The Hard Shoulder

This week, Ciara Doherty was joined by the presenter of Weekend Breakfast on Alison Curtis Presenter, TodayFM Niamh O’Reilly Journalist to look back on the week that was, but with a few twists…

With Bruce Springsteen after releasing a new protest song, following the events in Minneapolis.  John Fardy joined Ciara Doherty to discuss how Music is used time and time again to highlight political and cultural issues and to go through some of the most iconic protest songs

New research from the ESRI has shown that people who gambled as children are almost twice as likely to suffer from problem gambling when they become adults. So what is Problem Gambling, and how are children being drawn into the world of gambling? To discuss this, Ciara was joinedby the Head of Addiction Services at Saint John of God Hospital and Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at UCD, Colin O’Gara.

Society has often branded night owls who are late risers as lazy, that coupled with the warnings that burning the midnight oil can have on their health.  But why are some early birds and others night owls and can you change your sleep pattern?  Joining Ciara Doherty to discuss was Sleep Expert, Lucy Woolf.

Travelling to the US could soon become an app-based dystopia where facial scans and social media tracking are the norm, so writes Adrian Weckler for the Irish IndependentThis update has tightened the traditional Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA), which the vast majority of Irish people rely on for travel to the States.This begs the question, as security tightens, is this the start of further restrictions on travel to the US?Joining me now to explain this further is Technology editor of the Irish Independent, Adrian Weckler and Professor And Political Analyst Clinton Institute UCD, Scott Lucas.

Time to talk sport, and Ciara Doherty was joined by Off The Ball’s Eoin Sheahan to talk all the weekends sport, including I pressure on Arsenal following last weeks loss to Man Utd. Who is in the Australian open finals and how are Ireland’s chances ahead of the six nations next thursday?

Alcohol Action Ireland (AAI) has published a report on youth drinking, which shows a 3% increase in alcohol consumption levels by 15- to 24-year-olds between 2024 and 2025.The report says that when drinking is initiated by young people, it is accompanied by high levels of particularly risky and hazardous consumption, with 64% regularly binge drinking and one in three having an alcohol-use disorder.  Joining Ciara Doherty to discuss the findings were Sheila Gilheaney, CEO of Alcohol Alliance Ireland and Dr Eoin Fogarty, Consultant in Emergency and Retrieval Medicine at Cork University Hospital

On Sunday, Israel will reopen the Rafah border crossing for people to travel between Gaza and Egypt. To discuss the significance of this development, Ciara Doherty was  joined by Long-time international correspondent, Borzou Daragahi.

Starting on Tuesday February 3rd, Ciara Kelly and Shane Coleman will bring you The Hard Shoulder, your essential drive-time companion. From politics to pop culture, and everything in between - they'll bring you the stories that really matter, with lively debate, sharp insight and excellent analysis. Listen to the Hard Shoulder podcast on the Go Loud app, or wherever you get your podcasts.

A status yellow rain warning came into place for 7 counties today, including those badly affected by floods in the southeast.The warning will expire at midnight but given the damage which storm Chandra has done, can we expect futher damage and distruption ?Ciara was joined by Holly O’Neill Meteorologist with Met Eireann Lara Lewis From Lara Lewis School of Motoring for driving tips during the bad weather