The Hard Shoulder

The Hoxton Hotel, a new hotel on Dublin’s Exchequer Street is seeking an injunction over music noise levels from an adjoining restaurant and late night music venue, Yamamori Izakaya. The hotel is alleging that noise has resulted in the closure of 31 of its 129 bedrooms and wants further acoustic protection installed by Yamamori. But, where does the onus lie when it comes to noise in city centre developments? And is noise just something that has to be accepted in a city centre?Ray O’Donoghue is Dublin City’s Night Time Economy Advisor and Andrea Horan is the Owner of Tropical Popical nail salon. They join Ciara to discuss.

Today marks the release of ‘Inside America’s Next Top Model’ on Netflix, a three part documentary that pulls the curtain back on the dark side of the reality show…Shane is joined by Holly Carpenter, Social Media Content Creator and Model, to discuss.Image: Netflix

For this week’s Kids Clinic, Ciara is joined by Siobhan O’Neill White of Mams.ie to discuss the always tricky subject of sleepovers!

Sinn Féin politicians including party leader Mary Lou McDonald will not be attending the White House in the United States, continuing last year’s decision.Mick Clifford, Special Correspondent with The Irish Examiner joins Shane to discuss.

Gardaí investigating the disappearance and murders of Jo Jo Dullard and Deirdre Jacob have today begun searching open ground near the Wicklow / Kildare border.Ciara is joined by Barry Cummins, Author of Missing and RTÉ journalist for the latest.

Today, the Labour Party are hosting a conference calling for a genuine right to remote work in Ireland.For more on this, X is joined by Labour’s Employment Affairs Spokeswoman, Marie Sherlock and Karen Kiernan, CEO of One Family…

More than 800 drivers were arrested numerous times for drink or drug driving between 2022 and 2024, with figures from last year expected to bring that number to over 1,000.That’s according to the latest figures from the Medical Bureau of Road Safety.Joining Ciara to discuss is Professor Dennis Cusack, Director of the Medical Bureau of Road Safety & Ger Herbert, Motoring Expert, The Irish Independent…

"We’re living in the Peak A**hole Era and there’s nothing anyone can do about it", so says Tanya Sweeney, Features writer and Columnist with The Irish Independent.She joins Shane to discuss why people have seemingly become so rude…

The Minister for Education, Hildegarde Naughton has been asked to explain why many schools around the country have been told their allocation for Special Needs Assistants may be cut from this September. Fórsa this morning told The Claire Byrne Show that a number of schools have received contact that their allocation will be cut when the next school year starts…Hildegarde Naughton, Minister for Education and Youth joins Ciara to discuss.

This week, Shane was joined by Saoirse Hanley of The Irish independent and Ger Gilroy from  Off The Ball  

The parents of 16-year-old Grace Lynch, who was tragically killed by a scrambler close to her home last month, say they do not want any other parent to go through what they are going through.This weekend marks three weeks since Grace was killed.Her parents Siobhan and Martin have been speaking to our Chief Reporter Barry Whyte… 

New statistics from The Central Bank show fathers with young children are working less hours than they were in 2019, opting to instead to stay home with their children where possible.  Joining Shane was Off the Balls, Adrian Barry and  Jen Hogan  features journalist and host of the Conversations with Parents podcast

The Republic of Ireland will begin their Nations League campaign with away fixtures against Kosovo and Israel in September, and the home games have been scheduled for October with Israel scheduled to play at Aviva Stadium on Sunday, 4 October, 3 days before the anniversary of the Hamas attack   Shane was joined by Charlie McConalogue, Minister of State at the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport and Fianna Fail TD for Donegal to discuss the fixture

Off The Ball's Mick McCarthy joined Shane on The Hard Shoulder to review the week in sport and look ahead to the weekend action…

Now it’s time to look over to Milano Cortina to catch up with the Winter Olympics.  We have plenty to chat about between sports and scandal.Barry Kenny, Corporate Communications Manager with Irish Rail and Olympics superfan, joined Shane to discuss

Many of you will be picking up some last minute presents for your other half this evening."Well, expect to pay more than you did last year for your boxes of chocolates and flowers.""New research from the CSO shows the price of a box of cholates has increased by 44 percent since 2020."Josh Crosbie has been looking into the cost of love, and he sent us this report.

