Win Happy Podcast

At the beginning of the summer I sat down with Der O'Sullivan and his wife Linda Kennedy as they were gearing up for another, hopefully busy season at O'Sullivans Bar and Nottages Bar & Restaurant .   Der and Linda are the next generation who took over the business from his parents Billy and Angela ,who took over from Billy's parents, Sonny and Elizabeth .    This special business is a little piec...

On today's podcast I chatted with dark fantasy author and tarot reader Julie Embleton about her life and career. Her English schoolteacher Ann Creedon once told her to " write what makes your heart sing " and these were the magic words that turned this voracious reader with a fantastic imagination into a writer. Julie was eventually able to pack up her full time job a few years ago and concentrate...

On today's podcast I chatted with the visual artist, Hammond Journeaux who is living in the beautiful West Cork village, Ballydehob.   Hammond who is originally from Wyndham in New Zealand was the most lovely host along with her three dogs in her unusual haunted house.   She spoke about her life and career, her love of horses, her love of books and of course her love of art and the challenges for...

On today's podcast I chatted with the comedy actor  Jon Culshaw who is known to us all for his many roles and TV appearances.   From an early age Jon discovered he had the ability to make people laugh with his impersonations of big characters in his life such as his grandmother's housekeeper, Mrs Jump.   From hospital radio to Spitting Image , from Deadringers to the Royal Variety Show , Jon has m...

On today's podcast I chatted with Laurann O'Reilly, the nutritionist who is on a quest to get us all to live healthier lives. The founder of Nutrition by Laurann grew up on a family farm in Tipperary and she unfortunately had an early battle with leukaemia. These early experiences led to a huge curiosity about the role of food and nutrition to your health.   Laurann has plenty of practical tips to...

On today's podcast I chatted with my retired neighbour and total gentleman, Jim O'Meara , who lives at the top of the hill at Ardsallagh in Crookhaven with his wife Mary.   Jim was born and bred in Goleen, the son of the local teacher and his own path was quite similar but he ended up teacher training in Belfast for 40 years.   He chats about his life and career, living in Belfast in troubled time...

On today's podcast I chat with Mike Baldwin , not the character from Coronation Street, but an Englishman all the same.   Our neighbour from the other side of the hill loves visiting the old cottage near Goleen in West Cork and in truth just can't spend enough time here. Mike has been drawn to this special cottage where his great grandfather lived his whole life. This special needs teacher is the...

On part two of a two part podcast I chatted with Sally Smart of Smart Productions . 28 years ago she visited a friend in West Cork with her three daughters in the camper van that they were all living in. For the sake of the children Sally decided to put down roots and after many years she was able to explore her own passion for theatre and productions. Sally has created a safe place called "The Lo...

On today's podcast I chatted with Sally Smart of Smart Productions in Schull in West Cork. I can honestly say that Sally is one of the most fascinating people that I have met who has lived the most unusual life. In part one Sally talks about her early life in Cornwall, running away to Australia, living alone on a deserted island for 9 months, falling in love with Gus, an Aboriginal man and then li...

On today's podcast I chatted with Ronan Healy , the Programme Manager for National   Heritage Week , which runs from the 17th to the 25th August . Ronan chats about his life and career and explains why this is the perfect role for him. He chats about the work of The Heritage Council and the role that Heritage Week plays in showcasing all of the best that the island of Ireland has to offer  He expl...

On today's podcast I chatted with Siobhan Cronin , the editor of the Southern Star , one of Ireland's most successful regional newspapers. Siobhan is as passionate about media as she is about open water swimming and we chatted about both. She remembers the earlier days of newspapers when you would literally have a sentence stuck on your shoe, and she now juggles the delicate balance between the pr...

On today's podcast I chat with

On part two of this two part podcast I chat with the wonderful Swedish singer Camilla Griehsel . She talks about life with her young family and her husband, Colin Vearncombe (aka Black) and their move from London to Schull in West Cork. Life in Ireland has been very special for Camilla both musically and personally but unfortunately not without huge sadness when Colin died in a motor accident in 2...

