The Irish Passport

The global rise of radical right nativist parties seemed to skip Ireland. But the last 18 months have seen efforts to introduce anti-immigration politics to Ireland in a way not seen before, amid a backlash against the legalisation of abortion. We hear how a conspiracy theory elevated by US pundit Alex Jones has ended up on the streets of Cork, as protesters ambush an event by ruling party Fine Gael a week out from the election. Naomi speaks to Dutch political scientist Cas Mudde about what Ireland can learn from the experience of countries that have already seen similar trends. Mudde breaks down the evolution of the far right, new tactics at play, and the dubious role played by the media in the United States and the Netherlands. This is an episode of Halfpints, the bonus content we make specially to thank our Patreon supporters. You can find a whole archive of extra content over at https://www.patreon.com/theirishpassport. Share this episode and tag @PassportIrish to be in with a chance to win a copy of Cas Mudde’s new book, ‘The Far Right Today’.

Tech workers abandoning Dublin due to housing costs, an Airbnb maintenance worker who is himself homeless, and the woman battling to transform Ireland’s swathe of vacant properties into homes. This episode takes an inside look at the housing crisis from the point of view of people facing the hard edge of the issue in different ways. As polls ahead of the election on February 8th indicate Taoiseach Leo Varadkar’s chance at a second term may be slipping away as support ebbs towards Sinn Féin and Fianna Fáil, Naomi puts the appeal of promises to build social housing in context. This is an episode of Halfpints, the bonus episodes of The Irish Passport podcast we make specially to thank our supporters on Patreon. You can find a whole archive of extra content over at https://www.patreon.com/theirishpassport. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: @PassportIrish.

Ireland goes to the polls on February 8th. We break down six points that explain the election. Who are the players? Why was the election called? What are the main issues? How will the election work? What are the likely results? And what do the Black and Tans have to do with it? This is an episode of Halfpints, the bonus episodes of The Irish Passport podcast we make specially to thank our supporters on Patreon. You can find a whole archive of extra content over at https://www.patreon.com/theirishpassport. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: @PassportIrish.

In this season finale, The Irish Passport takes on one of Ireland’s most controversial issues: Direct Provision. The system for housing people who apply for refugee status in Ireland turns 20 this year. We speak to Bulelani Mfaco, who fled persecution of gay and LGBT+ people in South Africa to Ireland in 2017, and now campaigns for the rights of those seeking asylum. We visit the Direct Provision centre he lives in to take a look at life on the inside, and find out why Mfaco describes the system as deliberate marginalisation of migrants and akin to racial segregation. Irish Times journalist Sorcha Pollak explains how the system came to be, and discusses the evidence that the system was deliberately designed to be unpleasant. In the wake of a series of arson attacks on planned Direct Provision centres, Pollak’s reporting has revealed that a small group of far-right activists are hijacking community meetings all around Ireland in an attempt to exploit unhappiness about Direct Provision and inflame anti-immigration politics that have so far skipped over Ireland. Finally, we explore cultural responses to the system, in a discussion with award-winning music group Rusangano Family, featuring their acclaimed song ‘Heathrow’.

Every year, thousands of returning emigrants make their way through the sliding doors of Dublin airport arrivals to come home to Ireland for Christmas. Tim and Naomi record from the scene to bring you the stories of those who have travelled from far and wide and come back home to celebrate the holiday with their loved ones. We share funny stories, sad stories, moving stories, and discuss family quirks and pre-Christian traditions that make up the Irish Christmas experience. For bonus episodes, support us on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/theirishpassport. Featuring editing by Alan Meaney http://alanmeaney.ie/ . Season 3 of The Irish Passport podcast is made with the kind support of Biddy Murphy, online sellers of genuine Irish goods. Check them out on www.biddymurphy.com. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: @PassportIrish. Featuring the track “wound” by Jahzzar.

The UK has voted for a Boris Brexit, and the future of the union has never seemed so fragile. What does the biggest Conservative majority in a generation mean for Ireland north and south? Naomi and Tim dissect the election results, discuss how a number of upsets from the Democratic Unionist Party indicate the party seriously miscalculated on Brexit, and bring you fresh analysis from the election frontlines. Unionist political commentator Sarah Creighton tells us how Northern Ireland is reacting to the results and what it means for loyalism. Chatham House analyst Pepijn Bergsen tells us how the remaining members of the European Union are reacting. MEP and First Vice President of the European Parliament Mairead McGuinness tells us why Brexit is far from over and what lies ahead in the next phase of the negotiations. For bonus episodes, support us on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/theirishpassport. Featuring editing by Alan Meaney http://alanmeaney.ie/ . Season 3 of The Irish Passport podcast is made with the kind support of Biddy Murphy, online sellers of genuine Irish goods. Check them out on www.biddymurphy.com. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: @PassportIrish. A text transcript of this episode is available here: https://theirishpassport.com/transcripts/transcript-what-the-uk-election-means-for-ireland-brexit-and-the-union/