Vaping has been across the headlines for the past 24 hours... With the UK Government planning to ban vaping in cars carrying children, as well as in playgrounds and outside schools As well as Trinity College Dublin announcing its campus will be a vape free area from the 18th of March. Is it time we introduce harsher restrictions on vaping?Maybe a ban on vaping in public places?Shane was joined by John Crowne, Consultant oncologist at St Vincent's University Hospital Group and Janet Horner Councilor for Dublin North Inner City, Cathaoirleach for The Green Party

Motorists are being urged not to drive through flooding in Dublin as the council monitors high river levels following an estimated 46mm of rainfall overnight.  For more on Shane was joined by Mark Bowe, Meteorologist with Met Eireann and Graham McQueen, DAA spokesperson.    

Sarina Bellissimo, Broadcaster and Presenter of the Bellissimo Files Podcast and Dee Reddy, Entertainment Journalist and Podcaster joined Shane David O’Callaghan,  From the Here and Back Again podcast.

Ireland's Senior Mens international Football team, as members of League B of the  Nations League, have been drawn to face Israel, Austria and Kosovo.  Some have called for the FAI not to fulfil the fixture, if Ireland were drawn against Israel given the conflict in Gaza in recent years. The FAI confirmed tonight it will honor the fixture . Sports Writer Kieran Cunningham joined Shane and the Hard Shoulder to explain the impact of the draw

Ryanair, today called on Micheál Martin to urgently pass legislation to scrap the Dublin Airport cap of 32m passengers before St Patrick's Day Today, the Advocate General of the European Court ruled that even an outdated traffic cap, such as the one at Dublin Airport, may still be enforceable. Shane was joined by Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary to discuss the ruling

Actor Jason O’Mara joins Shane for this week’s Thursday Interview!

The Health Minister, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, said she hopes that the National Children’s Hospital could accept patients from December this year if the hospital construction was completed by April. The Minister was asked at the Oireachtas Health Committee yesterday if construction would actually be finished by the latest deadline of April 30th. To which she replied, 'That's up to BAM'. Committee chair Padraig Rice said the Minister must begin legal proceedings against the company to ensure no more deadlines are missed.Joining Shane to discuss further is Public Procurement Expert from DCU, Paul Davis

New figures show almost 200,000 public patients received care through the National Treatment Purchase Fund last year.So what affect does the NTPF have on waiting lists? How does it operate? And do those working in the healthcare system feel the benefits?Our reporter, Josh Crosbie  has been seeing what people do if they are on a waiting list and  examining the alternative options available for public patients

Gardaí are set to take industrial action over the St Patrick’s Day weekend, with frontline Gardaí refusing voluntary overtime.   A Special Delegates Conference for the Garda Representative Association in Kilkenny yesterday decided on this measure in response to a government dispute over pay and allowances.To discuss, Shane was joined by Niall Hodgins, Vice President of the GRA and Representative for Dublin North Central and Mannix Flynn, Independent Dublin City Councillor.

Ireland is set to take a cold plunge later this week as the long rainy spell gives way to frost and ice, with temperatures expected to hit lows of −4 degrees under the influence of an Arctic air massJoining Shane  to discuss further was Alan O’Reilly of Carlow Weather and Peter Dowdall aka the Irish Gardener on advice for people who are dealing with gardens sodden with water

A German practice of ‘airing’ your home has recently gained popularity – regardless of the weather outside!  The practice of ‘luften’, opening your windows and doors daily, is thought to reduce mold, odors and pollutants.  To explain shane was joined by Professor John Wenger from the Centre for Research in Atmospheric Chemistry in University College Cork...