On today's podcast I chat with the wonderful Swedish singer, Camilla Griehsel who shares her life and musical story which is full of both joyful and heartbreaking moments In part one she talks about her early years exploring her gift for singing. Camilla is comfortable in nearly every genre of music and this has taken her from busking, to barbershop, to church choir, to piano bars, to singing in a...

On today's podcast I chatted with Londoner, Len Lipitch who celebrates 50 years living in Ireland this year. He started off as an accountant and working on one of the first "Flower Power" festivals changed his career trajectory. Len worked providing visuals to touring bands, he worked in a number of different countries and then he came to Ireland for a simpler life. He came to West Cork, bought a...

Today's guest tells her love story for Ireland, the man who kindly gave her and her travel companion a lift, and the very special craft business that they have developed together. On today's podcast I chat with Sabine Lenz from Germany who tells that fascinating story, how she first met Len, bringing an old derelict ruin of a cottage back to life in a beautiful West Cork location and how they rais...

On today's podcast I chat with Turkish born, Ege Reynolds the founder and CEO of The Charming Man . Ege chats about his own life and career, his move from Turkey to the U.S., the cultural differences he encountered and some personal challenges he has overcome. He runs a very interesting business, whereby he coaches men who may lack the personal skills necessary to function better socially, in part...

I am heartbroken to hear about the passing of my friend Micheál Sheridan of the Mercy Hospital Foundation . We hadn't been in touch for quite a while and despite the connected world we live in today I had never realised that he was sick. My sincere condolences to his family and friends and I hope they will take some comfort from the huge difference he made to so many when he was with us. Micheál w...

On today's podcast I chatted with former journalist and radio producer, Christine Tobin , a new senior member of the Fuzion communications team. Christine has a big story, from cheffing to 20 years of journalism, from Ireland to New Zealand and back, with lots of diverse experience gained along the way. Among other things she chatted about the huge role of parents, the changing media landscape, ro...

On today's podcast I chat with Andrew Dewar the serial entrepreneur, Thetahealer and co-founder of Five Year You . Andrew, who grew up with a sister with severe autism, lived in a constant state of stress and the very worst nearly happened when she actually tried to kill him. This traumatic experience had a huge impact on his life and it is only in the last few years after much therapy that he has...

In part two of a two part podcast with Paul Ruane , the Head of Brand with Fuzion who talks about the whole process of branding and how it works. He also talks about rebranding, when it is recommended and why he felt it was necessary to rebrand Fuzion and how he went about this. Even though the chat got a bit "nerdy" at times for anyone in business this is a valuable conversation. Enjoy the show!...

On today's podcast I chatted with Paul Ruane , the Head of Brand with Fuzion who is responsible for the "hot off the press" rebrand of the agency. Graphic Designers are a strange breed and in this episode I try to get to know Paul a little bit better and also to find out what he means when he talks about "your brand" and why it matters so much. Enjoy the show!     Podcast Production by Greg Canty...

Running your own business for 20 years is a fantastic achievement. When you run your own business and Covid throws a huge spanner in the works and you decide to grab that " opportunity " to emigrate to the United States with two children while pregnant, people might think you were nuts!! On today's podcast I chat with the co-founder of Eazy City and EZC Study Abroad , Julia Lynes who has done exac...

On today's podcast I chatted with Valerie O'Hanlon , Career Coach and founder of Clarence Consulting . In a way Valerie was her own first client as she took her own career direction into her own hands and stopped what she was doing to go out on her own. " It's not worth it to be miserable " she says, and as a career coach she helps people who might be stuck in a rut to make the necessary changes a...

On today's podcast I chatted with two inspirational women who both gave up their full time jobs to follow their respective dreams, and now they find themselves selling their products alongside each other in a new pop up shop. Martyna Potocka , originally from Poland started her baby gifting business, The Little Big Moments two years ago. Sue Kumar from India started her jewellery business, Leap of...