The Hard Shoulder

The European Commission has accused TikTok of creating an "addictive design" in its app which could harm the physical and mental wellbeing of minors and vulnerable adults.  Joining Shane was Ollwyn Moran, Neuro Development Therapist & Founder of Cogni Kids

President Donald Trump has shared a video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes in a late-night Truth Social posting spree which has sparked outrage in the US   Shane was  joined by Anthony Zurcher   BBC North America correspondent &   James Carville, US political consultant, author and commentator  

A new survey shows that one in seven homes have fallen into arrears on their electricity billsThe State’s Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) has found that almost 300 thousand homes were behind with their electricity bills at the end September. This is all while energy costs in Ireland continue to be one of the highest in Europe  Joining Shane  Pearse Doherty, Sinn Fein TD for Donegal and spokesperson on Finance

Super Bowl Sunday will see The New England Patriots take on the Seatle Seahawks, with Bad Bunny taking on the iconic half time show  For more on this Shane were joined by Susan Culleton Hayes, Host of Taking Stock and The Positive Economist & Ali Ryan, Founder and CEO of @goss.ie

Joining Shane   on what can we expect for the rest of the day and into the weekend, was Alan O’Reilly from Carlow Weather. Also joining the programme was Josh Crosbie  Newstalk Reporter who has been asking people if our weather warning system is up to par

Last week we spoke to Sheila Gilheaney, CEO of Alcohol Alliance Ireland following a report published on youth drinking take a listen...Following that discussion psychotherapist, Michelle Whelan Kennedy got in touch with the show saying she felt that the argument on raising prices or increasing tax on alcohol is overly simplistic.  “As a therapist and also as a mother, I see how raising the cost of alcohol has...forced drinking heavily before going out because it’s unaffordable when people go out.”She joined Shane to explain her argument

Sarina Bellissimo, Broadcaster and Presenter of the Bellissimo Files Podcast and John Fardy Presenter of Screentime joined Ciara and Shane to review the latest TV and movie releases…

A group of Labour TDs are calling for the Government to introduce paid miscarriage leave and paid leave for those going through IVF treatment. It is estimated that miscarriage affects thousands of women in Ireland every year, with The Miscarriage Association estimating that one in every five pregnancy ends in miscarriage. Shane and Ciara joined Labour Spokesperson for Health Marie Sherlock and Roisin Moriarty, Volunteer and Secretary with The Miscarriage Association.

Now it’s the first Thursday night start to the Six Nations with Ireland at the Stade de France to take on a heavily favoured French side. Luke Fitzgerald, former Irish international joined Shane and Ciara to discuss how he is  feeling about Ireland’s prospects?

Former Rugby Union Referee Nigel Owens, joins Ciara and Shane for this week’s Thursday Interview!

One person has died and three others have been injured after a bus drove down a pedestrianised street in Dublin city this afternoon. Joining us with the latest from the scene was Keith Kelly Journalist at the Irish Independent and David Hall CEO of Lifeline Ambulance Service

The chair of Bord Bia Larry Murrin has told the Oireachtas Agriculture Committee today that he has ‘never been conflicted’ in his role as chair of the organisation.Francie Gorman, President of the Irish Farmers Association joined Shane and Ciara to give his reaction to the Committee meeting and to respond to critism over the associations ongoing protest outside the buildings of Bord Bia.

It is exactly 10 years ago today, when one of the most horrific gangland attacks took place in this country. The Regency Shooting marked a significant turning point in the Hutch-Kinahan feud. . Our reporter, Josh Crosbie has been examining the social impact the feud has on communities affected by gangland activity. And he joined Shane and Ciara to discuss

It is exactly 10 years ago today, when one of the most horrific gangland attacks took place in this country. The Regency Shooting marked a significant turning point in the Hutch-Kinahan feud. . Our reporter, Josh Crosbie has been examining the social impact the feud has on communities affected by gangland activity. And he joined Shane and Ciara to discuss

Kemi Badenoch has asked Labour MPs to join her in a no confidence vote against Keir Starmer, as Downing Street comes under pressure to reveal how Mandelson was vetted for the post of US ambassador. Lucy Fisher, Chief Political Commentator with Times Radio joined Shane and Ciara to discuss.

A Status Orange rain warning is currently in effect for Dublin, Wicklow, Waterford and Louth and a Yellow warning in effect for nine other counties. Joining Shane Ciara for the latest on it was  Meteorologist Matthew Martin at Met Éireann.

One person has died and three others have been injured after a bus drove down a pedestrianised street in Dublin city this afternoon. Joining us with the latest from the scene was Emily Keegan Newstalk Reporter and to react to the tragedy was Ray McAdam Lord Mayor of Dublin and FG councillor for North Inner City

The Muppets make their grand return to tv today, with a star studded cast including Sabrina carpenter and a special show on Disney+.  It's a classic of American kids television, but Irish Telly has some classics of it’s own.  Where are the realtaí of Irish children's tv now and how has home grown programming shaped the people we are today? Newstalk's Sarah Madden reports:... 

