of the war, we tell the story of Maggie Doherty and through her witness testimony explore the rarely discussed aspect of sexual violence in the Irish Civil War. (2023) Contributors incl Edel Doherty, Professor Linda Connolly, Frank Fagan and Tom Doherty. (2023) Produced by Orla Higgins and Sarah Blake. See omnys...

Would you bring a third person into your relationship?  Polyamorists do. They say having other romances actually strengthens their main relationship. But there are risks…and jealousies. And, practicalities: How to schedule your dates? Who minds the kids? (2023) Credits: Produced by Mary-Elaine Tynan and Ronan Kelly. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

1984 was a defining year in the history of the Irish Troubles. On the 12th October the IRA bombed the Brighton Hotel narrowly missing the British Prime Minister. Meanwhile a Manchester band called The Smiths were stunning the world with a unique sound. They played community centres around Ireland and a music band became part of a political storm. (2023) Credits: Narrated by David Coughla...

The cycle of Samantha offending, being jailed, then released and re-offending seems never ending. So as we reach the conclusion of our series, and in an attempt to understand just what exactly is going on for Samantha and how her behaviour might be understood, and treated, we make an application to the courts in search of answers. (Ep 7/7)  Credits:  Finding Samantha is written, recorded...

With Samantha out of prison in 2018, she was now turning 30 years old. She began working as an au pair again and was about to commit her most serious crimes to date. With access to children, she began manipulating them into presenting themselves as victims before she was eventually charged with child stealing... (Ep 6/7) Credits: Finding Samantha is written, recorded and produced by Sharon Davis i...

Sharon receives a strange phone call from a mystery woman with something to give her. Samantha receives her first full jail sentence as we hear from the Appeal Court Judge who decided on her case. And we receive an insight into how Samantha uses other people as she appears tries to play with us. (Ep 5/7) Credits: Finding Samantha is written, recorded and produced by Sharon Davis in Australia and T...

With Samantha Azzopardi continuing to face police and judges, she fails to heed their warnings to change her behaviour. Instead, she continues to target people in Australia, then returns to Ireland before moving to another continent. And all the time, she’s creating new characters, new aliases and leaving new victims in her wake. Where is this all going to end up? (Ep4/7). Credits: Finding Samanth...

A 15 yr old Russian gymnast turns up hoping to be adopted by a new family. A Police Prosecutor in Perth is not quite sure what kind of an individual he's dealing with. One Samantha Azzopardi actually reaches out to us - and we get to meet another. This journey is getting deeper and wilder than we could have ever imagined... (Ep3/7) Credits: Finding Samantha is written, recorded and produced by Sha...

As we follow the trail of the Girl at the GPO – who we now know is Australian woman Samantha Azzopardi - we dive into a surreal world where fact and fiction are often blurred. Samantha has connections to Ireland and a seemingly long and troubled back history in Australia. To begin to understand where this all started, we travel to Australia, to the suburbs of Sydney, where journalist Sharon Davis...

A new 7-part podcast series from RTÉ Documentary On One. To listen to the series in full, subscribe to 'Finding Samantha' from wherever you get your podcasts. Episodes released weekly, on Tuesdays. EP1: 2013 - A distressed teenage girl is found wandering in front of the General Post Office (GPO) in Dublin city centre. As suspicions rise that she’s the victim of serious crime, everyone scrambl...

A woman who has created more than 100 fake identities. A young girl found wandering the streets of Dublin. A teenager deported from Canada. Stories of sustained sexual abuse at the hands of many. Kidnapping charges, prison time, lies, fraud and deceit. Could all of these stories go back to just one person? A new 7-part podcast series from RTÉ Documentary On One unravelling the wild world of Samant...

From the ages of 12 to 17, two brothers, Mark and David Ryan, were both repeatedly sexually abused in Blackrock College in South County Dublin. Their abusers were from the Spiritan community at the school. Several court cases ensued as David and Mark fought for justice. Now grown men, David and Mark are ready to publicly tell their story for the first time. (2022) If you’ve been affected by any of...

Mary Folan, long emigrated to America, made a dying wish to be buried back home on her native island of Inis Meáin. But after Mary’s death, the unthinkable happened when an attempt was made to transfer her coffin from Shannon airport to the Aran island in a cargo sling attached underneath a helicopter. And that was only the start of things to come… (2022) Narrated and produced by Sarah Blake...

A devastating fire at a halting site in South County Dublin on October 10th 2015 led to multiple members of three families losing their lives. We delve into the events of that night and travel to Bray, Co. Wicklow and to Carrickmines where, for the first time, all the families involved and some of those who tried to help speak about what happened. (2022) Narrated by Lisa-Marie...

In September 1985, a riot erupted on Spike Island Prison in Cork Harbour. The island fort had been turned into a prison for 'joyriders', but within months, they rebelled against the regime and set the prison on fire. During that chaotic night there were reports that prisoners who had escaped found they couldn’t get off the island and had to break back into the prison they had just escaped from. Th...

Reg Byrne grew up in Monkstown Farm, Dublin in the 1970s and was born with spina bifida, affecting his legs. Which makes what Reg Byrne is doing now all the more remarkable. His early family life was difficult. By the age of 8, he was sniffing glue and by 9, he was in a drug rehabilitation programme. He left school early – but then encountered a local man who changed his path in life. Today, Reg i...

On the 11th of January 2021 the body of a homeless man was found on the grounds of University College Dublin’s Belfield campus. His passing was widely mourned because Michael Byrne, or ‘Old Man Belfield’ as he was known, had a huge impact on the lives of tens of thousands of people. He left behind him some abiding questions like, who was he? And where did he come from? Intriguingly, nobody seems t...

In July 2021, a 27-year old woman, Noor Mukadam, was violently murdered. Noor grew up in South County Dublin as her father established the Pakistani Embassy in Ireland. Noor loved Ireland and could never have imagined that her murder would make global headlines, not only in Ireland but also in her native Pakistan where it became a huge news story. And the reason it became a huge news story is beca...

Susan and Ray were sweethearts in the early 1950’s. They broke up and Susan made a life for herself in Dublin; having five children, a divorce in 1960’s Ireland and a career as a tour guide. Ray meanwhile married and had a family in the US. Then, almost 40 years later, a bequest from Ray’s brother brought Susan and Ray back together. Falling in love again, they married and are now determined to li...