Lunchtime Live

From the return of the tea trolley to rail routes - Barry Kenny from Irish Rail joined us today to answer your questions.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has condemned the violence that saw a homeless refugee camp set on fire on Friday evening. There was a stand-off between anti-immigration protestors and those who were counter protesting in support of refugees. Has this extremism gone too far? We discussed on the show today.

Are we having enough conversations with our children about pornography? And, are we having these conversations at a young enough age? A new study in the UK shows how porn can link to sexually harmful behaviour in children. Andrea discussed the issue today on the show.

Chinese online fashion retailer SHEIN is setting up a headquarters in Dublin, creating 30 jobs – but should we be encouraging fast fashion companies in Ireland?

It seems like every day or every other day in the US now we are hearing about mass shootings. It has come to a point now where it rarely even registers as news anymore. That is part of a longer video which gives advice on what to do if you are in a mass shooting situation in the US. So we asked our listeners today, are they afraid to visit US?

A new NHS Workforce Apprenticeship Scheme plans to fix shortages of staff in the UK. A third of nurses could be trained through this vocational, more hands-on path, as soon as they finish up in school. With an ongoing crisis in our own healthcare system, is this something we should be looking at introducing here?

Mary Immaculate College have launched a campaign to encourage male school leaver to get apply for primary school teaching on their CAO. Do we have a lack of male teachers in our primary schools?

Klaw - The Seafood Café located in Temple Bar have experienced their third break in four months Andrea was joined by Niall Sabongi, owner of Klaw, based on Sprangers Yard in Temple Bar and Luca from Rosa Madre in Temple Bar to discuss...

Kildare Camogie have expressed their disgust at their county board’s decision to withdraw them from the All-Ireland championship. Irish women continue to create waves in sport across the world, but why are things like the lack of facilities, no showers, no changing rooms still being discussed. Andrea Gilligan was joined by Sinead O’Carroll, Camogie Player and Editor of the Journal.ie and All-Irela...

Ireland missed out on a place in this year's Eurovision Grand Final. Wild Youth performed 'We Are One' as part of the first semi-final in Liverpool on Tuesday. Ireland has such high heights before but we haven’t been able to get that kind of success again in such a long time. So, if we’re going to keep doing this badly, is it worth entering? Andrea was joined by listeners to discuss...

A Drag Show event in Carlow, which was meant to be going ahead at the end of this month has been cancelled after receiving a small number of complaints. Andrea was joined on Lunchtime Live by Charmin Electrik from Queens of the Party, Drag Queen Kara Kalua and Cllr Fintan Phelan, Mayor of Carlow to discuss...

Only 40 per cent of weddings in Ireland last year took place in a Catholic church. Are more people are turning towards a humanist ceremony? Do you think getting married in a church, if you’re not religious, is disingenuous? Andrea Gilligan was joined by listeners to discuss...

Ireland will perform in Semi Final 1 of Eurovision tonight. Ireland has been in Eurovision more than 50 times and has a record seven wins, but has failed to qualify for the final since Ryan O’Shaughnessy entered with his song 'Together' in 2018. But still, we enter it with joy and pure passion every year. So what makes it so appealing? Andrea Gilligan was joined by Dermot, Keith and Michael to dis...

Cars are to be permanetely banned at College Green from the end of this month. The bus corridor, which currently operates from 7am to 7pm Monday to Friday, will become a 24/7 bus corridor from 29 May. Work to provide more space for pedestrians at College Green and Foster Place will begin next week. Taxis spaces will be reduced at Foster Place and increased at the College Green rank. Andrea Gilliga...

Independent Senator Eileen Flynn has spoken out about the recent racism she faced when a taxi driver refused to take her home to a halting site. Eileen is the only Traveller representative in the Oireachtas and has campaigned widely on fairer treatment of the travelling community. She joined Andrea on Lunchtime Live to discuss the discrimination she faces...

If you have TikTok, it will be hard to miss the amount of ADHD content on it. The hashtag has over 20 billion views, with creators saying they’re spreading awareness of the condition. But some people are concerned about the number of people self-diagnosing themselves with ADHD after watching the videos. Andrea was joined on Lunchtime Live by Slaney Foley, Ken Kilbride, from ADHD Ireland, Broadcast...

Tracey Corbett Lynch, sister of murdered Irishman Jason Corbett has set up bereavement group to help others in dealing with loss. After losing her mum to covid, her sister-in-law to an illness and her brother in a brutal murder, she received an outpouring of support and is now aiming to support others in their battle with grief. Andrea Gilligan was joined on Lunchtime Live by Tracey Corbett Lynch...

GAAGO is a streaming service that was launched by the association in 2014 and was aimed at the Irish diaspora around the world. The streaming service has now expanded into full TV coverage in order to fill the void left by Sky Sports. The move has raised concerns over a lack of championship matches on free-to-air television. Andrea was joined by Fianna Fáil Senator Timmy Dooley, Former Clare hurle...

Have TV shows gone too violent? There have been calls for RTE show Kin to be banned from filming on the streets of Dublin because of the 'damage' it’s causing to the city's reputation. Andrea Gilligan was joined by Tony McDonald from Deke Rivers and listeners on Lunchtime Live to discuss... Image: RTÉ

Residents in a Dublin are saying scrambler bikes are creating chaos and want a crack down on them. Councillors have said that they want green areas in estates to be reclaimed as cimmunity areas and for more laws to be brought in around the bikes. Andrea Gilligan was joined by Fianna Fáil Cllr for South Dublin, Charlie O'Connor, Fianna Fáil Cllr for Dublin Tom Brabazon and Leonard Russell to discus...

RTÉ One is devoting four hours of televised coverage to King Charles’ coronation this Saturday. It is a move that has drawn criticism from a number of TDs including People Before Profit’s Paul Murphy. Are RTE right to broadcast King Charles’coronation? Andrea Gilligan was joined by listeners on Lunchtime Live to discuss...

Last week Trinity changed the name of the Berkley library following a lengthy back and forth over Berkley’s slavery links. Now people are suggesting we should apply the same standard to the GAA, with the highest profile case being John Mitchel, beloved Irish nationalist, journalist and slavery advocate. Despite his pro slavery stance the Mitchel name is emblazoned on team jerseys in Kerry, Waterfo...

Is the cost of parenthood putting you off the idea of having children? So many people are struggling at the minute – and with the cost of bringing up a child from the cradle through college is estimated to be well into six figures, per child. Is the idea of starting a family simply out of grasp for some of us? Have you delayed having children due to finances? Clare McKenna was joined by listener C...

Trinity College Dublin Professor Brian Caulfield says sport utility vehicles (SUVs) create a “less safe environment” for road users and our climate. They have a 20% higher emissions profile than a saloon car or hatchback car. Should SUVs be banned? Clare McKenna was joined by listeners on Lunchtime Live to discuss...

Adrian, a wheelchair user from County Wicklow got in touch with Lunchtime Live over an issue he had exiting a plane. Over the weekend, he had to crawl down the metal steps off a Ryanair plane when there was no ramp there to help him disembark. Adrian and Bernard Mulvany from Access for All joined Kieran on The Hard Shoulder to discuss...