The BelTel

According to Department of Communities figures from 2022 almost 250,000 in Northern Ireland live in absolute poverty – could entrepreneurship be a part of the solution? Ciarán Sheehan made the case for entrepreneurship to Ciarán Dunbar. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What did we learn from the 2 day grilling of RTÉ bosses by TDs and senators on the inner workings of the €345,000 which the State broadcaster paid top presenter Ryan Tubridy? Host: Fionnán Sheahan Guest: Gabija Gataveckaite & Hugh O’Connell See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A staggering 96% of the people in prison in NI are men. Why are men much more likely to turn to crime and end up in jail than women? Host: Ciarán Dunbar. Guests: Dr Michelle Butler, Prof David Canter. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yevgeny Prigozhin marched his Wagner troops to Moscow, the world watched and waited for a showdown between the mercenary fighters and Vladimir Putin. But it never happened. A deal was done. What's next for Putin, and is Prigozhin a dead man walking? Host: Siobhán Maguire. Guest: Donnacha Ó Beacháin. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for mor...

RTÉ has released a statement finding there was "no illegality" involved in the undeclared payments to presenter Ryan Tubridy, but Dee Forbes was centrally involved in negotiations. Presenter Siobhán Maguire is joined by Irish Independent Ireland Editor Fionnán Sheahan to find out more. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

China and the USA are world’s most powerful countries, both militarily and economically. Recent tensions between the two over the future of Taiwan, amongst a host of other issues are a concern for us all. Ciarán Dunbar is joined by international affairs expert, Angus Lambkin, who has lived in China, to get his analysis on the situation and whether he thinks it will result in conflict. See omnystud...

Thousands of paramilitary attacks have been carried out in NI since the Good Friday agreement. Often, they are attacked by appointment – people turn up to be shot. Sometimes children are even accompanied by their parents, drugged up to dull the pain. Youth worker Stephen Hughes is based in Divis in west Belfast, he is active in the pressure group Stop Attacks which works to end these attacks forev...

Yevgeny Prigozhin's Wagner group of mercenaries have rebelled against the Russian military. Putin called it “a stab in the back”. It is the biggest threat to his leadership in more than two decades in power. But who is he and what is the Wagner Group? This podcast was originally broadcast in February 2023. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy...

It has been 25 years since the first Assembly election following the Belfast Agreement. David Trimble, later Lord Trimble, was one of the key architects of the Belfast agreement, leading the largest unionist party at the time, the UUP. He died in July in 2022. In this bonus episode of the BelTel – we broadcast a remarkable in-depth interview from 2015 in which David Trimble gives his take on what...

A chance meeting between loyalist activist Jamie Bryson and Tory Simon Hoare led to the MP meeting loyalist leaders in Belfast. Northern Ireland Affairs Committee chairperson Hoare denies the meetings were secret negotiations, but they came as the government is trying to get Loyalists to buy into the Windsor trade protocol to help get Stormont back up and running. Ciarán Dunbar is joined by our po...

Disaster at 13,000 feet below sea level. A trip to see the Titanic has gone horribly wrong for the occupants of a submersible that has now lost contact. The Titan vanished with five people on board during a dive to the Titanic wreck site in the North Atlantic on Sunday. Host: Fionnán Sheahan. Guest: Senan Molony See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/pr...

The BBC series Once Upon A Time in Northern Ireland has been hailed as the finest ever on the Troubles. Featuring contributions from loyalists, republicans, soldiers, police, victims and civilians who found themselves living in an acutely abnormal society, the impressionistic work evokes empathy for all sides. Sam McBride interviews directors James Bluemel and Sian McIlwaine. See omnystudio.com/li...

Science Fiction has become reality and Artificial Intelligence is a growing part of our lives. The technology becoming more advanced every week. But what is AI and why are people like Elon Musk warning us that it is dangerous? And if it is so incredibly threatening to us, then why are we developing it? Kurtis Reid and Kevin Scott join Ciarán Dunbar See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informati...

