https://tortoiseshack.ie/feed/podcast/

In this episode of Displaced in Gaza, I talk with former UN Special Rapporteur for Housing and driving-force behind theshift.org and the Right to Housing, Leilani Farha, who shares how Palestine was a dinner table discussion growing up and how her trip to Palestine in 1994 shapes her work to this day.

Richard Boyd-Barrett's political awakening took place in Hebron. His lifelong journey for social justice took its first steps alongside young Palestinian's of the first Intifada. So his voice was one that I wanted as part of this project. We discuss his return from illness, the militarisation agenda, Gaza and much more. Note: The music at the end is my own recording of Daniel Maté singing Joni Mit...

Maryam Elwaheidy is a translator with a strong foundation in English, Arabic. She holds a B.A. in English Language and Translation from Al-Azhar University in Gaza. She joins us from Gaza city to update us on the latest situation on the ground with the heavy fall of rain which flooded the tents of displaced Palestinians. We also discuss how the world is pretending that the so-called ceasefire mean...

I travelled to Dungannon to spend a few life-affirming hours in the company of the powerhouse, Bernadette Devlin McAliskey. You probably know her story, from Bloody Sunday to Westminster to getting shot, to giving her Freedom of the City of New York award to the Black Panthers. She's lived 10 lives and in this podcast she talks about childhood, inter-generational trauma, what 's wrong with the wor...

Ayat Abuhelal is a poet, writer, translator, and student of English literature, born and raised in Gaza. She was recently evacuated to Ireland to continue her academic studies. While finishing her BA studies online, she is preparing to start her MA studies in Dublin. She shares a story of struggle between two worlds. This story is of displacement, hope and family that she left behind. When Ayat le...

Cian Prendiville was Head of Digital Organising on the Connolly for President Campaign, and he joined me to talk about that history making few months, the highs, lows and the learnings he wants us to take forward into the new keepleft.ie movement. Great insights; even this old cynic was impressed.

Sojood Bakroon is a graduate of Literature at Al-Aqsa University in Gaza. She is a writer and a poet, who hopes to amplify the Palestinian voice and let the world know about Palestine and Gaza. She is now in Ireland doing English and Communication at UCD. In this PalCast episode, she shares her experience of loss, displacement and fonding hope and sadness after leaving Gaza. “The world is a hotel...

The EU continues to rollback hard won rights and protections around trade, work practices and environmental regulations all in the name of simplification and competitiveness. Now the previously maligned “free-trade” Mercosur is back on the agenda, consequences be damned. Joining me to discuss this and more is MEP Lynn Boylan, who is organising an event on Nov 6th around Trade Justice. More info he...

Sparky sat down with journalist, podcaster and most importantly kids football coach, Dion Fanning to talk about their passions, experiences and feelings towards jellies. Yup!

Noor Abu Mariam, is a Business Administration student, a writer, and the social media manager for Gaza Great Minds School. She is passionate about using storytelling and digital media to share the voices and experiences of people in Gaza. She shares how she saw body parts for the first time in her life while being displaced to the south from Al-Shatii refugee camp. Noor was displaced at least 15 t...

A member-only podcast on the comments made in relation to Martin's work on bogus self employment in RTE on the Indo podcast, the power of Virginia Guiffre, the ceasefire that hasn't ceased the firing and a few words from Tom Clonan and the wonderful Coddle expert (she said she'd sue me if I didn't say that) Alannah Uí Geargáin.

Baraa Qandeel is a Palestinian poet, translator and writer from Gaza. She works in marketing and has suffered immensely during the genocide losing friends and family, and surviving an airstrike nearby that left her in shock for hours. She joins us from Gaza to talk about the ceasefire and what people around her think about it. She discusses conversations amongst her friends about their experiences...

Sparks Will Fly is back and in this very special episode Ray sits down with acclaimed comedian and all round force of nature, Willa White, to discuss their own experiences of grief, addiction, recovery and fellowship. Don't worry, it's much more fun than I've made it sound!

