The Hard Shoulder

Sinn Féin Leader Mary Lou McDonald has hit out at former Irish international footballer Robbie Keane over managing Israeli Club Maccabi Tel Aviv FC claiming that sports and genocide don’t mix. Are these statements fair and should Robbie Keane be criticized for working for an Israel team? Cllr David McManus Fine Gael Councilor for Rathfarnham-Templeogue and Bríd Smith, People Before Profit TD for Dublin South Central joined Kieran to discuss...

Three quarters of workers will respond to work emails over Christmas, according to a new study. Henry McKean joined Kieran with this report...

Reduced speed limits are moving a step closer as the Cabinet is expected to approve the publication of a new bill to legislate for default limits. The Road Safety Strategy 2021-2030 sets the target of reducing road deaths and serious injuries by 50% by 2030 - and one of those ways is by reducing speed limits across the road network. But will it work? Do speed limits make people go slower? Brendan Kelly is Professor of Psychiatry at Trinity College Dublin and he joined Kieran to discuss...

One of the biggest stories from this year was the visit the US President Joe Biden made to Ireland in April of this year Biden checked a big item off his bucket list when he visited Ireland and his ancestral home, making it a deeply personal and wistful journey. Kieran was joined by Mark Duffy, a Councillor for the Ballina Municipal District (Cathaoirleach during visit) and was a big part in the set up of the visit to Ballina and also Larry Donnelly, Director of the Kennedy Summer School and Law Lecturer at the University of Galway who covered the visit extensively at the time...

For many we are heading into holiday time but for lots of shops and restaurants it will be the busiest time of the year. But, should shops should stay closed on Stephen’s Day?Kieran was joined by Conor Pope Consumer Affairs Correspondent with The Irish Times and Deirdre Walsh, Owner of Molly Fulton’s Bar and Restaurant in Sligo...

John Kelleher joined Kieran on The Hard Shoulder to discuss some of the notable deaths that occurred in 2023...

Every week for Tuesday Travel on The Hard Shoulder, Fionn Davenport takes a closer look at some of the fantastic destinations to visit around the world. This week, Fionn joined Kieran to give him tips for travelling around Ireland in 2024...

 The UN’s security council is set to vote this evening on a call for a ceasefire in Gaza.  The vote has been delayed from yesterday and already follows a failed vote after a veto from the US.  Patrick Bury, Senior Security Lecturer at the University of Bath, Former Nato Analyst and Army Officer joined Kieran to discuss

Board games are always a fixture during the Christmas period, but they are also important for building certain skills for children not just for causing arguments over Monopoly.  Founder of Cog Toys and Games Ruth Roberts joined Kieran to chat about what value a couple games can bring to your family and some out of the box boardgames options....  

Thousands of energy customers must wait until the new year before the first electricity credit is applied to their bills. Three energy credits totaling €450, or €150 each, were announced in Budget 2024 to help households facing high electricity bills due to inflation. However, there is anger among householders as this credit has shown up on their accounts but not been applied to their bills. Sinead Ryan, consumer expert and presenter of The Home Show joined Kieran on The Hard Shoulder to discuss...

Discussions continue here in Ireland around laws that would allow for assisted dying in this country. Dame Esther Rantzen, announced today that she has signed up to Dignitas, so that if her cancer treatment doesn’t go to plan, she will have the option to do that. Kieran was joined by her daughter Rebecca Wilcox on The Hard Shoulder to discuss...

Now, it is well and truly festive season and one thing you may not be ready for is a large number of guests. TV Chef and Culinary Lecturer Edward Hayden joined Kieran to give some advice on how best to welcome people into your home....

Have you most of your Christmas shopping done or are you like the rest of us and are leaving it till last minute? What about buying no presents at all, how would that go down in your house on Christmas morning?Well that’s exactly what the Fashion Editor of the Daily Mail has decided to do this year.It got us thinking are people cutting back on buying physical items as presents? Newstalk reporter, Josh Crosbie has been looking into this.

It was a trial that gripped the nation earlier this year which culminated on the 17th of April with Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch being found not guilty by Special Criminal Court of the murder of David Byrne at a boxing event weigh in at the Regency Hotel in 2016. Paul Williams, Crime Journalist with The Irish Independent joined Kieran to take a look back...

Gardaí yesterday confirmed that they are investigating a ‘criminal damage incident’ after a fire broke out at the former Ross Lake House in Rosscahill in County Galway.The hotel had been selected to house 70 asylum seekers and protesters had gathered at the building on Saturday afternoon.Broadcaster and author, Emer O'Neill joined Kieran on The Hard Shoulder to discuss

Philip Ryan, Political Editor, Irish Independent and John Lee, Executive Editor, Daily Mail Group Ireland joined Kieran on The Hard Shoulder to look back on the political year of 2023...

