Lunchtime Live

If you’re mad enough to be planning a Christmas Day swim, or even a New Years one – firstly – fair play! But, there are some warnings that you should take note of… Joining Clare McKenna to discuss is RNLI Water Safety Education Manager & a crew an at Bundoran RNLI, Killian O’Kelly, and more.

From a humpback whale to drama over a Disney trip, there’s plenty of stories you might have missed from around the country this week. Caoimseach Connolly from the Newstalk Newsroom joins guest host Clare McKenna to discuss.

Guest host Clare McKenna has a 13-year-old son who went into town last Sunday with some friends. They went to a burger restaurant where they queued, but were told they could only get their food to take away - while others were allowed to sit down… So, do we discriminate against ‘young lads’? Do we look at a group of teenage boys and immediately think the worst? Clare is joined by Sarah-Jayne Tobin...

How can you brighten up a dark room without too much hassle? The Home Squad is here to help! Jenny Sheahan, Irish Examiner Columnist and former winner of ‘Home of the Year' and Roisin Lafferty, Founder and Creative Director of Roisin Lafferty join Andrea to share their top tips.

He might not be able to settle the rows over what to watch on TV, or who won what game, but Donal Skehan can help take the stress out of making the Christmas dinner! He joins Andrea to share his cooking hacks this festive season! Image: Donal Skehan

Should we ban heading the ball? A new study finds that there may well indeed be a connection between heading the ball and dementia, with a large percentage of former players having developed the illness. So, is it time to ban headers altogether? Professor Willie Stewart, Consultant Neuropathologist, at the University of Glasgow and more join Andrea to discuss.

This morning, Lunchtime Live, with the help of Kieran Cuddihy, attempted to set a Guinness World Records Title… Here’s how they got on! David Wilson, Guinness Adjudicator and Kieran join Andrea to discuss the experience.

From the Muppets Christmas carol to Winona Ryder up to no good, 98fm’s Ciaran O’Connor joins Andrea with plenty to chat about on this week’s throwback Thursday! Image: Disney

Is it wrong to let children play with toy guns? Stephanie Rohan from the Newstalk Newsroom has a predicament, and joins Andrea along with Brendan Kelly, Psychiatrist and more to discuss.

For this week’s Ask the Expert, Sinead Ryan, Presenter of the Home Show on Newstalk and Consumer Expert, joins Andrea to tackle any of your consumer issues, especially around Christmas!

Has modern movie-going become a cesspit of regurgitated sequels and reboots – or do you love to sink your teeth into a movie series with familiar faces and plotlines – where surprise, surprise - the good guy wins again! Gladiator 2 is the latest film to get a big screen sequel-outing almost a quarter of a century later – 24 years to be exact since the original film’s release, and reviews have been...

When it comes to Christmas dinner, all you hear about is the Turkey and ham – but, have you ever considered swapping it out for fish?  Tadhg O’Meara from Kish Fish joins Andrea to discuss.

Lunchtime Live's Reasons to be Happy looks at some of the news stories that you might have missed that will leave you feeling more optimistic. Today FM’s Cathal O’Sullivan joined Andrea in the studio to put a smile on your faces... Image: Jamie Oliver

Should Irish school pupils address teachers by their first names?  Addressing teachers as “sir” or “ma’am” and calling them by their surname is “Victorian” - and it does not fit a modern education system according to Newstalk’s own Simon Tierney writing in the Irish Independent. What do you think? Should Irish school pupils call teachers by their first names? Andrea is joined by listeners to...

Welcome to The Pod Squad! We review podcasts every Tuesday so you always have something new to listen to. This week, Dave Hanratty, Host of the No Encore Music Podcast and Ellen Butler from our Newsroom join Andrea to review ‘The Gambler’, the new podcast presented by Crime Journalist Nicola Tallant Image: GoLoud

Rosanna Davison says that a sleep divorce is the key to a dream marriage – but would you try it? Andrea chats to Tanya Sweeney – columnist with the Irish Independent - who is a big proponent of sleeping in a different bed to her partner. Photo by Marcus Aurelius

The National Endometriosis Framework, which was initially announced in 2021 by then Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, has again been delayed from publishing, into 2025.  Andrea chats to Doireann Barrett, who runs Cneasú community and a sufferer from Stage 4 endometriosis, Niamh Mahony who is making a film on the endometriosis experience in Ireland & Illana D’arcy from the Endometrios...

Over the next few weeks Andrea will be talking to Irish producers across the country about the wonderful things they have on offer, and why it’s important to buy Irish for Christmas! Today we’re talking about buying Irish gifts with Ann Chapman from Stonechat Jewellers, Sinead Gallagher from Skin Krush LED Masks, Miriam from Mimitoys, Fintan Ó Cuanaigh - founder of My Games Sports Memoirs & Ke...

It’s How I Live Well time: where we learn how to live a little better from someone who has mastered it! Catherine Merrigan tells Andrea about her unusual living arrangements on Skellig Michael as an Office of Public Works (OPW) guide who safely corrals visitors up the 600 steps to the monastic remains.

The GAA has announced that it will charge for under 16s to attend higher-division League games for the first time next year.   What do you think about the idea? Photo: Sportsfile

In 2008, photographer Tara Keane contracted a mysterious viral illness that placed her into intensive care and led to the amputation of her right leg below the knee. She shares the story of her illness and recovery and the extraordinary life she has been leading since  Photo by Pixabay

Dr Niall Breen from the Portmarnock GP Clinic joined Andrea Gilligan to tackle your medical queries.

People are losing out on “moments of togetherness” watching TV because they are streaming shows on separate devices, the bishop of London has said. Rev Dame Sarah Mullally said the profusion of choice meant that watching TV had become a “more solitary and insular” experience.  Have streaming services killed the togetherness of watching TV? Photo by Ron Lach

‘I have finally found my first best friend – aged 30’ Pravina Rudra wrote in the i Newspaper recently. Are you ever too old for a best friend? Photo by Rachel Claire

All this month, Lunchtime Live is doing Christmas specials to give you plenty of time to prepare for the big day, and hopefully batch cook some bits in advance to make Christmas a lot easier! Food Creator Sinead Delahunty joins Anna Daly to talk Christmas themed desserts!