The Hard Shoulder

Off The Ball's Nathan Murphy joined Kieran Cuddihy on The Hard Shoulder to review the week in sport and look ahead to the weekend action...

Donald Trump is facing criminal charges over his handling of classified documents after he left the White House. The details of the charges related to files found at his Mar-a-Lago home in August 2022 have not been released. His attorney confirmed seven counts, including an espionage charge and several obstruction and false statement charges - describing them as "ludicrous". Kieran was joined by Greg Swenson, Chairman of Republicans Overseas UK, and Bob Mullholland, Democratic Party Strategist in California…

How neutral really is Ireland and how has the concept of neutrality changed over time? Kieran was joined on The Hard Shoulder by Conor Gallagher, Irish Times Crime and Security correspondent to discuss his new book 'Is Ireland Neutral: The Many Myths of Irish Neutrality'...

Controversy is brewing in Italy after it was announced that cyclists could be forced to take out insurance, fit numbers plates and have indicators on their bicycles. But could similar measures improve road safety here in Ireland? Kieran was joined by Seamus Boland, CEO of irish Rural Link and Noel Gibbons, Chairperson of the Western Lakes Cycling Club

Trade unionist Brendan Ogle and Minister of State Neale Richmond debated whether an unemployment rate of 3.8% is a true good news story, or whether it tells another tale.

SIPTU has today been seeking a €2 an hour increase for workers in early years education at pay talks that began today. The union wants the minimum hourly wage rate to increase from €13 to €15. Darragh O’Connor, SIPTU's Head of Strategic Organising and Campaigns joined Kieran after talks to discuss the moves going forward...

Last June, Sky Arts ran its first ever nationwide arts initiative for primary schools, ‘Access All Arts week’. It’s back for its second year, 19-23 June and to celebrate the week, Sky Arts will be airing a special episode of ‘Portrait Artist of the Year’ featuring celebrities and children. Kieran was joined by acclaimed actor, author and presenter of ‘Portrait Artist of the Year’, Stephen Mangan…

Tesco is set to reduce their prices by an average of 10pc across more than 700 products. For more reaction to this, Kieran was joined by Louise O’Reilly, Sinn Fein TD and spokesperson on Enterprise, Trade and Employment and Caitriona Redmond, Cost of Living Expert with the Irish Examiner...

Dubliners could vote next year on whether Dublin should have a directly elected mayor with executive powers. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has indicated that such a vote could be held on the same day as the local and European elections in early June 2024. How do we feel about this prospect? Kieran was joined by Michael Pidgeon, Dublin City Councillor for the Green Party and Derek Mooney, Public Affairs commentator and former Irish government adviser... Image: Green Party

SIPTU has today been seeking a €2 an hour increase for workers in early years education at pay talks that began today. The union wants the minimum hourly wage rate to increase from €13 to €15. Kieran was joined by Paula Donoghue, owner of Clever Clogs in Cavan and national secretary of the Association of Childhood Professionals and Rowena Fisher, a pre-school childcare provider...

Tesco is set to reduce their prices by an average of 10pc across more than 700 products. Barry Whyte, Newstalk's Chief Reporter joined Kieran on The Hard Shoulder to discuss what products this will affect, will it lead to a price war amongst supermarkets and get reaction from shoppers...

Artemis Fowl author Eoin Colfer and illustrator Celia Ivey have combined forces on a new children’s book, Little Big Sister. The book tells the story of a girl growing up with dwarfism. Celia brought the characters to life through her artwork. Kieran was joined by Eoin and Celia in studio...

Dublin has made it into the top 10 most expensive cities in Europe moving up from 13th place last year to 9th this year. But where does the rest of our cities rank? Kieran was joined by Joe O'Shea, Editor of CorkBeo.ie and medical journlalist, June Shannon to discuss...

Newstalk's own, Simon Tierney joined Kieran Cuddihy for the series 'The Shopping Trolley Hotline'. The series will give listeners pause when they’re filling their trolleys, to consider their options. This week Simon and Kieran are looking at two of your five-a-day, apples and oranges...

Greta Thunberg has been nominated for the Honorary Freedom of the City of Dublin which got us thinking, should Ireland have an official honour system? Like the way in which the UK or France honour their citizens? Kieran was joined by Hazel Chu, Former Lord Mayor of Dublin and Green Party Councillor and Joe Lyanm, Broadcaster and Newstalk’s Business Editor…

Marks & Spencer is removing use-by dates from its fresh milk. They want to stop milions of pints that are still safe to consume being poured away, and they’re encouraging customers to use the ‘sniff test’ to tell whether milk is off or not. Kieran was joined by Anna Burns, a microbiologist and nutritional scientist...