Ciara and Shane were joined, as always at this time on a Wednesday by Simon Tierney, who tells us how to do stuff...the stuff you do every day but may not be great at or need advice on...

Tomorrow marks 10 years since the Regency Hotel shooting. Ciara and Shane were joined by Paul Williams, Author & Crime Journalist, to take us back to this seminal event in the history of organised crime in Ireland...

The muppets make their grand return to tv today, with a star studded cast including Sabrina carpenter and a special show on Disney+.It's a classic of American kids television, but Irish Telly has some classics of it’s own.Where are the realtaí of Irish children's tv now and how has home grown programming shaped the people we are today?Newstalk's Sarah Madden reports:

Inquests into the deaths of five babies murdered by Lucy Letby have opened today, following the release of a new documentary by Netflix, which features unseen police footage. David Conn, Investigations Correspondent with The Guardian who was at the inquest joined Shane and Ciara with the latest on the case and why some believe her conviction should be overturned.

Ciara and Shane were joined by Newstalk’s Technology Correspondent and Presenter of Tech Talk Jess Kelly for Tech Takeover.

Rain warnings for eleven counties will come into effect tomorrow with a status orange alert for Wicklow and Waterford. For the latest on these warnings, Shane and Ciara were joined by Cathal Nolan, of the weather channel.

Almost three thousand adults are on waiting lists to see an HSE psychologist, and nearly half of those are waiting more than a year. And when it comes to CAMHS, over four thousand children and adolescents are on waiting lists to access their services. Those are just two statistics to tell the story of the many problems in our mental health services. Mary Butler is the Minister of State for Mental Health. She joined Shane and Ciara to discuss how the government plans to address shortcomings in the provision of mental health services.

A new study from the University of Edinburgh has found that people from the North West of Ireland have the highest risk of developing haemochromatosis. The disease, also known as the ‘Celtic curse’, is an inherited condition that causes an iron build-up in the body. But why is the condition so common here and what symptoms should you be aware of? Professor John Ryan is a consultant hepatologist at Beaumont Hospital and joined Shane and Ciara

The Oireachtas Media Committee met today to discuss the regulation of online platforms, with senior staff from Meta, Google and TikTok. Social media platform X has refused the invitation . It comes for Age verification for social media to go before Cabinet Sinead Gibney is Social Democrats TD for Dublin Rathdown, and member of the Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport.She joined Ciara and Shane to discuss what issues were raised at the Media Committee today.

Minister for Education Hildegarde Naughton will bring to Cabinet proposals for statutory charter to strengthen accountability in schools.  Under this proposal parents will be told by schools the amount of money generated from these voluntary contributions and how exactly it is being spent by the school.To discuss this further Shane and Ciara were joined by Seamus Mulconroy, General Secretary of Catholic Primary School Management Association.    

The cabinet have agreed a complete ban on scramblers in public places. This is after the death of 16-year-old Grace Lynch in Finglas recently. The Minister for Transport, Darragh O’Brien, said the legislation will be in place in a matter of weeks. Saying we owe it to Grace and her family. But how widespread are Scramblers in communities in Dublin and how difficult will it be to enforce? Henry McKean joined Shane and Ciara.

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 Ciara and Shane to give the ultimate guide to Hanoi in Vietnam

‘AI-assisted mammograms result in fewer aggressive and advanced breast cancer’, according to a new study which used AI in 200,000 breast exams from various institutions in more than 10 countries.  Joining Shane and Ciara was Suzanne Little, Professor in the School of Computing at Dublin City University.

Chef  Kevin Dundon joined Shane and Ciara  to place his favourite book on The Hard Shoulder Bookshelf!

In the UK, Peter Mandelson has resigned from the House of Lords over the latest revelations about his relationship with  Jeffrey Epstein, while in the US, Former US president Bill Clinton and former Secretary State Hillary Clinton will testify in a congressional investigation  Joining Shane and Ciara was Terry Sheridan, News Director at WSHU radio  

Josh Crosbie, Newstalk reporter, joined Ciara and Shane from Kilkenny as in the wake of Storm Chandra, the town deals with the damage caused by excessive rain fall. He spoke to families and business effected by the flooding and what they would like to see happen in the future to protect their community from flooding.

“One thing the Government could do in 2026 that would improve the lives of young people would be to introduce driving lessons in secondary schools.” That’s a suggestion from the Letters page in The Irish Times over the weekend.  But how would that work? Should it be rolled out at the government level, and would driving schools be willing to partake in these modules?  Joining Shane and Ciara was Jim Carey, Success 4 You driving school and Michael Finn, Principal of Gorey Community School, who have trailed a driving program with their TY students.  

