In The News

Bestselling author Sally Rooney has announced that her publisher will no longer supply her books to the UK market. Why? Books editor Martin Doyle explains. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On Tuesday morning, the country awoke to news that a house fire in Waterford had claimed the lives of four members of the same family. Within hours of the blaze, Gardaí ruled out an accidental cause and upgraded the investigation to a murder inquiry. Though the investigation is at an early stage, detectives believe the attack was related to a drug debt. It’s thought a petrol bomb was thrown at the front door of the house, in an effort to intimidate the family. In recent years, the number of petrol bomb attacks on Irish homes has risen sharply. It's been described as 'the new epidemic'. So who’s carrying out these attacks? How difficult are they to investigate and why are drug gangs turning to petrol bombs to intimidate and extort? Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally has the latest. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

US president Donald Trump announced on Sunday that Ukraine and Russia had agreed an “energy ceasefire” effective immediately, warning either side against breaking the deal. The only problem was that the warring neighbours, who have made attacking each other’s energy plants a key plank of their attack strategy, appeared not to have even heard of the agreement. The statement came after another torrid 48 hours in relations between the White House and Kyiv, during which Trump ordered the suspension of sanctions on Russian diesel exports, again blamed Ukraine for failing to end the war, and said it was time for the embattled country to “get a new president”. Do this latest round of comments from the White House indicate a fall-off in US support for Ukraine? And what might that mean for the eastern European country as it enters a winter that promises to be so challenging that analysts have suggested a humanitarian crisis could follow? Dan McLaughlin in Lviv reports. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by…

On Wednesday Ireland is facing the biggest coordinated public sector strike since 2009. To find out what it is about, why it hasn't been averted despite the Government's offer to talk with unions and whether it still could be called off, we talk to Irish Times work correspondent Emmet Malone. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Before the summer court recess George Gibney (77), former Irish Olympic swimming coach, was found guilty of sexually abusing four girls in the 1970s and 1980s. The jury found him guilty of 39 counts of indecent assault and one count of attempted rape of children. One of Ireland’s most notorious paedophiles, he was extradited from Florida last year where he had escaped justice for decades. Due to reporting restrictions he was referred to as “sports coach” but as soon as the guilty verdict was announced, he could be named. Sentencing Gibney on Monday, Judge Mícheál O’Higgins handed down an aggregate sentence of 16 years and eight months, with 14 months suspended. This results in a sentence of 15 years and six months in prison. More than 30 years after he first broke the story about Gibney’s crimes, sports writer Johnny Watterson was in court this week as the disgraced swimming coach learned his fate. In today's episode, he joins Bernice Harrison to discuss three decades of writing about Gibney and the long…

For years Victor Spaggiari was a familiar sight on the streets of Galway. A homeless man, he lived in the Cope Hostel and spent his days sitting on a bench in the city. He spoke little, caused no trouble and seemed content. When he died in 2024 aged 65, his funeral was small and he was buried in the city, far from his Italian birthplace. Then, when his will went to probate it emerged that Victor was a millionaire and he had left his fortune to a cousin in Milan. So who was Victor? How did he come by the money? Why didn’t he spend it? And why did he spend his adult life in Ireland? Intrigued by the story Irish Times senior feature writer Rosita Boland went to Galway to find out more about how Victor lived and Europe correspondent Naomi O’Leary – who joins me on the podcast – tracked down his cousin in Milan to discover about Victor’s childhood. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s a story that could have come straight out a John le Carré thriller. The retired German spy chief accused of selling classified information amounting to thousands of secret documents; an alleged act of treason that continued for years and was only uncovered during a kidnapping investigation involving a steakhouse heiress and ex-Israeli spies. August Hanning, head of the BND foreign intelligence agency for seven years until 2005, faces charges of treasonous espionage after the 80-year-old was arrested during a dawn raid on his home on Tuesday. The focus now for investigators is his post-retirement consultancy, which he set up in 2010 – the same year he is accused of buying and using classified information. It is Germany’s biggest espionage scandal as Irish Times Berlin correspondent Derek Scally reports. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jack Horgan-Jones has the latest on a row that has blown up in the aftermath of Tuesday's Budget, reopening RTÉ's rolling funding crisis and leaving questions unanswered about why Minister for Media Patrick O'Donovan "reneged" on a funding commitment to the broadcaster. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Over the past two weeks, tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets of Spain to protest the country’s worsening housing crisis. The demonstrations were triggered by the eviction of an 87-year-old woman, Maria del Carmen Abascal, from her home in Madrid. Known in Spain simply as Maricarmen, she had lived in the same apartment for more than seven decades and was evicted after it was sold to a private investment company. She died in a hospital in Madrid two weeks later. In response to the public outcry following her eviction, Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez put forward several emergency housing measures. However, when the proposals were rejected by Parliament, he called a snap general election for November 29th. But will the Prime Minister’s gamble pay off? Is it likely his party will lead the next government and could this surprise election pave the way for parties on the right to seize power? Irish Times contributor Guy Hedgecoe speaks to Bernice Harrison from Madrid. Hosted on Acast. See…

