Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning

First there was the music. Keith Donald was always looking to escape. Music offered the first exit. Then came drink.Keith Donald was abused as a child by his headmistress. He found that jazz had the power to transform his existence.As a teenager he began to play music wherever he could. He played for a band on the Twelfth and toured the country with showbands.On Free State today Keith Donald talks about the music and the mayhem and how he found peace. He speaks about founding Moving Hearts and why even now music has the power to transform.This show was originally broadcast on August 23rd, 2025 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why do so many of us still cherish Christmas? And why do so many find it a tough time of year?On Free State today, Joe and Dion reflect on the power of Christmas and what it tells us about us as a people.Joe looks forward to a child’s wonder at Christmas while Dion is looking forward to the Ashes over Christmas. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When he was 11, Leon Diop had his first experience of aggressive racism. But his identity was something he wrestled with in many ways.In a remarkable interview on Free State, Leon Diop talks about the Ireland he grew up in and being mixed race in that world.He talks about the confusion and shame he felt about his father, a Muslim from Senegal, and how he internalised that shame for many years.He explains how education changed him as he realised the difference between standing up for yourself and fighting for yourself. At a time when Ireland is experiencing more racism, he says he might be frightened but he refuses to despair. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Causes, as we know, are notoriously bloodthirsty,’ James Baldwin wrote. What does it do to do somebody when they have crossed the boundary into a world of killing and destruction? How do they enforce their code in a place untethered from the one the rest of us inhabit?On Free State today, Joe and Dion follow on from Tuesday’s episode on Stakeknife by looking at how rules of organisations like the IRA were enforced. Joe talks about what made his father lose faith in the republican movement. He also accuses Dion of deference to the British Empire which leads Dion to launch a verbal attack on Joe. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When the state sanctions it, is it murder? When the state protects its agents from the consequences of their crimes, how long before cynicism corrupts society?On Free State today, Joe and Dion look at the dark and dirty existence of Freddie Scappaticci, MI5 and the British state.They argue about what the report tells us about the IRA and the British government, while Joe tells the extraordinary story of Danny Morrison and Sandy Lynch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.