The Women's Podcast

In this episode, we’re bringing you a conversation from our Big Night In series of events which took place earlier this year. Back in May, comedian, author and journalist Maeve Higgins joined Róisín Ingle on zoom for a very fun evening in front of a live virtual audience. Higgins spoke about her move to New York, podcasting with former president Mary Robinson and why she returned to her hometown of Cobh during the pandemic. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In her memoir, Openhearted, Ann Ingle tells the story of her life with her late husband Peter, the “wild Irishman” she fell in love with while on holiday in Cornwall at the age of 20. Presented as a series of essays, Ann writes about everything from love, sex and heartbreak, to money, rearing children, writing, ageing, and so much more. In today’s episode, she talks to Kathy Sheridan about what she has learned and continues to learn into her ninth decade. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last month Irish writer Sally Rooney launched her highly anticipated third novel Beautiful World, Where Are You. Since its release, the book has topped bestseller lists across the world and continues to fly off the shelves. We here at the Women’s Podcast devoured the book in just a few days and we’re still not ready to stop talking about it. That’s why in today’s episode, Róisín Ingle is joined by Irish Times columnists Emer McLysaght and Fintan O’Toole to get their thoughts on the book and to discuss the Sally Rooney effect: the mass appeal of her writing, the impact she’s had on the literary world and the spotlight she’s shone on emerging Irish writers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In her new book, Women vs Capitalism, economist Vicky Pryce presents readers with an uncomfortable truth: we will not achieve equality for women without radical changes to contemporary capitalism. In today’s episode she speaks to Kathy Sheridan about all the ways in which our economic structure is built to put women at a disadvantage, from the gendered threat of robot labour to the lack of women in economics itself. Pryce also shares her personal journey of moving from Greece to the UK in her teens, her experiences in the male-dominated financial sector and the challenges of being a working mother. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last year, when most of us were busy baking banana bread or learning how to crochet, Irish actress Jade Jordan spent her time in lockdown delving back into the pasts of her mother Dominique and grandmother Kathleen. Spurred on by the death of George Floyd, Jade was eager to explore and add to the discussion surrounding race and discrimination in Ireland. The result of these conversations between Jade and the women closest to her, is the book, Nanny, Ma and Me: An Irish story of family, race and home. In today’s episode, she tells Róisín Ingle about the power of looking back into the past, the importance of speaking out and standing up to racism and why when people come together to talk, the possibilities are endless. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We cannot resolve the climate emergency without fighting for gender equality. Women, especially poor women of colour, are suffering most as a result of the climate crisis, our highest-profile climate activists are women and girls and yet, at the top table it is men who are deciding the earth’s future. In her latest book, How Women Can Save the Planet, award-winning journalist Anne Karpf argues that when it comes to fighting climate change we are not all in it together, but we could be. In today’s podcast she joins Róisín, Sadhbh O’Neill, policy coordinator with Stop Climate Chaos, and Catherine Cleary, writer and founder of the Pocket Forests initiative, to talk about many of the issues raised in the book, the debate about women and climate change and what we can all do to help. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In today’s podcast Róisín talks to the journalist, author and presenter of the brilliant How To Fail podcast Elizabeth Day. She has just published her latest novel, Magpie, a thrilling, stylish and psychologically astute story of jealousy, motherhood and power. In this funny, moving and revealing conversation, Day explains how some of the book’s themes relate to her own life, why it was important to her to write about mental illness with sensitivity and why she is a Derry girl at heart. She also tells Róisín about her lockdown wedding to husband Justin Basini, some of her favourite How To Fail guests and her friendship with Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Taste of Dublin returns to the Inveagh Gardens this week. A celebration of eating, drinking and entertainment, the festival runs for five days from the 1st- 5th September and features live cooking demonstrations, wine tastings and food stalls from all over the world. This year, Our Table will be joining the festival line up, selling a selection of products and showcasing start up businesses from the migrant background. Our Table was founded by activist Ellie Kisyombe and food writer Michelle Darmody, who met through a shared conviction that Direct Provision was an unjust system and that talking about it through food might help to start an important conversation. In today’s episode, Kisyombe and Darmody speak to Róisin Ingle about the origins of Our Table and their involvement in this year’s festival. Also joining the conversation is pastry chef and Irish Times food writer Aoife Noonan who will be doing a live demonstration at Taste of Dublin this Sunday. See https://dublin.tastefestivals.com/ for all details. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s that time of year again. The back-to-school sun is shining as thousands of children around the country return to the classroom. Parents, children and teachers alike will be hoping for some normality as the new school year begins, but will it be all plain sailing? In this episode Róisín Ingle is joined by journalist and parenting expert Jen Hogan and by Maria Rushe, a secondary school teacher based in Donegal. They discuss the worries and concerns facing parents and students, the current rules around masks and vaccinations and they’ve loads of tips and advice for the new academic year ahead. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In her new book The Breakup Monologues, comedian Rosie Wilby takes you on a journey back through her romantic history, celebrating the ups and downs and the many lessons learned along the way. The book serves as a love letter to those breakups and includes anecdotes from friends and interviews with relationship therapists, scientists and sociologists. In this conversation, the “breakup queen” tells Róisín Ingle about her obsession with heartache, the new language around dating and why lesbians are the unofficial, unrecognised world champions of breakups. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.