In 1907, a theft at Dublin Castle ended up becoming a global story when the precious Irish Crown Jewels went missing. Scotland Yard, psychics and the author of Sherlock Holmes were brought in to try and locate the precious stones. Presenter Siobhán Maguire is joined by Sunday Independent columnist, Sarah Caden, See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/pri...

Philip O’Shea was initially charming when he contacted vulnerable women online. He was a friend, a flatterer, someone who could help. But his true intentions emerged very quickly – he was a cruel catfisher who forced women to send him compromising pictures. And it didn’t stop there, in this episode of the BelTel Sharon O’Neill tells Ciarán Dunbar how O’Shea went from online harassment to real-life...

Philip O’Shea is a prolific online predator who lurked behind fake profiles, first coming across as charming friendly and flirty, then going in for the kill in an orgy of cruelty. He forced them to send compromising pictures of themselves to him, blackmailing them not for money but for his own perverted satisfactions. Sharon O’Neill tells Ciarán Dunbar how he managed to ensnare his victims. See om...

The man accused of murdering Ballymena woman Chloe Mitchell (21) had absconded to the Ballymena area three times from a secure mental health facility, a court has heard. Chloe has been missing since the 3rd of June. Suspected human remains were found in Ballymena on Sunday. Liam Tunney was in court for the Belfast Telegraph as two mean appeared in relation to the case. See omnystudio.com/listener...

Sam McBride argues that the strength of the Irish Army is a crude barometer of how seriously the Republic takes the possibility of unity. Ireland’s Defence Forces are small, underequipped and getting weaker as more and more service men and women abandon the ranks due to poor pay and conditions. But what about a united Ireland – if loyalism chose to resist it would Ireland’s armed forces be able to...

New files released by the FBI outline a plot to assassinate the late Queen Elizabeth as she visited America. The memos date back to 1983 when the Queen visited California as guest of President Reagan. But this was not the only alleged plot to remove Queen Elizabeth and the future King Charles from the monarchy. Host: Fionnán Sheehan See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Ac...

There has been a revolution in the multi-billion-dollar world of golf – and Rory McIlroy is its ‘sacrificial lamb’. The Holywood man had taken a stand against the Saudi-backed LIV Golf tour, remaining outspokenly loyal to the PGA Tour. But now, behind his back, the feud between LIV Golf, the PGA Tour and DP World Tour has taken a sudden turn. Where does McIlroy stand now? Adam McKendry is joined b...

In part-two of a three-part series, People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy makes the case for neutrality and against an enhanced military capacity. Ireland has no capability to control or even police the state’s skies and has an extremely limited maritime capability. The cost-of-living crisis has seen hundreds of service personnel leaving and not being replaced. Some argue that the Defence Forces nee...

Presenter Phillip Schofield says he has “lost everything” after admitting to an “unwise but not illegal” relationship. And one person in particular – Belfast born bruiser Eamonn Holmes is giving no quarter to his former colleague, and professional rival, making accusation after accusation against the self-confessed serial liar. Host: Ciarán Dunbar. Guest: Aine Toner. See omnystudio.com/listener fo...

Phillip Schofield's admission to an affair with a much younger employee on This Morning has opened up a whole new discussion around the ITV show's working environment. Host: Siobhán Maguire. Guest: Mel Finn See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hugh Callaghan, one of the Birmingham Six, who was wrongly jailed for IRA bombings has died at the age of 93. Why was he framed for the pub attacks which killed 21 people and injured 182? And who really planted the IRA's bombs? Host: Siobhán Magure. Guest: John Downing See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In percentage terms the Republic of Ireland spends less on defence on than any other county in the EU, even Malta and Luxembourg. Ireland has no military radar, no fighter planes and for a maritime nation – very few ships. And Ireland’s Defence Forces are shrinking fast – twice as many people leave than are recruited every year. In part one of a three-part series - Ciarán Dunbar spoke to Independe...