Christa Pike spent 30 years in jail in Tennessee on death row, waiting for the day the state would kill her. When that day finally came, last week, she was first given a lethal injection, then a second one when the first dose failed. She survived that too and the 50-year-old convicted murderer was taken to hospital where she was placed on life support. So who was Colleen Slemmer, her teenage victim? What evidence convicted Pike and will this botched execution change attitudes to the death penalty in the US. Keith Duggan, Washington correspondent has been following the case. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ministers Simon Harris and Jack Chambers have been explaining how the Government will tax and spend in the year ahead. They have promised to deliver changes we will feel in our daily lives. But will you really feel a difference in your daily life? Consumer affairs correspondent Conor Pope has been listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Wicklow businessman Brendan Kavanagh (61) has an entrepreneurial skill for building connections and seeing gaps in the market. That has led him to set up multiple businesses including the successful education-technology focused Olive Group. But what happens when some of his high profile business relationships turn sour? TV sports pundit and psychotherapist Richie Sadlier has a tale to tell; so too has fitness influencer Mr Motivator (Derrick Evans). And it has been a turbulent time in the boardroom of Grinds 360. He cofounded the successful online grinds company in 2024 with investors that include former rugby player Brian O’Driscoll, who spoke in a video promoting its services, and Caelan Doris, who helped garner media attention. Irish Times investigations editor Mark Tighe has been following Kavanagh’s career for two years. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

At the Labour Party conference last week, British prime minister Andy Burnham surprised delegates by putting the prospect of rejoining the EU firmly on the political agenda. In a rousing speech he said the Brexit vote in 2016 had left the country weaker and failed to allow Britain to “take back control” of its borders and rules, as promised by the Leave campaign. “Brexit has done more harm than good,” said Burnham. Irish Times London correspondent Mark Paul, who was at the conference, explains how Burnham’s speech landed and what happens next. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Premier League football club Manchester City has been found guilty of boosting its coffers by more than €1bn by arranging “sham contracts” with big name commercial partners. The infringements to the league’s funding rules were found by an independent commission to have taken place between 2009 and 2018 – a time when the club experienced unprecedented success. So what did the club do with the money? And did this extraordinary level of funding drive its success? The club is owned by sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the vice president and deputy prime minister of the United Arab Emirates. Since taking over the club in 2008 his funds have helped turn it into a global brand. The scandal was first uncovered by Rui Pinto, a Portuguese computer hacker and founder of the Football Leaks website. He passed the information to Der Spiegel and the German newspaper developed the story to the point that the Premier League took Manchester City to the independent commission to adjudicate on the allegations. It’s a scandal…

