Our Man In Stockholm

This year the podcast and the team behind it grew considerably, and we got the chance to talk to some truly amazing people about their lives as Irish people abroad. Those factors led us to the decision to create a set of awards to recognise the achievements of some of the most talented and generous people among us - some are still living outside the country, some are still based in Ireland but reg...

In what MIGHT be the final podcast of the year, we talk to Rory English at Lotts & Co. in Dublin where the Swedes in Ireland go to get their Christmas goodies, and there is the very welcome return of Billy "The Kid" Chaney to Stockholm from Barcelona after a turbulent six months in which our favourite artist and barber showcased his legendary creativity and resilience.

This week we talk to the wonderful and talented Áine O'Neill about her brilliant career in TV and media, throwing off the shackles and her desire to help other women be their true selves. There's also details of the Global Gael Awards for 2023 and how the whole process works and a beautiful new Christmas song by the tremendously gifted Danni Morgan!!

On this week's episode we visit Carrie Cook at the Made By gallery at Fridhemsplan to talk textiles, design and sustainability - her beautiful collection is on show there until Dec. 20 and she shares some fascinating thoughts about how to be more aware of what we wear and use in our homes and workplaces, as well as what happens to it when we're finished with it.

George Murphy was given the honour of being one of the musicians called upon to sing at the funeral of Shane MacGowan on Friday, and he came on the podcast to take us behind the scenes of an iconic occasion where Shane's life and work were celebrated in joyous occasion filled with love, music and loss.

The Mother & Baby Homes, where young women were sent to give birth before having their children taken away from them, are a stain on Irish history, with many of the children born there having suffered neglect, abuse and trauma. Those children went on to become adults, and many of them left our island to find a better future abroad. The wrong done to those children and their parents has since b...

An absolutely amazing day and night in Stockholm this weekend as the Irish Chamber Of Commerce In Sweden staged its networking event and a stunning gala dinner, with craft brewer Ivan Keane walking away with the prestigious Beacon award at the end of the night! I spent the day talking to representatives from companies great and small to get the view from the ground for Irish businesses in Sweden,...

On Nov 20, 2023 Shane MacGowan, leader of the Pogues, singer, poet, writer, carouser and cultural icon, passed away at the age of 65. Shane was the man who did more than most to make the Irish in England both visible and proud of themselves, and that was no mean feat in the Britain of the 1980s. An incredible songwriter who burned the candle at both ends, his ability to put into words what it was...

On this week's podcast (which is late, and it's all Hozier's fault!) Jim Smith Rehnström joins me to tell the story of how his grandad upped sticks and moved to Sweden, making him one of the oldest members of the Swedish-Irish diaspora, and Cormac O'Brien in Gothenburg has been out swinging at one of Swedish TV's biggest football commentators! All of this and more on this week&...

This week I'm joined by Marjorie Sundström and Louise Waller to talk about Orange Day on Nov 25, the international day for the elimination of violence against women and girls. It's a cause Marjorie has long supported privately and professionally, and Louise works for UN Women in Sweden with such issues. There's a business shout-out to remind you to get your Christmas food ordered, and...

Another bonus episode as Brian Downey hits the road in to bring the music of Thin Lizzy back to Scandinavia! Brian, Phil Lynott and the boys were tremendously popular here in their heyday and Brian is brining his "Alive & Dangerous" band back to many of the Swedish cities and towns they visited over the next 10 days or so - make sure to get out and see one of Irish rock's biggest...

The Irish community in England is well-served with brilliant organisations taking care of our people, and Leeds Irish Health & Homes is among the best there is. For decades Ant Hanlon and his team has looked after Irish people in Yorkshire, and he joins me on this week's podcast to talk about their valuable work. https://www.lihh.org/

This week we hear from Irish author Doireann Ní Ghríofa who was in Sweden last week to promote a brand-new translation of her book "A Ghost In The Throat" ("Ett Spöke I Strupen") and Birgitta Hedin Curtin came by the studio to tell the awesome tale of how she ended up in the Burren in Co. Clare smoking fish that is now sold all over the world!