In this Echo Chamber Pod we’re joined by Mr Irish Election Projections himself, Harry McEvansoneya to discuss the Irish presidential election, the Jim Gavin fiasco, the Jim O’Callaghan leadership campaign, the momentum behind Catherine Connolly and media coverage of the election so far.

Roaa Aladdin Missmeh is a Palestinian from Gaza who loves reading books and finds solace in them. Having left Gaza only a few weeks ago, she is currently doing her Master's degree in Linguistics and Applied Linguistics in Dublin. She shares with us her story of genocide, her journey out of Gaza and her need to tell the story of her people. Tune in for more.

The great (and I mean properly great) Don O’Leary has passed away. He helped hundreds of people find their path in life. He would tell me off when I deserved it, as I often did. He lived enough for 10 lives, yet he’s left us too soon. Rest in Power the proudest of proud Corkmen . Director of the Cork Life Centre, Don O'Leary came up from Cork to join me onstage for a very special live podcast. We...

Editors Note: We were very sad to hear of the passing of Manchán this morning. He was a bit of Irish magic. He came to Ballymun to chat with Sparky and Dean and I'm reposting it now. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam Enjoy our conversation with Manchán Magan about the Mythical, Mystical, Mental and Spiritual lands of Ireland, Australia, Africa and those beyond this world. We talk about the land, the tre...

Ruba Khalid Al-Faleet is a Palestinian writer, artist, and poet based in Gaza. Her work explores the intersection of identity, resistance, and the poetics of survival under siege. As an active member of the Gaza Poets Society and a contributor to the Resilient Voices digital storytelling project by the British Council, Ruba uses her voice to document lived realities, reclaim narrative agency, and...

Jonathan B. Tucker is a Washington DC-based writer, educator, poet and activist. He was, in his own words, brought up to be a Zionist. He talks about his experience as a Jewish pro-Palestine activist in the US, the struggle to help us all keep our humanity during the genocide and he then recites powerfully two poems; one Remember Us from Displaced in Gaza and the other his very own letter to the S...

In this Reboot Republic, Rory talks who is buying our homes with Lorcan Sirr, Senior Lecturer in TUD. Lorcan breaks down who exactly is buying up newly built homes in Ireland - the answer is - increasingly it's not first time home buyers - it's investor funds & the state. We discuss the market supply myths and what needs to be done to get affordable homes built at scale.

Senator Patricia Stephenson has just returned from the West Bank, Palestine and she joined me to discuss the apartheid regime she saw, the sanitising of settler violence and how any rhetoric about a two state solution falls apart in the face of the reality on the ground.

Besu Tadesse is a writer, musician and activist. He’s also a native of Washington DC and he joins us to talk activism, Gaza and art during the second Trump administration. He also reads a very important story from Displaced in Gaza. No spoilers. Just please listen.

Leilani Farha is a human rights lawyer, host of PushBack Talks, founder of Right to Housing organisiation, The Shift, former UN Special Rapporteur for the Right to Adequate Housing and most importantly a Tortoise Shack fan. She rejoins us to talk about the ongoing global financialisation of housing, the ways some cities have pushed back, what the genocide in Gaza says about international law and w...

In this Reboot Republic podcast, Rory talks with Tanya Ward, Director of the Children’s Rights Alliance about the reasons underlying the shocking figure that 1 in 5 children in Ireland are in poverty after housing costs are paid. We discuss the impact of the housing costs – as families are forced into food poverty and overcrowding, the impact on children of growing up in poverty, and the solutions...

Sharday El-Assar is a Palestinian-American, who works as a fundraiser for UNRWA. She joins us to talk a bit about the Palestinian-American experience, how things have begun to change in terms of public support for Israel and why her Palestinian identity matters so much to her. She also reads beautifully the short story My Husband was Martyred and There is No Body: My Story of Pain Caused by the Is...