Irish citizen David Anderson (45) is charged with the premeditated murder of his ex-wife, Megumi Anderson, who died in January 2025 aged 43. Megumi died in a fire in her apartment in Budapest. The Japanese woman was found on the sofa with a cigarette nearby, surrounded by candles and empty wine bottles. Police initially believed the fire was a tragic accident, but five days later they arrested Anderson on suspicion of murder. So what happened? How did Anderson go from a grieving ex-husband to the police's chief suspect? Budapest-based reporter Bálint Dömötör was in court this week for the pretrial hearing and he outlines the prosecution’s case. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since early Sunday morning, 35 members of the Orange Order have been waiting at Drumcree Church to parade down the mainly nationalist Garvaghy Road in Portadown. It is a march that, in the 1990s, sparked tension and violence in Drumcree, and with the result that the Protestant loyalist organisation has been refused permission to march through the Catholic area for nearly 30 years. So why was it given permission now? As of Tuesday, the Orangemen remain determined to march, saying they now have the legal right to do so. The local nationalist community is equally intent on preventing them. And the repercussions are being felt at Stormont. The DUP and the Orange Order have made complaints to the PSNI about the presence of Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald and Northern Ireland’s First Minister, Michelle O’Neill, at the protest. With tensions running high on the streets of Drumcree, and the DUP-Sinn Féin political partnership fraying, could this standoff bring down Stormont? Mark Hennessy, The Irish Times…

When property developer Paddy Shanahan built Buckingham Village, a scheme of 125 apartments in north inner-city Dublin in 1991, hopes were high that it would help rejuvenate this socially deprived part of the north inner city. But by 1994, Shanahan was dead; he had been fatally shot as he left a gym in Crumlin and the development’s connection to the Dublin underworld was cemented. It regularly featured in crime stories and court reports, including the infamous Regency Hotel attack that kicked off the Hutch-Kinahan feud. By 2018, Dublin City Council’s inspections revealed slum-like conditions being endured by the renters. Using planning documents, enforcement data, property folios and company records, along with interviews with residents, activists, elected representatives and gardaí, Irish Times investigative reporter Conor Gallagher pieced together a history of Buckingham Village over its 36-year existence. He talks to In the News. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. Hosted on Acast.…

A comprehensive 3-0 away victory for the Republic of Ireland should have cause for celebration. Instead, it has been overshadowed by unprecedented crisis within Irish football. In the days before Ireland's Uefa Nations League fixture against Israel, players faced mounting calls from politicians, celebrities and activists to boycott the match over Israel's genocide in Gaza and its continued expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank. Behind the scenes divisions emerged within the squad, culminating in the withdrawal of second goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu and a rancorous team meeting on Saturday. In the end an anonymous vote amongst the players resulted in the decision to proceed. But the damage had been done. Sports correspondent Gavin Cooney speaks to In the News from Debrecen, Hungary. He explains the day as it unfolded, how the controversy escalated and what the fallout could mean for the future of the Rep. of Ireland team. Presented by Aideen Finnegan. Produced by Declan Conlon. Hosted on Acast. See…

After more than a decade living openly in Dubai, Christy Kinahan snr’s visa has been cancelled and he has been told to leave the United Arab Emirates before September 29th. The founder of the Kinahan drugs cartel moved to Dubai when it was considered a safe haven for criminals, insulated from extradition treaties and where it was possible to live a life of considerable luxury with no questions asked as to where the funds were coming from. In recent years however that has changed as the UAE seeks to burnish its image on the world stage. For Kinahan and two of his sons, Christopher jr and Daniel, there has also been the complication of being sanctioned by the United States in 2022 as key figures in the transnational organised crime group. This brought further attention to their presence in Dubai. So where will Christy go now? He is facing no criminal charges at home or anywhere in the world but the long reach of US sanctions mean his world is considerably smaller and his options, even as a wealthy man, are…