Back in the 1980s Ireland was awash with brilliant bands all being chased by record companies looking for the next U2, and when they found a teenage drummer from Walkinstown and his older brother, they thought they'd found them. Keith Walker went on to sign for a major label and tour the world, becoming hugely famous in Japan in the process, but like all such rock 'n roll dreams, it wasn&#...

A rare midweek episode as artist Alannah Robins arrives in Stockholm to exhibit her work at Galleri Duerr. Titled "Comfort Ye My People", Alannah has created some tremendous visual work based on the surroundings of her Connemara studio, where the rugged mountains and age-old landscape give an impression of permanence, despite the ongoing climate crisis. I visited the exhibition before it...

This weekend we went behind the scenes with the Glass Mask theatre company as they took a play by one of Sweden's foremost writers and staged it in the Swedish capital. The director and cast tell us what it takes to put on a show like this, what it's like to perform in a different country and culture, and whether or not they might be back again with another English-language production any...

Few people can have had an impact as profound as that of Father Denis Slattery, an Irish priest from Fermoy whose St. Finbarr's Schoool in Nigeria went on to set the standard for they country's education system. Former pupil Adedeji Badiru joined me to reminisce about the man who gave him - a young boy with no shoes and his options fading fast - the chance at an education that has sustaine...

This week we've a discount code for a theatre event in Stockholm at the weekend, and Rory Moore from the Irish Chamber Of Commerce in Sweden joins me to talk about the upcoming gala dinner and networking event, as well has how you can make nominations for the annual Beacon Award! Get your tickets for "ACT" by the Glass Mask Theatre Company here: https://tix.kulturhusetstadsteatern.se...

On this week's podcast, we unravel the mystery of an Irish-themed mural in Mölndal depicting the mythical figure of Niamh Cinn Oir, and Paul O'Mahony from the Local comes to the studio to talk about the stories that are making the news in Sweden.

Since open ing its doors in 1995, the Irish Cultural Centre in London has become one of the most important places for Irish culture outside our island. With a varied and exciting program, it is tasked with both preserving our culture and providing a platform for new artists, as well as being a meeting-place for the Irish in the British capital. William Foote sat down with me to take me through its...

The GAA season came to an end in the Hague on Saturday with the final European Gaelic football round, and the girls of the Stockholm Gaels were there taking part in the junior competition. Tara O'Neill joined us from pitch-side to recount the games of the day, and camógie queen Michelle Cotter then jumped on to talk about how the season has been for women in the Nordic region and her hopes for...

I travelled to London to keep my promise to Joe O'Neill and attend an event with the Irish Creative Collective, and I was blown away by the range of talent on show - brilliant young Irish performers supporting one another in a fantastic venue, all in an atmosphere of mutual support and love. Through the evening I collected the voices of many of those who took to the stage, and we talked about...

This week we head out north of Stockholm to talk to Helen Kavanagh Berglund, who is moving on from a career spent in public service to an exciting new one as a consultant in the areas of leadership and sustainability. There's the usual round-up of community news and events and a reminder to book your table in your favourite Irish bar for the upcoming Rugby World Cup quarter-final with New Zeal...

Another jam-packed episode this week as Rosalie Wagenaar joins me to talk about her upcoming Irish dance workshops in Stockholm and her plans to do others around Sweden, and Aaron Kennedy drops by the studio to talk about getting in shape, the benefits of bulletproof coffee and how to behave when out on the town! There's also a bit of camógie and embassy news, and our first business shout-outs...

Las Vegas-based Dubliner Dave Rooney has done it all - broken Guinness world records, won Emmys and songwriting awards and played in every corner of the globe, and he did it all despite the anxiety that sometimes consumed him. In his new book "Living With Anxiety - The Road Back", Rooney tells his full story for the first time, and he joined the podcast to talk about his life in music an...