Ireland have a 25% chance of drawing Israel in today’s UEFA Nations League draw and the FAI have reiterated their plans to fulfil the two fixtures. Shane Coleman was joined by Daniel Lambert, Chief Operating Officer of Bohemian’s Football Club to discuss whether the men's national team should participate in the fixture if we draw Israel.

Life can be full of confusing things, but no need to worry! Every Wednesday, Simon Tierney will be showing you ‘How to do Stuff’ - bringing his best tips for those things you might not think about.This week, Simon joins Shane to discuss how to Celebrate success with honour.

Earlier today on the Claire Byrne Show, reporter Alex Rowley revealed that Gardaí missed their target of 75 new Roads Policing Gardaí in 2024, and have also missed their new target of 150 members going into the unit in 2025Just 79 Gardaí have been appointed, which included just 23 in 2024 and 56 last year. That’s a shortfall of 71 gardai. This comes after an increase in road deaths in 2025 which saw 188 people lose their lives on our roadsMeghan Scully is a broadcaster and road safety advocate and joined Shane in Studio

James Lawless,  Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. TD for Kildare North joined Shane  to discuss the changes coming to housing legislation and ongoing issues in the market. Aswell as plans to third level tution fees by 500 euros.

Now, if you have been keeping up with the Winter Olympics this week you may have noticed a particularly peculiar moment after Tuesday’s biathlon... where medalist Sturla Holm Laegreid made a bizarre public confession to his girlfriend about cheating on her, while also publicly asking for a second chance.Joining Shane was Relationship Expert from Two's Company, Jennifer Haskins

For this week’s Tech Takeover, Jess Kelly, Newstalk’s Technology Correspondent, joins Shane to explain Prompt Cowboy. Generative AI tools are now being used by many to increase our productivity. But sometimes are prompts can be poor, leading to poor results. Prompt Cowboy is a website that helps us create prompts for generative AI that are clearer and more precise, meaning the results we get from AI is often better.

Images of the proposed pedestrianisation of College Green and Dame Street were unveiled by Dublin city Council today, with the plan expected to cost 80 million.Frank McDonald  Author and former environment editor, joined Shane to argue that some aspects of the plan are flawed

The HSE is set to clinically review 62 children who underwent orthopedic surgery as a ‘precautionary measure.’  The move follows an independent report into the service in 2023, commissioned after high rates of post-operative complications and infections came to light.   Many parents of children that underwent orthopedic surgeries are still waiting to hear whether their child is one of the 62 under review.   Shane was joined by by Una Keightley who is one such parent, and co-lead of the Spina Bifida Paediatric Advocacy Group to react to the news.

Sinn Féin’s two MEPs have voted against a €90 billion European Union loan to Ukraine when the before the European Parliament today.  The party has said it supports the provision of humanitarian aid but says the proposed loan is ‘primarily for military expenditure’.  Joining Shean to discuss was Regina Doherty,   Irish Fine Gael MEP and Micheal Mc Namara,   Independent MEP for Ireland South

The “beep test”, a standard aerobic fitness measure used for prospective firefighters and Gardaí for the last 40 years, has been all over the news in the past few days.This is after Cork Fire Brigade was ordered to pay €8,000 in compensation to a part-time firefighter aged in her 40s, after a tribunal found the test discriminates against women and advantages younger candidates But how good a measure of your true fitness, is it?Shane travelled to Dublin City Centre, where I met with Personal Trainer John Belton to take the test and find out. To further discuss the ‘Beep Test’ Shane was joined by Former Garda inspector in north central Dublin, Former Deputy-Secretary of the AGSI and current Risk, Security & Event Manager of Ashtree Risk Group, Tony Gallagher

Following yesterdays shooting in at a school in Tumbler Ridge Canada, as the small community tries to come to terms with this Shane was joined by Trent Ernst, Local Tumbler Ridge journalist to reflect on the tragic events.

