The Women's Podcast

In this episode, Róisín Ingle spoke with Precious Matumba who lives in direct provision in Mosney. Precious arrived in Ireland from Zimbabwe in 2018 with her two children, who are now in second and third class. She spoke to Róisín about Lockdown Life and her fears for those in the direct provision system.Also, Róisín’s 10 year old twin daughters Joya and Priya shared their homeschooling experience so far: “Covid-19 is trying to make us sad, but we just turn it around and say, well we just get to spend more time with our families” Finally author and journalist Jen Hogan spoke to Róisín about homeschooling her seven children. It’s quite the challenge for Jen, who is also trying to juggle a busy work schedule, but she's managing it like a pro. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Róisín Ingle spoke to music legend Sinéad O’Connor, who is on lockdown at her home in Bray with members of her family including her sons and two grandchildren. Sinéad has just returned from the USA after her American tour was cancelled due to the pandemic. She spoke to Roisín from the cabin in her garden about corona beards, self isolation, her spiritual side and how music and Netflix are helping her in these strange times. Róisín also caught up with 82 year old Rosemary Smith. The former racing driver, Rosemary is taking social distancing in her stride, enjoying a glass of wine each evening in the garden with her neighbours. Also, Kathy Sheridan was on the line to tell us how she’s been getting on over the last week at home with her daughter in Kildare. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Róisín Ingle spoke to three women about how life has changed since the outbreak of the coronavirus. Irish Times journalist Jennifer O'Connell lives in Waterford and has all the latest statistics on Covid-19 in Ireland. She also shared some insights into the right and wrong way to do 'social distancing'. Meanwhile, MJ O'Brien is a 71 year old living in Dublin city centre, she spoke to Róisin about surviving these surreal times as an older woman on her own. Finally, Romana Testesecca from Watermelon Fitness spoke to Róisín about life under lockdown in Rome and how her daily online fitness classes are spreading joy to the wider community. We want to know what you’d like us to cover on the podcast so get in touch on twitter or facebook @itwomenspodcast or email us on thewomenspodcast@irishtimes.com We’re in this together. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the first of our episodes recorded remotely, Róisín Ingle catches up with her mother Ann, who is finding ways to keep herself busy during the coronavirus outbreak. “It’s all about trying to make life as normal as possible”. We’re also looking for your Pandemic Poems at this time to spread a bit of joy within the Women’s Podcast community. If you're feeling inspired, email us on thewomenspodcast@irishtimes.com even if it’s just to let us know how you are getting on. We'd love to hear from you. Last week before the social distancing measures came into force, Kathy Sheridan was joined in studio by best selling author Patricia Scanlan to talk about her brand new book, The Liberation of Brigid Dunne. They spoke about Patricia’s journey from librarian to author, the ten years she spent living undiagnosed with endometriosis and her most rewarding work to date; The Open Door Project. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the words of Irish Minister for Health Simon Harris, we are now "in the delay phase". Schools, colleges and other public facilities are set to close in Ireland this evening for at least two weeks, in response to the spread of coronavirus. In this episode, Kathy Sheridan was joined in studio by three newly elected TD's who gave their reaction to the measures being introduced today by the government; Sinn Féin’s Claire Kerrane, Fine Gael’s Jennifer Carroll MacNeill and Holly Cairns from the Social Democrats. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Happy International Women’s Day. This episode was recorded live from The Convention Centre in Dublin, as part of Accenture’s International Women’s Day Celebrations. Kathy Sheridan hosted the ‘People Like Us’ panel which explored how speaking out and sharing challenging life experiences can have a positive impact on society. Joining Kathy on stage was Senator Lynn Ruane, Izzy Keane the Creator of Izzy’s Wheels, spoken word artist Sasha Terfous and CEO of IDA Ireland Martin Shanahan. Thanks to everyone who attended the event and to Accenture for inviting us back again. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, our book clubbers got to grips with Motherwell: A Girlhood by Deborah Orr. It’s a fiery, honest memoir, which ultimately became the final piece of work from the late journalist and author. Irish Times journalists Niamh Towey and Bernice Harrison shared their views on the memoir alongside Róisín Ingle and her mother Ann. We had lots of differing opinions around the table, but one thing is for sure; this book is guaranteed to spark important conversations about motherhood, family and relationships. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The teenage years are a period of intense growth, both emotionally and physically. Add to that, the pressures of social media, school, relationships and sexuality and you’ve got a real parenting challenge on your hands. For this episode on raising teenagers, Róisín Ingle spoke to author and mum of seven Jen Hogan, Irish Times social affairs correspondent Kitty Holland and her seventeen year old daughter Rosie. They discussed some of the biggest challenges when it comes to parenting, the importance of open and honest communication and what life is like for a teen in 2020. They also shared their thoughts on the new parenting book 'Talk to Me' by Anita Conlon, which is full of advice on how to have those difficult conversations with teens. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2020 is a leap year, meaning that we get an extra day, the 29th February. According to tradition, this is the day in which it’s “acceptable” for a woman to propose to a man. To celebrate this bonus day in the calendar, we invited comedian Erin McGathy and journalist Jenn Gannon to watch the movie ‘Leap Year’ starring Amy Adams and Mathew Goode. Also in this episode, Róisin Ingle spoke to Australian author Sam George Allen and Irish journalist Louise Bruton about the power and pleasure of working with other women. Sam recently released her new book Witches, which explores the different ways women collaborate together, while Louise is part of the newly established Rogue Collective, a new online publication which features an all female line up.Plus Irish Times journalist Jennifer O’Connell joined Róisin to speak about some of the biggest stories of the week including Harvey Weinstein’s guilty verdict and Duffy’s brave statement about her rape and subsequent exit from music. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of The Women’s Podcast was recorded live at Liberty Hall Theatre in Dublin with the award winning author Anne Enright as our special guest on the night. Anne has just released her much anticipated seventh novel, ‘Actress’. The Book follows the life of stage and screen star Katherine O’Dell as told through the eyes of her daughter Norah. Anne spoke to Kathy Sheridan in front of a packed audience about life as a reluctant feminist, the writing process and why the theme of motherhood pops up in her books again and again. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.