Weekend Breakfast with Alison Curtis

From Holywood to Hollywood! Andrew Smyth from Belfast rose to fame as a finalist in the Great British Bake Off and wowed the judges with his structural marvels. Since then he flexed his skills with Discovery Science, and the BBC and working as a Performance Technologist for for Rolls-Royce. But now, This Northern Irish Cambridge University graduate is back and putting crumbs on seats with his own...

She is officially the self-styled 'Queen Of The Potato'! The humble spud has speaheaded her rocket to Tik Tok superstardom. Now, Poppy O'Toole has a book out. She tells Alison Curtis on Weekend Breakfast that she is a Michelin trained chef who has worked in many high pressure kitchens and how being in a "very hungry!" family where food was central inspired her online life and love for the humble s...

Its fast approaching and always something to look forward to, mid-term break and joining Alison this morning was Travel Editor with the Irish Independent Pól Ó Conghaile. Last week in the Independent weekend magazine there was a list of 25 midterm Halloween breaks and Pól took Alison through some of the best spots. Alison and Pól headed abroad first to find the best places to suggest for a mid ter...

She is always a hit when she is on the show, full of information we let sink in like a good face cream - it is the Skin Nerd aka Jennifer Rock. Jennifer spoke to Alison Curtis on Weekend Breakfast all about her 'Less Is More' campaign to combat plastic waste in the beauty industry. Her new reusable beauty products are trying to turn this trend. She reveals the cornerstones of good skin routines. (...

Anna Geary knows what it is to lead a team. As Cork Camogie Captain she has won numerous All-Ireland and All-Star medals. She is fully aware of what it takes to be a champion and wants to pass those life skills on to inspire others. And she also knows that fun is fundamental. If you aren't enjoying it then it's not the right environment. She says, "If you make ten mistakes, you should go for eleve...

Serena Terry aka 'Mammy Banter' is a wonderfully funny woman from Derry who provides so much joy through her Instagram and Tik Tok accounts. Inspired in lockdown by the false filtered life of some Mother's on Instagram, she created her own "real life" character and has now gained more than 155k Instagram followers and 500k on Tik Tok! And she has recently signed on for a book deal with Harper Coll...

So, the kids have been given their own bank cards. WOOHOO! There's no stress at all!! Well, that's a lie. It's a natural anxiety but we need to get more comfortable talking family finances with our kids. When it comes to money, responsibility and trust with our children is hugely important. That's the view of parental expert David Coleman. For the last few weeks, Weekend Breakfast with Alison Curt...

Izzy Wheels was founded by Irish sisters Ailbhe and Izzy Keane. The idea was inspired by Izzy who was born with Spina Bifida and is paralyzed from her waist down. Izzy has always seen her wheelchair as a symbol of freedom but never felt it expressed her personality. Ailbhe created a range of colourful wheel covers for her sister's chair as her final year project in The National College of Art and...

Let's face it. Teaching kids to share some of their hard earned cash can be a tricky task. What you save at an early age is really important to you. There are things you can do to help children understand the benefits of sharing, donating and thinking of others. Money Jars can be an important tool in that journey. 'The Money Mate Moment' So, for the next few weeks, Weekend Breakfast with Alison Cu...

Aine Duffy is an innovator! A creative genius! And a horsebox hero! The last 18 months has been devastating for the live music industry. People who rely on the gigs from the musicians to the crew have been left without work.  Only the last week has there been some light in the tunnel ahead. Many had to pivot their livelihoods and one such person was Aine Duffy. The Cork musician had a moment of in...

Million-copy bestselling author Cecelia Ahern spoke to Alison Curtis on Weekend Breakfast about her brand-new novel 'Freckles' It is her eighteenth book! Wow. It is nearly a book a year since her world conquering debut. She must be considered a national treasure at this stage! (albeit a very young one! Is there a treasure age?!) She tells Alison about her new book which she has based in her hometo...

Every child has queued up at the Bank Of Mum & Dad and filled out the forms... (by forms I mean thrown your hands together and pleaded "PLEEEEAAAASE!!!" ) Then we would get annoyed if they informed us that they had only just given us the last of our pocket money the day before and we blitzed it on popping candy and a full size jelly pizza. Really important purchases of course but maybe we shou...

It is back to school time again, some students have already been back for a few days with the rest following this week. It is an exciting time of year but also a time of year that can pose some challenges for kids and parents. The wonderful Dr Mary O’Kane (parenting and early childhood education expert) joined Weekend Breakfast with Alison Curtis to help guide us through it all: [audio mp3="https:...

Remember that feeling when you finally got your own money? Strutting into the corner shop like a BeeGee gangsta declaring, "The penny sweets are on me lads!" Taking control of our own finances as a kid is a milestone in our lives. So, for the next four weeks, Weekend Breakfast with Alison Curtis is delighted to have An Post on board for 'The Money Mate Moment'. 'The Money Mate Moment' It's a new c...

This is the kind of image that stops you in your tracks - and it's even more remarkable when you hear the story behind it. It was described by one person as resembling a Rembrandt. It was in fact painted by a thirteen year old who also has Autism. Zara Craig is a student at Ballyclare High School in Antrim but hasn’t been back in class since the start of the pandemic. Her special educational needs...

Paralympian High Jumper Jordan Lee doesn't wear a cape. He doesn't need one. If you look at his achievements already and he's only just turned 21 - you will see that this young man from Killarney is a superhero. The best way to describe how high I can jump is the next time you park your car and you see the car park barrier set at 1 meter 95 just think that your good ol friend Jordan can jump over...

As our kids are growing up, we are moving more and more to a cashless society with tap-and-go payments and in-app purchases. So how can we teach them the real value of money and that we all don't have magic money trees in our gardens? Alison on Weekend Breakfast caught up with Child Psychotherapist, Dr Colman Noctor who has recently written all about our kids cash in his Irish Examiner column. Hit...