A protest against the Residential Tenancies Bill will take place today at 5.30pm outside the Dáil.  The bill would allow small landlords to reset rents to market rates between tenancies and will introduce six-year tenancies, amongst other changes.  People Before Profit called the protest, as TD Richard Boyd Barrett accused the Government of “dancing to the tune” of corporate landlords “profiteering” from the “housing crisis misery”.Shane was joined by Helen who is a staff member and regional organizer at the Community Action Tenants Union and tenant and by Michael Houghton, Columnist with the Irish Independent, host of the Irish Fire podcast and private landlord to debate the incoming measures

The trial of an American man who killed his father at the five-star Ballyfin Demesne hotel in Portlaoise 12th November 2024, during a psychotic episode told gardaí that he told his father he would always love him as he took his last breath.He has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.Joining Shane was Frank Graney, Newstalk’s courts correspondent.  

Every week for The Ultimate Guide on The Hard Shoulder, Fionn Davenport takes a closer look at some of the fantastic destinations to visit around the world.This week, as part of his 12 best cities in the world, Fionn joined Shane to give the ultimate guide to Madrid in Spain !

Within the last week, have you done one or more of the following? Cleaned your house. Cooked in a non-stick pan. Worn make-up. Drunk tap water. Bought a takeaway coffee. Charged your phone.Chances are you’ve done most, if not all of them, without a second thought.And what you probably don’t realise is that every single one has put you in contact with a strain of dangerous ‘forever chemicals’.Joining Shane to  discuss was Microbiologist and Food Scientist, Anna Burn

The Dublin Airport cap is set to be lifted by the government. But are government plans foregoing climate policy to achieve economic growth ? Shane was joined by the President of the ICMSA, Denis Drennan, who questioned whether this move is a counter to the ambitions set out in the Climate Action Plan

Social Democrat TD for Dublin Central joined Shane to place his favourite book on The Hard Shoulder Bookshelf!

A survey in the UK edition of The Times suggests that one in four workers would run out of money in a month if they lost their job Essentially suggesting our rainy-day savings are dangerously low, putting many at risk if they suddenly became unemployed.  To discuss all things savings, Shane was joined by Paul Merriman, CEO of Fairstone and Founder of Askpaul.

Joining Shane was Darragh O’Brien, Minister for Transport, Climate, Energy and the Environment on the Government's plans to scrap the contentious 32 million annual passenger cap at Dublin Airport following approval by Cabinet today.

At the turn of the century, there were 522 active nightclubs across the country; as of our last count, there are only 83.There has been much debate recently whether we should try and revive the humble nightclub, or whether they have become a vestigial organ in Irish society =Joining Shane to discuss this is Lifestyle columnist with the Irish Examiner and Trinity student, Jane Cowen, Journalist at DMG media, Becca Fisher and CEO of Temple Bar and Spokesperson for Dublin Business Alliance, Martin Harte

Today is safter internet day and according to Cyber Safe Kids, more than half of children are at risk from online contact with strangers. In this major study, over 3,300 children and 1,700 parents were surveyed nationwide. And 25% of parents say they “do not understand” the games & apps their child uses. Henry McKean had a conversation with 6th class in The Harold School in Glasthule, Dublin, about online safety. He sent us this report.Also joining Shane to chat through this year's aim of making young kids ‘AI aware’ is Dónal Mulligan from DCU School of Communications and host of ‘Enough about AI’ podcast

France is set to send letters toa ll 29-year-old citizens, as a reminder to ‘have a baby while you can.’  The move is part of the government’s 16-point plan to increase fertility rates. The letter will be sent to men and women and will remind them  that fertility is a shared responsibility between both sexes.    So, should the Irish government follow suit? Are we doing enough to incentivise having children here?  Joining Shane was David Quinn, head of the Iona Institute and Newstalk's Own Hugh Keenan

Shane was joined by pulitizer winning Photographer, Deanne Fitzmaurice on the launch of her book of photographs, ‘On Dublin: Reflections on the Irish Capital’ in conjunction with The Little Museum of Dublin.   Shane also spoke to her work as a war photographer, and of course the powerful portrayal of Saleh, a young Iraqi war victim was the Pulitzer Prize winning photography in 2005.