Moncrieff

Starting is easy, quitting's tough. JJ Clarke, Assistant Podcast Producer at the Irish Independent, insightfully explores this in his latest piece. He delves into the deceptive simplicity of taking up vaping and the Herculean challenge of letting it go. He joined Sean on the show this afternoon...

Saturday evening TV in the 1990s was in its prime, with classics like Blind Date, Noel’s House Party, You’ve been Framed and others.   But one gameshow stands out – Gladiators.   With its famous catchphrases like “Contenders, Ready?” and “Awooga”, it was hugely popular tv, and it’s making a comeback.  Tomorrow night, a brand new set of Gladiators will return to the BBC.&nb...

The German Chancellor’s office has announced that it will retain its 19th century pneumatic tube messaging system due to its fears of Russian interception of digital alternatives. Sean was joined by James Rothwell, Berlin Correspondent for the Daily Telegraph...

Turbulence is the worst part of flying for many people. Though it’s a phenomenon that happens surprisingly regularly, it can often be alarming – one that can strike fear into even the most seasoned flyers.  But what is turbulence, and what flight paths is it the worst on?  Gerry Byrne, aviation journalist joined Sean to discuss...

According to comedian Emma Doran, Irish women are apologise too much.  Emma depicts this in her latest video, which features various characters, one of which apologises for her kettle being too loud, while in another apologises for her death inconveniencing the mourners.  But is this the case for all Irish women?  Barbara Scully joined Sean to discuss...

There is a comptetion currently ongoing for the World's Ugliest Lawn. Broadcaster and Gardener Diarmuid Gavin is one of the judges and he joined Sean to discuss...

Singer Imelda May has revealed that her father was dressed in a clown suit for his wake because he had specifically requested them to arrange this as he wanted to make people laugh. But how do people decide what to dress their loved ones in for their funeral? Sean was joined by Mary Cuniffe, Manager of Massey Bros Funeral Home in Templeogue...

Cork city's old phone boxes are due to be replaced with digital kiosks. Eir is applying to Cork City Council to replace their old phone boxes with new kiosk-style digital payphones. Meanwhile in Dublin the new digital phone boxes are installed. Sean was joined by Henry McKean who is going down memory lane and looking at how old phone boxes are being renovated and turned into other things to help c...

It may seem like a notion of times past, but are there any treasure shipwrecks in Ireland? According to Edmond O’Byrne, Member of the Lifeboat in Kilmore Quay, there is one buried deep under the sand off the coast of Wexford, and he has been trying to access it for over 30 years...

Are your 20s the best decade of your life?   Is it the golden decade where you set yourself up for careers, life partnerships and the prospect of children?  Or is it simply that we look back to our youth with rose-tinted glasses?   Sean was joined by Leslie Shoemaker, counselling psychologist and lecturer in TU Dublin to discuss...

Ireland is just one of a very small handful of countries in Europe that doesn’t have an Olympic-sized ice rink. This has put athletes and parents up and down the country in the frustrating position of having to leave the country to access facilities. Brendan O’Brien, Sports writer with the Irish Examiner, has been investigating and he joined Sean to discuss...

Le Chéile Mentoring, the national volunteer mentoring and family support service, has launched a new recruitment campaign seeking Dubliners to become mentors of young people and parents.  The organisation provides a one-to-one mentoring service for young people and parents referred by the Probation Service, An Garda Síochána and the Oberstown Children Detention Campus.  Cormac Ryan is Me...

An excavation is to take place at Mountjoy Prison to exhume the bodies of 29 bodies.   The 28 men and one woman were all executed for murder between 1923 and 1954.   But what were their stories? Why are they being exhumed now and what will happen to their remains?  Tim Carey, historian and author of “Hanged For Murder: Irish State Executions”, joined Sean on the show today...

A controversy has erupted in the UK surrounding the use of software by the British Post Office, which lead to a number of former Post Masters wrongfully convicted of fraud, theft and more.  The story has been depicted in the ITV drama Mr. Bates Vs The Post Office, which has been viewed over 8 million times in less then a week.   Lord James Arbuthnot is a former Tory MP, who was an a...

Star Trek fans out there will know all too well why 2024 is such a special year for Ireland’s relationship with Star Trek. In order to look at the mention of Irish reunification in a particular 1990 episode, Sean was joined by Brian Lloyd, Movie Editor at Entertainment.ie and Movies & Booze panelist...

It's that time of year where we are all tempted to pull a sickie or maybe we are genuinely sick. But how has it changed from the 1970, 80s and 90s until now? Henry 'the pulling a sickie' McKean, joined Sean on the show today...

A note left in an old book in the Royal Irish Academy Library in 1983 has been discovered 40 years later. Author of the letter, Brendan Guilfoyle, Professor of Mathematics at Munster Technological University in Kerry joined Sean on the show today...

Over 6,700 cases of gonorrhoea were reported in Ireland last year, up from 3,976 in 2022. There has been a 70% increase in the number of gonorrhoea cases in Ireland, according to the latest figures from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre.  The main reason for this increase has been put down to younger people no longer wearing condoms.  Dr. Derek Freedman, specialist in the treatme...

A man's shed has been the nightly cleaning project of a discreet mouse, caught on film by wildlife photographer Rodney Holbrook over the course of two months. Holbrook observed that items he had left in disarray were mysteriously restored to their proper places each morning. Rodney joined Sean on the show today to discuss...

The Thatcher years are known for many things, but for those who may have felt like outsiders, the Scala cinema in London provided an influential and inspirational space for “weirdos and misfits” – as described in the title of a new documentary.    With monthly programmes mixing high-art classics as well as horror, Kung Fu, sexploitation and LGBTQ+ movies, it pushed boundaries of bot...

Room to Improve returned to TV screens last night, and instead of the architecture, it was the grants that got viewers.  The couple featured saved over 120,000 euro after they availed of a number of government grants, including the Abandoned Home grant.   However, many viewers raised questions over how easy it is to get this grant, and wondered what the process is like.  Joe Co...

Microsoft is to make its first keyboard change in almost 30 years this year.  The tech giant is adding a key to the keyboard of its Windows 11 PCs that will give direct access to its new Copilot services, marking a new push for the AI-powered feature.  Ciara O’Brien from the Irish Times joined Tom Dunne to discuss...

A couple from Pittsburg got the shock of their lives recently when they discovered that $4,000 in cash that they left on their kitchen counter was eaten by their pet dog. But were they able to retrieve it once it passed through Cecil the goldendoodle? Tom Dunne was jonied on the show by Cecil’s owner, Carrie Law...

A 22-year old musician from Monaghan is making strides on Spotify. Solas  was the most successful debut song on streaming from an Irish artist since Take Me To Church by Hozier, with more than 60 million plays. Tom Dunne was joined by Jamie Duffy on the show... Image: Jamie Duffy

An Irish inventor who featured on Dragons Den on the BBC last night has wowed inventors with his unique rain-proof washing line. But how does it work? Tom Dunne was joined by Engineer and inventor Colin O’Brien... Image: Peggy Rain