Moncrieff

As Ireland looks ahead to the next presidential election, we face an important question: what role should the President play in public life?Traditionally, the office was seen as largely ceremonial, but in recent years, Irish Presidents have taken a more outspoken role on both national and international issues.Some praise this as a fundamental approach, while others argue it risks blurring the boundaries between politics and the Presidency.Joining Seán to discuss is Laura Cahillane, who is a Professor at the School of Law at the University of Limerick…

The University of Galway has unveiled a new digital archive revealing what life was like in an internment camp in the 1970s. The journals and photo albums were given to the college by Paddy McMenamin, who spent time in Long Kesh…Archivist at the University of Galway Library, Dr Barry Houlihan has been pivotal in collating the material, and joins Seán to discuss.Image: University of Galway

Seán’s guest is a multimillion bestselling author. Her recent book ‘The Women’, based during the Vietnam War and examining the role of American women in the conflict, was a huge success, with Warner Brothers buying up the filming rights. Other listeners will know her work from the hit Netflix show ‘Firefly Lane’ starring Katherine Heigl.Author Kristin Hannah joins to discuss!

Over the past couple of months, a number of high profile corporate executives have either been fired or resigned over romances with their employees. But, what rules exist in Ireland in this area?Joining Seán to discuss is Julie Galbraith, Head of Employment at Eversheds Sutherland law firm…

Around 60,000 kids from around Ireland started school for the first time recently. We decided to follow junior infants from their first day and then recheck on them to see how they got on.Henry McKean joins Seán to share what he heard!

The Irish Government is once again being urged to prioritise the Occupied Territories Bill.This comes as a report was released today, signed by 80 humanitarian and faith-based organisations, saying that a ban on services must be included in the bill.Joining Seán to discuss this is Conor O’Neill, Head of Policy and Advocacy at Christian Aid Ireland and Spokesperson for the campaign to pass the Occupied Territories Bill.

Ireland isn’t exactly overflowing with world champions, but we could potentially have a new one next week…Emma Quirke is the world’s 3rd best Dissectologist, and a hot prospect at next week’s World Jigsaw Puzzle Championship!She joins Seán to discuss.

Marking the return of the Galway Comedy Festival, which takes place this October Bank Holiday, Seán is joined by Comedian Phill Jupitus!Image: Off the Kerb Productions

NASA’s Perseverance Rover has been on Mars since February 2021.Its mission is to seek signs of ancient life and collect samples of rock and regolith for possible return to Earth, and NASA announced on Wednesday night that it seems to have discovered something very interesting indeed…Dr. Seán Jordan is Principal Investigator in the ProtoSigns Lab & Associate Professor in Biogeochemistry and Astrobiology at Dublin City University. He joins Seán to discuss.

Have you heard the term ‘Shrekking’ before?It seems to be the latest buzzword in dating, where women go on dates with men they consider to be much less attractive in a bid to be treated better…But, does dating someone ‘uglier’ actually work?Fiona Cooney writes a dating column for Evoke.ie, ‘No Sex and The City’ and she joins Seán to discuss.