Since the fixtures were announced earlier this year, the voices calling for the Republic of Ireland to boycott its Nations League games against Israel have grown progressively louder. They come from all quarters: from former Ireland players to diehard green jersey fans and from politicians to big names in other sports. The two soccer games are going ahead, behind closed doors and with minimum coverage; Israel’s “home” game in Debrecen, Hungary on Sunday, with the return fixture also in a neutral venue of Backa Topola, Serbia on October 4th. The FAI says Ireland has too much to lose; the penalties for boycotting the fixtures would be huge. But would they? A war of words has now broken out between Republic of Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson and the Israel FA. “We are not playing with genocide, we are playing against genocide,” he said. Israel responded calling Hallgrímsson’s use of the word genocide as the embodiment of “stupidity, ignorance and hypocrisy”. According to Irish Times sports writer Gavin…

This episode was originally published in July 2026. Employees of three key State agencies use a computer programme called Passwork to generate and protect their passwords. It’s a cybersecurity measure. But what they didn’t know, before it was revealed by The Irish Times, is that Passwork, which purports to be EU-based, has extensive links to a Russian company licensed by Russia’s security service. The agencies using Passwork are the Office of Public Works, the State Laboratory, which provides chemical testing and scientific advice to Government departments, and the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC), the agency tasked with, among other things, helping consumers stay cyber safe. It is unclear how many other Irish State agencies use Passwork. So what does it mean for State security? Who has access to these passwords? And what does the Russian owner of the Spanish-based company that sold the Passwork programme to the State agencies say? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more…

The scenes of violence and rampant destruction on the streets of Belfast on June 9th were reminiscent of disorder we’ve seen before. But these were not sectarian-motivated attacks, instead they were race riots, with mobs of young men attacking migrants. When calm was restored, at least 88 migrant families had been made homeless, either because their home had been attacked or burned out, or because the threats were so terrifying they are too fearful to return. The riots had been sparked by a brutal knife attack earlier that day; a Sudanese national has since been charged with the crime. Why has there been a resurgence of anti-immigration sentiment in Northern Ireland? Who were the rioters on June 9th? And what does it mean for future peace and stability that anti-immigrant violence has replaced sectarian attacks in Northern Ireland? Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Andrew McNair. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we're sharing the opening episode of a three-part series by Róisín Ingle that tells the untold origin story of U2. We hope you enjoy it. The full series can be found on irishtimes.com, or wherever you get your podcasts. Just search for Drummer Seeks Musicians: The Making of U2. It is 50 years this month since 14-year-old drummer Larry Mullen stuck a note on a school noticeboard looking for fellow musicians to form a band. That note led to U2. In this three-part podcast series to mark the 50th anniversary, Róisín Ingle traces the formation of the band in a school on the northside of Dublin through interviews with their classmates, teachers, friends, family and band members. Why did U2 happen in Mount Temple? And how are Bono, Edge, Larry Mullen and Adam Clayton still friends and still making music together fifty years later? Drummer Seeks Musicians is a remarkable origin story, told by the people who were there from the very beginning. From Mount Temple Comprehensive to the world stage, this is the…

