The Hard Shoulder

Josh Crosbie, Newstalk reporter, joined Ciara and Shane from Kilkenny as in the wake of Storm Chandra, the town deals with the damage caused by excessive rain fall. He spoke to families and business effected by the flooding and what they would like to see happen in the future to protect their community from flooding.

“One thing the Government could do in 2026 that would improve the lives of young people would be to introduce driving lessons in secondary schools.” That’s a suggestion from the Letters page in The Irish Times over the weekend.   But how would that work? Should it be rolled out at the government level, and would driving schools be willing to partake in these modules?   Joining Shane and...

A new initiative by a south London pub aims to not only get people making real-life connections but also to practice their small talk skills.   The idea for these live events sparked from the development of the app called ‘The death of small talk’, which gives its users prompts of interesting questions to ask when in a social setting like a first date.  Joining Shane and Ciara was Glenn...

The National Emergency Coordination Group has warned that the risk of flooding across the east and southeast regions is "very high" in the coming days as further heavy rain is forecast. Ciara and Shane were joined by Rebecca Cantwell, Meteorologist with Met Eireann for the latest on the weather

Peter Mandelson is set to step down as a member of the House of Lords following the latest revelations about his relationship with the paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein. Ciara and Shane were joined by Stephen Pound, Former Labour MP for Ealing North and former Northern Ireland Shadow Minister

“The State should not be absolved of its role in the public's mental health” that’s according to Paul Hosford, Acting Political Editor with The Irish Examiner. Paul spoke to Ciara and Shane about his own personal experience of dealing with Mental Health, how the state is not meeting the needs of many in providing mental health treatment and argues needs to do more. If you have been affected by any...

Dublin City is being left ‘like a bomb’ site by bin scavengers searching for return bottles, according to the Chief Executive of Dublin City Council, Richard Shakespeare. Speaking on The Claire Byrne Show this morning, Mr Shakespeare said that the costs for this extra cleaning could be up to one million euro.  Larissa Nolan, Features Editor and Columnist with The Irish Mirror and Tad Kirakows...

This week, Ciara Doherty was joined by the presenter of Weekend Breakfast on Alison Curtis Presenter, TodayFM Niamh O’Reilly Journalist to look back on the week that was, but with a few twists…

With Bruce Springsteen after releasing a new protest song, following the events in Minneapolis.  John Fardy joined Ciara Doherty to discuss how Music is used time and time again to highlight political and cultural issues and to go through some of the most iconic protest songs

New research from the ESRI has shown that people who gambled as children are almost twice as likely to suffer from problem gambling when they become adults. So what is Problem Gambling, and how are children being drawn into the world of gambling? To discuss this, Ciara was joinedby the Head of Addiction Services at Saint John of God Hospital and Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at UCD, Colin O’Gar...

Society has often branded night owls who are late risers as lazy, that coupled with the warnings that burning the midnight oil can have on their health.   But why are some early birds and others night owls and can you change your sleep pattern?   Joining Ciara Doherty to discuss was Sleep Expert, Lucy Woolf.

Travelling to the US could soon become an app-based dystopia where facial scans and social media tracking are the norm, so writes Adrian Weckler for the Irish Independent This update has tightened the traditional Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA), which the vast majority of Irish people rely on for travel to the States. This begs the question, as security tightens, is this the star...

Time to talk sport, and Ciara Doherty was joined by Off The Ball’s Eoin Sheahan to talk all the weekends sport, including I pressure on Arsenal following last weeks loss to Man Utd. Who is in the Australian open finals and how are Ireland’s chances ahead of the six nations next thursday?

Alcohol Action Ireland (AAI) has published a report on youth drinking, which shows a 3% increase in alcohol consumption levels by 15- to 24-year-olds between 2024 and 2025. The report says that when drinking is initiated by young people, it is accompanied by high levels of particularly risky and hazardous consumption, with 64% regularly binge drinking and one in three having an alcohol-use disorde...

On Sunday, Israel will reopen the Rafah border crossing for people to travel between Gaza and Egypt. To discuss the significance of this development, Ciara Doherty was  joined by Long-time international correspondent, Borzou Daragahi.

A status yellow rain warning came into place for 7 counties today, including those badly affected by floods in the southeast. The warning will expire at midnight but given the damage which storm Chandra has done, can we expect futher damage and distruption ? Ciara was joined by Holly O’Neill Meteorologist with Met Eireann Lara Lewis From Lara Lewis School of Motoring for driving tips during the ba...

Starting on Tuesday February 3rd, Ciara Kelly and Shane Coleman will bring you The Hard Shoulder, your essential drive-time companion. From politics to pop culture, and everything in between - they'll bring you the stories that really matter, with lively debate, sharp insight and excellent analysis. Listen to the Hard Shoulder podcast on the Go Loud app, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Sarina Bellissimo, Broadcaster and Presenter of the Bellissimo Files Podcast and David O’Callaghan from the Here and Back Again podcast joined Ciara Doherty on The Hard Shoulder to review the latest TV and movie releases…

The sexual assault treatment unit at the Rotunda Hospital in Dublin recorded one of its busiest years ever in 2025, with a significant increase in the number of people seeking specialist care and support following sexual violence. Clinical Lead for National Sexual Assault Treatment Unit Services and Consultant at The Rotunda Hospital, Professor Maeve Eogan, joined Ciara Doherty to discuss.

Animator and Filmmaker  John Kelly  joins Ciara Doherty for this week’s Thursday Interview!

100,000 customers in Dublin were faced with low water pressure or no supply following a water main burst this morning, which had a serious impact on households and businesses in Fairview. To talk through the damage, Ciara Doherty was joined by Lord Mayor of Dublin, Cllr Ray McAdam, who was at the scene.

The country is trying to put itself back together after Storm Chandra and get to grips with the levels of damage and flooding in the east and southeast. Minister for Housing James Browne has been critical of Met Eireann, accusing them of "guarding" information and called on them to use “judgement calls” in addition to mathematical formula in relation to weather alerts Minister James Browne is in h...

With Wuthering Heights set to hit cinemas on Valentines Day, the movie is being promoted with the tagline “The Greatest Love Story Ever Told”, and it got us thinking, is it the greatest love story? And if not, what is? To discuss this Ciara was joined by Arts Journalist and Sunday Indo Film Critic, Chris Wasser, and Bestselling Author, Sheila O’Flanagan.   

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has instructed that the regulations banning the use of scramblers on public roads, public parks and public places are finalised with a matter of urgency.   However, the Garda Representative Association are saying that the policies around stopping scramblers on the streets is leaving them exposed.   They say that training isn’t there to allow them to pursue scramb...

We heard this morning that primary school enrolment has fallen by 6 thousand, 500 in the past year –This is the biggest decline we have seen in recent years. But is this just down to the declining population in primary school aged children or is there something that can be done to turn this figure around and save small rural schools here? Ciara Doherty was joined by John Boyle, General Secretary f...