According to data published by the National Cancer Registry, disruption to healthcare caused by the Covid-19 pandemic continued to negatively impact cancer diagnoses in 2021. Preliminary data indicates that the number of cancer cases diagnosed in 2021 was 6% lower than projected. Kieran was joined by Professor John Crowne, professor and consultant medical oncologist at the St Vincent’s Hospital Group and Michael McNamara, former Chair of the Oireachtas Covid Committee and Independent TD for Clare.

Dublin has made it into the top 10 most expensive cities in Europe moving up from 13th place last year to 9th this year. In the world rankings Dublin has risen six places to 38th. So is Dublin a rip off or is it value for money? Kieran was joined by Martin Harte, CEO of the Temple Bar Company and Saoirse Hanley, features writer with the Irish Independent to discuss...

Former vice president to Donald Trump, Mike Pence has filed the paperwork to declare himself a candidate for the 2024 US Presidential Election. He will formally launch his campaign tomorrow, on his 64th birthday. Jerry McDermott is Executive Director of the Irish Cultural Centre and former Norfolk County Sheriff.

Kieran Cuddihy was joined by Fine Gael Senator, Regina Doherty, and Socialist Party TD for Cork North Central, Mick Barry. Continuing the series, ‘Common Ground’, they will debate some of the biggest, most divisive topics around. The series continued with a discussion around 'Should we scrap the Leaving Cert?'

The Department of Transport and Transport Infrastructure Ireland have confirmed that tolls on the country’s national road network are to increase from July 1st. Tolls on M50 will increase by 30c for cars without tag or video accounts, bringing the charge to €3.50. Eugene Drennan, President of the Irish Road Haulage Association and Shane O’Donoughe, Editor of CompleteCar.ie joined Kieran to discuss…

The PGA Tour has agreed to merge with rival circuit LIV Golf in a deal that will end the split in the sport. The announcement comes as somewhat of a surprise, after a year of disruption in the men's game. It means pending litigation between the tours will now be halted and they will move forward as a larger enterprise. Kieran was joined by Chief Sports Writer for the Irish Daily Star, Kieran Cunningham to discuss

Kinahan Cartel leader Liam Byrne has been arrested on the holiday island of Majorca, as he visited home from Dubai to meet his family. He is wanted in the UK on serious firearms and organised crime offences - he looks set for extradition to the courts there. Nicola Tallant, Investigations Editor with the Sunday World joined Kieran to discuss... Image: National Crime Agency

Kieran Cuddihy sat down with comedian, Emma Doran. They discussed botox, beards and more!

Rebecca Shekleton, Presenter of the 98 fm weekly Breakfast Show, is flying solo this week in The Pod Couple. This week Rebecca told Kieran about a true crime podcast called 'Betrayal' IMAGE: Twitter @RebShek

The medical council have warned doctors against using diabetes drug ozempic for weight loss. Susie Birney from the Irish coalition for people living with obesity joined Kieran to discuss the stigma that people are facing when asking for the drug.

Amazon has agreed to pay $25 million to the Federal Trade Commission to settle charges over privacy violations linked to its digital assistant, Alexa. Newstalk's Technology Correspondent, Jess Kelly, spoke to Kieran.

Boyzone star Ronan Keating has revealed that he will be getting a vasectomy in the coming weeks. Speaking on the BBC’s Chris and Rosie Ramsey’s show over the weekend, Ronan said he has the date locked in for the snip but will be put under for it as he’s so nervous. Is it as scary as it once was or are more and more men seeing it as the best option for their later years? Dr. Emmet Kerin, Founding Partner of Gentle Procedures Ireland, spoke to Kieran.

British Triathlete Emma Pallant-Browne has received great support online after sharing a picture of herself running the race with her period visibly showing in the image. Kieran was joined by broadcaster, performance coach and former All Ireland winning captain, Anna Geary and Dr Lisa Ryan, head of the Department of Sport, Exercise and Nutrition in the School of Science and Computing at Atlantic Technological University.

An auctioneer in Belfast has been urged to stop the sale of a pencil that apparently once belonged to Hitler. The ornate silver-plated pencil is set to go under the hammer at Bloomfield Auctions in east Belfast next week. The pencil is believed to have been given to Hitler by his long-term partner Eva Braun as a gift for his 52nd birthday on April 20, 1941. It is inscribed with ‘Eva’ in German and the initials “AH”. Oliver Sears, Founder of Holocaust Awareness Ireland joined Kieran.

A landmark review was published on Tuesday that looked into instances of domestic homicide and familicide in Ireland. The report made various wide-ranging recommendations on how families could be better supported by the State. However many have been critical of the recommendations of the report including Andrew McGinley. Andrew McGinley spoke to Kieran about his critique of the report.

Ozempic, the specialist diabetes medicine that has been taken over by a Hollywood craze. As shortages of the drug create issues, the HSE has warned that using it for weight loss puts the population at risk. GP who specialises in obesity medicine, Dr Michael Crotty spoke to Kieran.