A new initiative by a south London pub aims to not only get people making real-life connections but also to practice their small talk skills.  The idea for these live events sparked from the development of the app called ‘The death of small talk’, which gives its users prompts of interesting questions to ask when in a social setting like a first date.  Joining Shane and Ciara was Glenn Edwards, founder of the Death of Small Talk app and Sam Chambers,   Early app founder and host of the app's live events.  

The National Emergency Coordination Group has warned that the risk of flooding across the east and southeast regions is "very high" in the coming days as further heavy rain is forecast.Ciara and Shane were joined by Rebecca Cantwell, Meteorologist with Met Eireann for the latest on the weather

Peter Mandelson is set to step down as a member of the House of Lords following the latest revelations about his relationship with the paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.Ciara and Shane were joined by Stephen Pound, Former Labour MP for Ealing North and former Northern Ireland Shadow Minister

“The State should not be absolved of its role in the public's mental health” that’s according to Paul Hosford, Acting Political Editor with The Irish Examiner.Paul spoke to Ciara and Shane about his own personal experience of dealing with Mental Health, how the state is not meeting the needs of many in providing mental health treatment and argues needs to do more.If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this interview - please contact Samaritans on their helpline: 116 123

Dublin City is being left ‘like a bomb’ site by bin scavengers searching for return bottles, according to the Chief Executive of Dublin City Council, Richard Shakespeare. Speaking on The Claire Byrne Show this morning, Mr Shakespeare said that the costs for this extra cleaning could be up to one million euro.  Larissa Nolan, Features Editor and Columnist with The Irish Mirror and Tad Kirakowski, CEO, of VOICE Ireland Joined Shane and Ciara to debate.

This week, Ciara Doherty was joined by the presenter of Weekend Breakfast on Alison Curtis Presenter, TodayFM Niamh O’Reilly Journalist to look back on the week that was, but with a few twists…

With Bruce Springsteen after releasing a new protest song, following the events in Minneapolis.  John Fardy joined Ciara Doherty to discuss how Music is used time and time again to highlight political and cultural issues and to go through some of the most iconic protest songs

Society has often branded night owls who are late risers as lazy, that coupled with the warnings that burning the midnight oil can have on their health.  But why are some early birds and others night owls and can you change your sleep pattern?  Joining Ciara Doherty to discuss was Sleep Expert, Lucy Woolf.

New research from the ESRI has shown that people who gambled as children are almost twice as likely to suffer from problem gambling when they become adults. So what is Problem Gambling, and how are children being drawn into the world of gambling? To discuss this, Ciara was joinedby the Head of Addiction Services at Saint John of God Hospital and Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at UCD, Colin O’Gara.

Travelling to the US could soon become an app-based dystopia where facial scans and social media tracking are the norm, so writes Adrian Weckler for the Irish IndependentThis update has tightened the traditional Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA), which the vast majority of Irish people rely on for travel to the States.This begs the question, as security tightens, is this the start of further restrictions on travel to the US?Joining me now to explain this further is Technology editor of the Irish Independent, Adrian Weckler and Professor And Political Analyst Clinton Institute UCD, Scott Lucas.

Time to talk sport, and Ciara Doherty was joined by Off The Ball’s Eoin Sheahan to talk all the weekends sport, including I pressure on Arsenal following last weeks loss to Man Utd. Who is in the Australian open finals and how are Ireland’s chances ahead of the six nations next thursday?

Alcohol Action Ireland (AAI) has published a report on youth drinking, which shows a 3% increase in alcohol consumption levels by 15- to 24-year-olds between 2024 and 2025.The report says that when drinking is initiated by young people, it is accompanied by high levels of particularly risky and hazardous consumption, with 64% regularly binge drinking and one in three having an alcohol-use disorder.  Joining Ciara Doherty to discuss the findings were Sheila Gilheaney, CEO of Alcohol Alliance Ireland and Dr Eoin Fogarty, Consultant in Emergency and Retrieval Medicine at Cork University Hospital

On Sunday, Israel will reopen the Rafah border crossing for people to travel between Gaza and Egypt. To discuss the significance of this development, Ciara Doherty was  joined by Long-time international correspondent, Borzou Daragahi.

Starting on Tuesday February 3rd, Ciara Kelly and Shane Coleman will bring you The Hard Shoulder, your essential drive-time companion. From politics to pop culture, and everything in between - they'll bring you the stories that really matter, with lively debate, sharp insight and excellent analysis. Listen to the Hard Shoulder podcast on the Go Loud app, or wherever you get your podcasts.

A status yellow rain warning came into place for 7 counties today, including those badly affected by floods in the southeast.The warning will expire at midnight but given the damage which storm Chandra has done, can we expect futher damage and distruption ?Ciara was joined by Holly O’Neill Meteorologist with Met Eireann Lara Lewis From Lara Lewis School of Motoring for driving tips during the bad weather