The hypocrisy of Loyalism and why is Jimmy McGuinness having a meltdown?
16/06/2026 | 36 mins.
How have Donegal got themselves in this mess? Has Jim McGuinness’s obsession with Kerry blinded him to the other threats. On Free State today, Joe examines why some counties accumulate All Irelands and others fail, while Dion surprises him with his knowledge of Roscommon’s football history. Joe and Dion also look at how the Belfast Riots happened. For months the PSNI were warned that houses were being identified and that people were stockpiling food for fear their homes would be attacked but according to reports nothing was done.‘My daughter was crying, saying she doesn’t want to die,’ one father said of the terror his family endured during the riots. Why has this happened and what is the hypocrisy at the heart of loyalism that allows this hate to prosper? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Love and Mercy: The Rise and Fall of Diego Maradona
13/06/2026 | 50 mins.
The World Cup has begun but will there ever be a tournament like Mexico '86 dominated by Diego Maradona? On Free State today, Dion talks to David Arrowsmith about his book on Maradona, the impulses that drove Maradona and how he escaped from poverty but could never escape the sense of being an outsider. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Belfast Riots and the Spanish Gerry Adams
11/06/2026 | 42 mins.
Belfast has burned this week. The horrific knife attack on Monday night shocked everyone. But nobody was surprised by what came next. In Belfast, In Glasgow and around Britain, people came out on the street. Some were there to protest, others were there to intimidate. In Belfast, the intimidation took over. On Free State today, Joe and Dion consider the riots in Belfast and whether there is a difference there than in other places. Joe looks at the inherent supremacy in the loyalist mindset and why it has made that community more susceptible to the hysteria driven by social media. As people take to the streets in Dublin and elsewhere, can any politician challenge the power of the technology and the propaganda advancing this cause? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Put ‘Em Under Pressure. How to Stop Ireland playing Israel with Sinead Gibney TD
09/06/2026 | 46 mins.
The FAI have decided to move Ireland’s game against Israel to a neutral venue. But is this a pragmatic move or another attempt to avoid making a principled decision? On Free State today Joe and Dion talk to Sinead Gibney of the Social Democrats about why this is a cop out. Would there be consequences for Ireland if they refused to play the game or would it lead to others following? Sinead Gibney explains why this is a moral issue and even if Ireland were removed as hosts of the Euros in two years, they should refuse to play. The decision to move the game doesn’t address the moral core of the problem. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Sleepwalkers-John Kampfner on how western democracy will fail
06/06/2026 | 49 mins.
John Kampfner doesn’t believe there is a better way, he believes there is only one way for western democracies to survive. On Free State today he talks about what democracies have to do to survive. They - we - are drinking in the last chance saloon he says. He explains why there has to be a reckoning and why so many politicians do not have the capability to change. He speaks about his new book Braver New World which we have discussed on the podcast and where in the world countries are doing things differently. If the rest of us don’t do the same, there will be trouble ahead. 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 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.
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