As the government looks to make one of the most significant changes to pub licensing in decades - the Vintners Federation of Ireland says more needs to be done to protect older Irish pubs. Newstalk reporter Aoife Kearns looks at how licensing and laws dating as far back as the 1840s, still shape how pubs operate today.

The Garda Ombudsman has said they don’t have the resources to investigate complaints against them. The Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission were before the Oireachtas today they saying the need more staff to investigate Gardai. Crime Writer and Special Correspondent, Paul Williams, with the Irish Independent.

Ireland is among the countries in the EU who have the biggest increase in young adults living with their parents. Ireland’s home ownership rate decreased from 69.6% in 2012 to 69.3% in 2020 - this is compared to In 1990s and early 2000s, it had been ahead of the EU average. Senior lecturer in housing at Technological University Dublin, Lorcan Sirr, and journalist and author, Suzanne Harrington spoke to Kieran

Housing Minister Darragh O'Brien spoke to Kieran about homelessness, census figures on renting and whether the Government is starting to get a grip of the housing crisis.

"The digital stamp has been a winner for An Post". So say executives at the postal service who will launch the international version later this year. Both hope to encourage notes, cards and letters to be sent out on a whim, but who's even writing letters anymore and do pen and paper still have a place in our digital age? Newstalk's Sarah Madden reports.

Travel journalist Fionn Davenport joined us again this week to tell us all about San Antonio, Texas!

According to executives, the digital stamp has been a winner for An Post. The postal service will launch the international version later this year. Both hope to encourage notes, cards and letters to be sent out on a whim, but who's still writing letters and do pen and paper still have a place in our digital age? Newstalk's Sarah Madden spoke to those still writing letters.

One of the findings of the Census is that the proportion of the population who reported themselves to be Roman Catholic fell by 4 per cent to 69 percent between 2016 and 2022. The number of people with no religion also increased by 62 per cent to nearly three-quarters of a million (736,210), which represented approximately 14 percent of the population. Newstalks' Chief Reporter, Barry Whyte has been digging into the findings of today's census and joined Kieran to chat through some of the points that he has found interesting. Kieran was also joined by Parish Priest in Fethard, County Tipperary, Father Iggy O'Donovan and CEO of Humanist Association of Ireland, Jillian Brennan.

Kieran Cuddihy was joined by Fine Gael Senator, Regina Doherty, and Socialist TD for Cork North Central, and member of the Oireachtas Enterprise, Trade and Employment Committee, Mick Barry. This week they debated if the government should introduce price controls.

According to the Irish Independent 65,000 dairy cows a year could be culled as the Government moves to bring the agriculture sector in line with climate targets. Independent TD for Tipperary Mattie McGrath joined Kieran .

According to the census figures, approximately a third of all workers work from home for at least some part of their week. Is this a sign that remote working is here to stay? Neil McDonnell, chief executive of ISME and Caroline Reidy, human resources expert from the HR Suite joined Kieran.

The population of Ireland is over 5 million for the first time in over 170 years, but how should this impact public policy and particularly when it comes to housing? Dan O’Brien is chief economist with the Institute of International and European affairs and columnist with The Business Post and he spoke to Kieran.

As artificial intelligence becomes more powerful everyday some experts are warning that it could lead to human extinction. How much credence should we give these warnings? Kieran was joined by Aidan Connolly, CEO of Idiro Analytics and Conor McGinn, Assistant Professor at the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Trinity College.

Last night was the finale of Succession. Kieran was joined by Newstalk's Succession super fans, Technology Correspondent Jess Kelly, Lunchtime Live's Andrea Gilligan and Off The Ball's Joe Molloy to discuss their thoughts on the episode..

Figures published from the Central Statistics Office today from last year's Census shows Ireland's population has reached over five million people. It is the first time in 171 years that Ireland's population exceeded the five million threshold. There’s also been a decline in the number of those calling themselves Catholic, while there’s been a sharp rise in those working from home. To go through some of the numbers, Kieran was joined by Conor Halpin, senior statistician with the CSO and Jill O’Mahony, sociology lecturer at Southeast Technological University.

Today marks seventy years since New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Nepali Tenzing Norgay Sherpa became the first humans to summit Everest on May 29, 1953. Two Irish men who have made the climb are Explorer Pat Falvey and Jonathan Ruane from Sligo who climbed Everest last year and they both spoke to Kieran Cuddihy on the show…

The finale we’ve all been waiting for. Some of you may have seen it already, I’m watching it as soon as I get home tonight... Succession! Don’t worry, we won’t be giving spoilers – mostly cause I don’t want to hear them. What is it about this show that has made it so successful? And why are we all so hooked? Brian Lloyd, Movies editor at Entertainment.ie and Anna Bogutskaya, host of The Successionistas: A Succession Podcast both joined Kieran Cuddihy on the show.

It's that time on a Monday when we cast our eyes over the political week ahead and Philip Ryan Political Editor with the Irish Independent joined Kieran Cuddihy in the studio...