Blethered

Ross Greer is a Member of Scottish Parliament, and the youngest ever elected, representing West Scotland for the Green Party in 2016.We talk about behind the scenes at the Scottish parliament and everyday goings on, including seeing Nicola Sturgeon buying a meal deal in TescoRoss talks me through his highly publicised clash with Good Morning Britain anchor Piers Morgan, after he challenged people’s perceptions of Winston ChurchillWe discuss Ross’ political experiences to date, including an unlikely friendliness between him and former Tory Leader Jackson CarlawAnd as always, plenty morehttps://twitter.com/Ross_GreerSupport Blethered on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/join/BletheredContact: seanmcdonald.podcast@gmail.comTwitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcdonald01  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I'm joined by Scottish rapper, author and social commentator Darren ‘Loki’ McGarvey for a second time, on Blethered.We talk about Darren’s new TV series ‘Class Wars’, coming soon on BBC Scotland, and we take a look at Scotland’s drug death statistics and the Scottish government’s recent response and actions to mitigate the crisis.We also discuss suicide, and why deeply uncomfortable conversation will ultimately be more effective than well-intentioned hashtags and soundbites, plus plenty more.Support Blethered on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/join/BletheredContact: seanmcdonald.podcast@gmail.comTwitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcdonald01  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Adam Miller is a football writer and columnist, who started out by writing and sharing jokes online on the very popular @OldFirmFacts Twitter account, before turning it into a full time careerWe talk about how he made that jump and some of the experiences he’s had so far, the transformative power of doing what you really enjoy in life, and the positive influence that new voices in media can have.Old Firm Facts on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Oldfirmfacts1Support Blethered on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/join/BletheredContact: seanmcdonald.podcast@gmail.comTwitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcdonald01  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Robert McNeil is a Glaswegian who played a key role in uncovering the evidence of genocide in Bosnia with the United Nations, through the excavation of mass graves in Srebrenica.We discuss Robert's early life and the experiences that shaped him, his first job as a mortuary assistant and how it prepared for him for what life had in store, and how he ended up working on the Bosnian project and the horrors and complexities that surrounded it.We reflect on the relatively recent events in Srebrenica, which saw over 8,000 Muslim men and boys tortured and executed, with the end of goal of ethnic cleansing by the Serbs, who tried to conceal what had happened.Robert's Website: https://www.robertmcneil.co.uk/Support Blethered on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/join/BletheredContact: seanmcdonald.podcast@gmail.comTwitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcdonald01  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Author, screenwriter and journalist Neil Forsyth tells me about how he started out, and the weird and wonderful adventures he found himself on when writing features for the now-defunct lads mags of the late 90’s early 2000’s.We talk about his first book ‘Other People’s Money’, about Elliot Castro, who lived the millionaires lifestyle through credit card fraud and we discuss Neil’s work as a screenwriter, including the critically acclaimed and multiple award winning drama ‘Guilt’, on the BBC.You’ll also hear the hilarious and almost unbelievable story of how Neil, Gordon Smart and actor Ralf Little all have international football caps, and as always, much more.Support Blethered on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/join/BletheredContact: seanmcdonald.podcast@gmail.comTwitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcdonald01  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I’m joined by Dionne Basra and we’re talking about Alexander Pacteau, who was sentenced to life in prison at the High Court in Glasgow in 2015, for the murder of Karen Buckley, an Irish nursing student who was residing in the city.Dionne describes the timeline of events and we give our thoughts as the case unfolds throughout the episode, including our opinion on why people are so fascinated by crimes and police investigations like these.Topics and cases of this nature are obviously highly sensitive in a multitude of ways, especially when its been so recent. We intend absolutely no disrespect to the memory of the victim, or the victim’s family and we have tried our best to be as respectful and sensitive to their feelings, as possible.Dionne's YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCP1dbasFfQg95_rjpQm-sPwSupport Blethered on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/join/BletheredContact: seanmcdonald.podcast@gmail.comTwitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcdonald01  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Simon McLean is a former undercover police officer who worked with the Serious Crime Squad in Glasgow, where he pursued drug dealers, gangsters, terrorists, murderers and paedophiles. Simon’s recently released The Ten Percent, a tell-all book that gives you a very rare insight into that world and details what The Ten Percent of police officers are willing to do to make sure those people they’re fighting against, are brought down.We talk about Simon’s view on drug decriminalisation and why we need to take a different approach to Scotland’s drugs-problem, you’ll hear about his early days as a police officer in Campbelltown where he became pals with The Beatles’ Paul McCartney, and Simon gives a rundown on the raid that saw then-gangster Paul Ferris arrested on the quiet Scottish island-town of Rothesay.Order 'The Ten Percent' here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ten-Percent-Simon-McLean/dp/1901514439Support Blethered on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/join/BletheredContact: seanmcdonald.podcast@gmail.comTwitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcdonald01  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Drug-law reform campaigner Peter Krykant talks about his own experience as a serious drug user before eventually going into recovery and turning his life around,We discuss the reasons that people start taking drugs in the first place and we take a detailed look at Scotland’s shocking drug-death record in recent years,Peter also explains why he set up a drug-consumption room programme in Glasgow and how it can benefit society as a whole, by helping people into different forms of recovery, removing individuals from the cycle of offending and imprisonment, and freeing up taxpayers money that would otherwise be spent on policing and prosecution.Support Blethered on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/join/BletheredContact: seanmcdonald.podcast@gmail.comTwitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcdonald01  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Founded by Paul Pettigrew in the wake of his own gambling addiction that saw him attempt to take his own life, GamTalk provides education on gambling addiction, and support to those affected by it.We discuss how Paul started gambling and the impact it had on his life and relationships, Paul explains his lowest point of an attempted suicide and how he then started to take decisive action to turn things around, and we talk about GamTalk and the aims of the project, including advice on how to regain control when gambling starts to take over your life.GamTalk Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gamtalk.paulGamTalk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gamtalk_uk/Gamblers Anonymous: https://gascotland.org/Support Blethered on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/join/BletheredContact: seanmcdonald.podcast@gmail.comTwitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcdonald01  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I’m joined by Matt Dean, Senior Casting Producer on MTV Catfish UK.Catfishing is the modern phenomenon of internet predators that fabricate online identities in order to trick people into emotional or romantic relationships, over a long period of time. Matt and I discuss Catfishing, the sharp rise in cases during lockdown and I explain how I established the name, address and location of a man in Kilmarnock who was using my photos while contacting children and young women.Matt also talks about other shows he's worked on and how vital aftercare is for all those who appear on reality TV, plus the long-lasting impact that social media abuse can have.Support Blethered on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/join/BletheredContact: seanmcdonald.podcast@gmail.comTwitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcdonald01MTV Casting Link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScNXC9q2uMiJsPlBoWy8HOGi-DhW7UIcJ70-PoKWwj5x-f7GQ/viewform  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.