Gardaí yesterday confirmed that they are investigating a ‘criminal damage incident’ after a fire broke out at the former Ross Lake House in Rosscahill in County Galway.The hotel had been selected to house 70 asylum seekers and protesters had gathered at the building on Saturday afternoon.Kieran was joined by JP McMahon, Galway chef and restaurateur and Marian Harkin, Independent TD for Sligo-Leitrim to discuss... 

Over the past few weeks, Kieran Cuddihy has been taking Irish classes as part of a 'Couch to Comhrá in 6 Weeks' challenge.To wrap up the challenge, Kieran was joined by Éamonn Ó Domhnaill, Co-Founder and Director of Education of Gaelteanga and Sibéal Davitt, Kieran’s múinteoir…

Eileen Gleeson has been appointed the permanent manager of the Republic of Ireland’s Women football team.  Gleeson who served as number two under Vera Pauw had been in the role as interim but after a string of great results has secured the position.  Off the Ball’s Kathleen McNamee joined Kieran to discuss...

All this week we will be looking back at the year’s biggest stories.  We’ll start back in September when a group of 200 protesters gathered outside the Dáil with a mock gallows and shouting abuse at politicians and Leinster House Staff..In November we saw a riot break out on O’Connell Street after a tragic stabbing outside Gaelscoil Choláiste Mhuire.  Kieran was joined by Independent TD for Kerry, Michael Healy Rae and Lord Mayor of Dublin, Daithi De Róiste to discuss...

Dublin City Council has granted planning permission for the €100 million redevelopment of St Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre.The capital will lose one of its landmark buildings after the Council has granted planning permission to DTDL Ltd controlled by a fund operated by stockbroker and wealth manager Davy. Henry McKean met people around Dublin and asked them what they thought about it...

Aisling Larkin, Mindful Eating Coach and TV Chef joined Kieran today to chat through some of the top Viral Food Trends from 2023...

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

Dublin Airport has sought approval to increase its annual passenger capacity from 32 million to 40 million.For more on this Kieran was joined by Eoghan Corry, Owner and Editor of TravelExtra and Padraig O’Ceidigh, Former Senator and former owner of Aer Arann...

Karl Spain is bringing his 'Well, What Did You Expect?' to Vicar Street next April. Comedian Karl Spain joined Kieran on The Hard Shoulder...

Conor McGregor has been in the news a lot lately. His comments about the Dublin Riots, talk of running for president, building high rise flats in residential areas he grew up in, and now something more positive, secretly supporting a local soup run. Henry McKean joined Kieran to discuss...

Newstalk’s new Christmas Amárach Poll is here and has revealed that:  Over half of Irish adults will have their main Christmas dinner in their own home this year Two thirds usually have their Christmas dinner mid-to-late afternoon. Turkey is the main roast typically served at Christmas dinner. Kieran was joined by Newstalk's Simon Tierney and Sinead Ryan, Consumer Columnist with the Irish Independent and the Presenter of The Home Show to discuss...  

Former President of Ireland and Chair of the Elders, Mary Robinson joined Kieran Cuddihy on The Hard Shoulder to give her verdict on the COP28 deal...

Some of you may already be digging into Christmas flavoured crisps. Companies like Walkers bring out new flavours for a variety of reasons, and some of its Christmas choices were ‘pigs in blanket’ flavour, festive turkey and sweet and spiced Christmas pudding. So how do companies pick their crisp flavours? And what tends to work and what doesn’t? Tom Keogh, founder and managing director of Keogh’s Crisps joined Kieran on The Hard Shoulder... 

This morning Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of all Ireland Eamon Martin was on Newstalk Breakfast to discuss his comments on Safe Access Zones for women seeking abortions People Before Profit TD Dublin South Central Brid Smith has condemned his comments saying they were deeply offensive to women and pregnant people who were seeking to vindicate their right to bodily autonomy. Kieran was joined by People Before Profit TD Dublin South Central Brid Smith..

A draft law on the use of facial recognition technology - known as FRT - will be published by the Government today.The proposed legislation would allow Gardaí use the technology when searching CCTV footage, which the Justice Minister Helen McEntee has said is vital when it comes to investigating serious crime.Kieran was joined by Barry Ward, Fine Gael Senator and Lorna Bogue, Leader of An Rabharta Glas to discuss..

Threads, the social media platform that Meta hopes will rival Twitter has finally arrived in Ireland today. Kieran was joined by Leigh Mc Gowran, Journalist with Silcon Republic... 

Ahead of a major EU leaders summit, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said today that the EU has lost credibility due to the Unions fragmented response to the Israeli-Palestine conflict.  So how is the reputation of the EU holding up given the major challenges it faces?  Kieran was joined by John O’Brennan Professor of European Politics at NUI Maynooth and Jean Monnet Chair of European Integration and former Irish Ambassador to the UK, Bobby McDonagh...  

Businessman JP McManus is to donate €1 million to each GAA County Board in Ireland to support grassroots investment across all Gaelic games.For more on this, Kieran was joined by Darran O'Sullivan, former Kerry Football captain and Labour Party Senator Annie Hoey...