During the 20th century, a significant proportion of the Irish population was incarcerated in a network of institutions. These ranged from Magdalene laundries where ‘troublesome’ women were put into servitude, to industrial schools for children that were famed for their cruelty. Journalist Caelainn Hogan is the author of Republic of Shame: Stories from Ireland’s Institutions for ‘Fallen Women’. In this interview, Hogan explains how this dark side of Irish society is a much more recent phenomenon than commonly thought. She tells the story of one Mother and Baby home that was only founded in the 1980s, and closed in 2006. Born to unmarried parents herself, Hogan explains how her own family history gave what she discovered additional poignancy as she tells the story of women still searching for their lost children, and adopted people struggling to uncover their origins. This is an episode of Halfpints, the bonus series we make to thank our supporters on Patreon. To gain access to our full catalogue of bonus content, head over now to www.patreon.com/theirishpassport, and become a supporter of the podcast today. Share this episode on social media and tag @PassportIrish to be in with a chance to win a copy of Republic of Shame. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: @PassportIrish. Editing by Alan Meaney.

Live from Dublin, the Irish Passport brings you the hidden history of the Irish capital. Comedian and author Tara Flynn discusses her favourite Dublin secrets. Tonie Walsh describes gay life in the city before the decriminalisation of homosexuality, and the furious anger at violence against gay people that fuelled the earliest Pride marches. Terry Fagan of the North Inner City Folklore Project recounts some of his favourite Dublin tales and takes us inside the lost red light district of The Monto. This live show was held at the Button Factory as part of the Dublin Podcast Festival. It was a double bill with our friends over at the Motherfoclóir podcast. You can hear their show and our crossover Q&A session here. Many thanks to Headstuff, to the brilliant Button Factory production team, and to Darach, Peadar, Gearóidín and Éimear. Season 3 of The Irish Passport podcast is made with the kind support of Biddy Murphy, online sellers of genuine Irish goods. Check them out on www.biddymurphy.com. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: @PassportIrish.

Islands on opposite sides of the world with deep differences, and surprising similarities! Naomi and Tim explore the thriving traditional Irish music scene in Tokyo, reporting from a session in a downtown pub where dozens of Japanese musicians meet to play jigs and reels, many of them speaking in Irish accents. Ireland’s ambassador in Tokyo Paul Kavanagh tells us why Japan is the biggest investor in Ireland in the Asia-Pacific and us why economic relations are set to get stronger. Featuring the voice of Sister Paschal O’Sullivan, the last Irish missionary nun in Japan, who taught generations of the Japanese elite including the current Empress of Japan. We interview her cousin France 24 journalist James Creedon, director of a recent documentary about her life, ‘Thanks to your Noble Shadow’. And how do you translate James Joyce’s Ulysses into Japanese? We hear from Professor Kazuo Oikawa, a teacher of Irish literature and culture to students of Waseda University and author of ‘The Harp and Green’, who tells us why Ireland has some surprising historical overlaps with his native Hokkaido. Featuring the track ‘Fogs’ by Tokyo trad band O’Jizo, the Toyota Ceili Band, and the session musicians of The Old Rock pub in Chiyoda, Tokyo. Special thanks to Kozo Toyota and Aisling Braiden. For bonus episodes, support us on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/theirishpassport. Featuring editing by Alan Meaney http://alanmeaney.ie/ . Season 3 of The Irish Passport podcast is made with the kind support of Biddy Murphy, online sellers of genuine Irish goods. Check them out on www.biddymurphy.com. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: @PassportIrish.

A century since a revolutionary Irish government declared the birth of a new nation, we ask how Ireland could be re-invented for the future. We are living in a moment of rapid change. Great geopolitical shifts are destroying old certainties. Climate change is poised to transform our way of life. In Ireland, landmark referendums have been a break with the Ireland of the 20th century and a beacon of democratic innovation. We take the opportunity to re-imagine what Ireland could be, with special guests Clare Bailey, leader of the Green Party Northern Ireland, award-winning science fiction writer Sarah Maria Griffin, and the political scientist who lead Ireland’s Citizens Assembly David Farrell. Unification? Votes at 16? Moving the capital out of Dublin? Banning cars? It’s all up for discussion. Special thanks to our hosts the Centre Culturel Irlandais in Paris. For bonus episodes, support us on: https://www.patreon.com/theirishpassport Tote bags are available to buy on our website: https://theirishpassport.com/shop/ Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: @PassportIrish.