‘Thanks a million, big fella.’ Charlie Haughey’s words to Ben Dunne summed up how Ireland worked for many.But who was Ben Dunne and what were the compulsions that drove him?On Free State today Matt Cooper talks about his gripping new book Dynasty about the Dunnes family.It looks at how Ben Dunne Senior built an empire and how Ben Jr never recovered from the kidnapping.He talks to us about the scene in Florida where, after taking a mountain of cocaine in a hotel with parrots roaming the lobby, Ben Dunne had a breakdown. He was hog tied and taken out of the hotel and it became an event which would eventually provide a glimpse into how Ireland works. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
--------
44:45
--------
44:45
The Legend of the Monday Club
What is the difference between nostalgia and lamenting the loss of something special?Have we become a society that places too much emphasis on propriety at the expense of the unpredictability that makes life worth living.As Joe and Dion reflect on Monday Clubs they’ve belonged from Mayo to Kilburn, they look at the lives of the great hellraisers.They lament too the decline of sports coverage on RTE. Joe shares a story about a day with Pat Gilroy when he knew the writing was on the wall at RTE. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
--------
40:50
--------
40:50
How Trump & Israel made the BBC great again
Donald Trump is threatening to sue the BBC for a billion dollars.On Free State today we ask what is driving this campaign against the BBC?Many studies have concluded that there is a pro Israeli bias at the BBC, but the report that led to the resignation of the director general alleged the opposite. Why has that led to such upheaval when so many say the opposite.Is this the real driver for this coup against members of the establishment and is there ever any point in giving in to the forces that include Trump, the Israeli government and, er, Kemi Badenoch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
--------
39:54
--------
39:54
‘I know a lot of people think Nigel Farage is an extremist. I don’t’
Iain Dale knows he is walking on perilous terrain.Dale is one of Britain’s best known broadcasters and podcasters but his new book is about Ireland, specifically Irish Taoisigh.On Free State today Iain Dale has an animated conversation about what has gone wrong in England and the dangers of nationalism. Yet he argues that he doesn’t believe Nigel Farage is an extremist. Dale has recruited some of Ireland’s foremost writers to write about the holders of the Taoiseach’s office. But he talks about how his own fascination with Ireland began and why he believes it is part of history that Britain needs to reckon with. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
--------
1:06:44
--------
1:06:44
Zohran Mamdani, Mayor of New York. Why is corporate America so terrified of a 34 year old Muslim?
In numbers not seen for half a century, New Yorkers went out and voted for Zohran Mamdani as their new mayor.Mamdani becomes New York’s first Muslim mayor. He came to America at the age of seven and he has created a sense of the possible that was once at the heart of the American condition.On Free State today we ask how did Zohran Mamdani do it? How did he overcome the campaign of demonisation that branded him a dangerous antisemite? He was called a ‘communist lunatic’ by Donald Trump, who threatened to revoke his citizenship.But Mamdani delivered a message of change but one of substance. Joe and Dion also look at the constant emails discussing Joe’s compassionate stance on DJ Carey Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Free State is a podcast for the curious that stimulates, provokes, challenges and entertains, while never taking itself too seriously. Free State covers topics from sport to politics, love to loss, the human condition and how to fix the world, with guests from across the planet including Nigerian princes, former Prime Ministers, ex convicts, footballers, boxers and extraordinary people from every walk of life. Free State is presented by Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning. Brolly is a barrister, an original thinker with a fascinating backstory, who donated a kidney to a stranger and then led a crusade to transform organ donation on the island of Ireland, and Fanning is an award-winning interviewer and author. They are not motivational gurus or life coaches. They will never try to sell you a penis scented candle. They are two people from very different worlds, with one core belief uniting them - this is not a high performance podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
UK