Lunchtime Live

We are at the height of summer and nearing August – which is the most popular month to tie the knot in Ireland.  But, it brings up the tricky question – how much should you give as a wedding present?  Andrea was joined by listeners to share their views on the topic.

On Friday, we were speaking  about the news that children with spinal issues will be sent abroad for surgery. They'll be sent to London and New York to get operations with long waiting lists here. When talking, Lynn got in touch with our show to tell us about her daughter. Lynn joined Andrea this afternoon on Lunchtime Live to tell us about her daughter

This is Lunchtime Live’s newest segment, Gilligan’s Island!Every Monday we're going to explore this gorgeous island of ours and all that it has to offer.Maybe you have a weekend unaccounted for this summer that needs inspiration, or you have no desire to get on a flight – whatever the reason, this will get you in the mood to travel.This week, Andrea Gilligan is joined by Peter Kavanaugh, Motor Homes Ireland to chat about Motor Home holidays around Ireland.

Would you like to see speeding or dangerous drivers sit retraining courses to be allowed back on the road?  It is one solution being considered by Junior Transport Minister James Lawless to reduce the number of drivers who repeatedly offend on the road.  Andrea was joined by Brenda Bolger from the Bolger School of Motoring in Kilkenny and by other listeners who gave her their opinion on the show today .

Broadcaster Lorraine Keane joined Andrea Gilligan to look back on some of her favourite summer memories!

Do you take your shoes off on flights, laugh loudly whilst watching an in-flight movie… or maybe you change your baby’s dirty nappy on the free chair beside you? Well, all of these things could make you an annoying passenger!For more on this, Andrea is joined by Marisa Mackle, former Air Hostess and Author of ‘Confessions of an Air Hostess’ and Ciara Mooney, Managing Director of Freedom Travel and Solo Travel.

On the 9th of July, Miriam Henry’s brother, Gerald Henry, was found guilty of habitually sexually abusing her when she was a child. Two character references were given in support of the brother, and were read out after Miriam gave her Victim Impact Statement. Gerald Henry was given a fully suspended sentence, and placed on the Sex Offenders Register.Miriam joins Andrea Gilligan to discuss the case, and why she thinks the cross examination of character references in court needs to be established as soon as possible.Dublin Rape Crisis Centre National Helpline: 1800 77 8888 

The blue ribbon event in hurling takes place this Sunday as Clare take on Cork in a  bid to lift the Liam McCarthy Cup.But, who has the better fans?Joining Andrea from the red corner is Joe O’Shea from Cork Beo, and facing him from the yellow and blue corner is Newstalk’s Seán Reidy!

IT systems across the world were hit by an outage this morning – it caused delays to transport, difficulties to some banks, and even caused Sky News to stop broadcasting.So far, Dublin Airport has said that its systems are not affected on a widespread basis, but Ryanair has said that this “3rd party IT issue” means that there may be potential disruption…Newstalk’s Technology Correspondent Jess Kelly joins Andrea to discuss.

From rare whales off the coast of Ireland to Sinead O’Connor tributes in Wicklow for her anniversary - Breakfast Briefing Presenter Shane Beatty has a roundup of some of the stories you might have missed this week.