Anti-social behaviour and shoplifting was the topic of conversation at the Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise, Trade and Employment with many retailers decrying the “explosion of shoplifting” being experienced at the moment. Kieran was joined by Tony Gallagher, Risk, security and event manager with Ashtree risk group, Former Garda inspector and Sheila Clarke Runs Clarke’s XL shop in Ballina, Co Mayo   

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 festive season. This week Simon and Kieran put a variety of mince pies to the test...

Anti-social behaviour and shoplifting was the topic of conversation at the Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise, Trade and Employment with many retailers decrying the “explosion of shoplifting” being experienced at the moment. Kieran was joined by Michael O’Sullivan, the proprietor of a "convenient shop” on Talbot Street and Tara Buckley, Director General of the Retail Grocery Dairy and Allied Trades Association  to discuss...

The FAI was infront of the Oireachtas  Committee on Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht this afternoon in regards to CEO’s Johnathan Hill’s pay. Kieran was joined by Newstalk's Aidan Delaney and Christopher O’Sullivan, Fianna Fáil TD for the Cork South West constituency and member of Committee on Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht.  

After days of negotiations, member states at the UN climate summit in Dubai have agreed a deal calling on all nations to transition away from using fossil fuels. Other pledges and commitments were also made over the two weeks of the climate change talks.  Kieran was joined by Chair of the Climate Change Advisory Council, Marie Donnelly and CEO of Fuels for Ireland, Kevin McPartlan...

Ireland needs to introduce an honours system, according to Green Party TD Patrick Costello who was speaking on Newstalk Breakfast this morning. Gerard Craughwell Independent Senator and Ronan McGreevy Irish Times Journalist, Historian and Author of the book “Great Hatred: The Assassination of Field Marshal Sir Henry Wilson MP” joined Kieran to discuss...

Every week for Tuesday Travel on The Hard Shoulder, Fionn Davenport takes a closer look at some of the fantastic destinations to visit around the world. This week, Fionn joined Kieran to give him tips for travelling in 2024...

Dublin Airport is experiencing it’s busiest time of the year as passengers arrive and depart for Christmas travel. However, residents living near the Airport are still highlighting what they say is “unbearable noise” from the planes.A protest has taken place this evening and our reporter, Josh Crosbie, met with those in attendance.

Kieran 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 for Common Ground.Due to the Dáil ending, and other things, this will be the last one of the year. Kieran, Regina and Mick took a look back some of the debates that we found Common Ground on this year...

The Government today has agreed to reduce welfare benefit rates and to put limits on State accommodation for new arrivals from Ukraine to 90 days.  The current rate of €220 per week will be reduced to €38.80 for the 3 months that Ukrainian people are in state accommodation.Kieran was joined by Deirdre Garvey, Secretary General for Irish Red Cross and Cathal Crowe, Fianna Fáil TD for Clare... 

Details have emerged of a Russian Submarine that was chased from Cork Harbour by the British Navy after it positioned itself outside Cork Harbour 6 months ago. The submarine was just outside the 12-mile limit, so it didn’t break any international laws, but such events around the Irish coast are becoming more common.Kieran was joined by Independent Trinity Senator and Security Analyst, Tom Clonan 

The UAE has been front and centre, as it has been promising to try to strike a deal at the COP28, with at-risk nations and Western powers rejecting a proposal that stopped short of phasing out fossil fuels. The 13-day summit has been debating a first-ever global exit from oil, gas and coal. So will a deal be done? Caroline O’Doherty, Irish Independent Environment Correspondent and Chief Executive of Friends of the Earth Ireland, Oisin Coghlan joined Kieran to discuss...

The apparent clampdown on “dodgy boxes” in continuing in Ireland – yesterday a Dublin man who sold 81 Android TV boxes was given an 18-month suspended sentence at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. So is the day of the dodgy box coming to an end? Kieran was joined by Jess Kelly, Newstalk's Technology Correspondent and Rob Hartnett CEO of Sport for Business...

This week, Henry McKean has had 3 punctures and the AA have helped 3 times. One front right and 2 back left. Why? Because Henry doesn't know how to change a tyre.Henry McKean joined Kieran to bring this report...

Following the recent riots in Dublin, it has been reported that the full pedestrianisation of civic spaces is being reconsidered. This would possibly include allowing taxis into pedestrian areas, with the theory that they might act as some form of ‘passive surveillance’  Kieran was joined by Hazel Chu, Dublin City Councillor for the Green Party and Keith Gavin, Irish Parking Association to discuss...

Over the next few weeks, Kieran Cuddihy will be taking Irish classes as part of a 'Couch to Comhrá in 6 Weeks' challenge and each Monday he will be sharing his journey alongside some Irish speakers.  Seán Óg Ó hAilpín, Cork All Ireland Winning Captain joined Kieran to continue the challenge...