Staying ahead of organised drug gangs is the daily challenge facing the scientists and analysts at Forensic Science Ireland (FSI). And with criminal organisations having their own sophisticated labs to make new drugs, genetically engineer existing ones and disguise drugs in all manner of inventive ways to avoid customs detection, it requires considerable expertise. “Camouflaged cocaine” blended with coal or soaked in plywood are increasingly common. In labs across FSI’s new 13,000sqm base near Celbridge, Co Kildare scientists analyse fingerprints, bodily fluids, chemicals and exhibits, including murder weapons and victims’ clothing. It is their evidence that is used in court. Irish Times security and crime editor Conor Lally speaks to the In The News podcast about his wide-ranging interview with FSI boss Ciarán Seoighe. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Andrew McNair. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In her speech to MEPs on Wednesday, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen spoke about Canada becoming an “associate” member of the EU in future, a concept that does not exist in the union’s governing treaties. The following day Canadian prime minister Mark Carney spoke to the same group of MEPs about wanting to be closer to the bloc during the “ferocious” storm that had ruptured alliances underpinning the previous world order. Carney sketched out the possible parameters of a new “alliance”, but what does “associate” membership mean? Is it all about trade? And what might the implications be for Ireland? Jack Power, Irish Times Brussels-based Europe correspondent explains. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It seems incredible that no one knows how many data centres there are in Ireland. It could be as many as 100, it could be more. Whatever the number there are several others in the planning stages. What we do know is that energy consumed by these vast buildings accounted for almost a quarter of the electricity consumed in Ireland last year, up from 5 per cent in 2015. And, during the long hot summer when domestic water restrictions were imposed, it appeared to be water usage as usual for data centres. Questions about how they operate are growing. Do they pay less than households for electricity? With the national grid creaking from decades of underinvestment do they even pay enough to cover their costs? And why is the Government so keen to have them? Irish Times climate and science correspondent Caroline O’Doherty explains the many questions around data centres while political correspondent Jack Horgan Jones looks at how Government defends the explosion of these vast resource-sapping structures against…

It has long been known that AI poses risks to humanity, but the scale of them is only starting to become clear. And those risks are terrifying. This month Evan Hubinger, a top scientist at Anthropic, said AI is advancing so quickly he believes there is a greater than 10 per cent chance it “could kill all humans” within the next decade. Jacob Coxon, an AI researcher who has just quit Anthropic and previously worked at OpenAI, has warned of “superhuman systems that can hack anything, revolutionise any field overnight, and acquire real power and resources”. AI is a multibillion business that’s moving at a speed no one could have predicted. But can it be regulated – and who would actually carry out that function effectively? Are these dire predictions realistic? Seán Ó hÉigeartaigh, director of the AI: Futures and Responsibility Programme at the Centre for the Future of Intelligence at the University of Cambridge, explains the current thinking on AI threats. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan…

Thieves who broke into the Renoir Museum in the south of France escaped with two paintings, having dropped two others as they fled the building. The value of the works has been estimated at €9 million, but what are they worth now? Were the thieves stealing to order? And if not, what are they going to do with them? In a world where provenance dictates price, who would buy a stolen piece of art by one of the most famous and collectible painters? The theft is just the latest in a series of high-profile art thefts. In March 2026, an organised crime gang stole a Renoir, Matisse and Cézanne from a private museum in Italy, while last year thieves broke into the Louvre in Paris and took jewels worth an estimated €100 million. Art crime investigator and historian Arthur Brand explains the planning, execution and aftermath of the Renoir thefts. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Andrew McNair. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In late summer, a criminal using the name “SpongeJob” posted a wanted ad on Telegram, an the encrypted messaging service. He was looking for a hitman to travel to Cyprus to kill two men, twins from the UK. Everything would be supplied, including a gun, for a fee of about €60,000. His ad was answered, but unbeknown to SpongeJob, the willing gun for hire was the Danish police, who then sent an undercover officer to Cyprus to pose as the hitman and to foil the murders. That Danish officer was able to tip off the Cypriot police, who arrested three men, two Norwegians and an Irish man who had travelled from Limerick. It is now believed that the hit on the twins was commissioned by veteran criminals with close links to the Kinahan cartel. For Europol, the Cyprus contract is a prime example of the growing underworld phenomenon of international “violence as a service” (VAAS). Irish Times investigative reporter Conor Gallagher explains how the hit was planned – and how it then fell apart. Presented by Bernice…

Twenty five years ago al-Qaeda militants hijacked four commercial planes in the US and flew two into the World Trade Center in New York and one into the Pentagon, while the fourth crash-landed in a Pennsylvania field. Almost 3,000 people were killed on that day and the world was changed forever. How the US responded to that attack on home soil reverberates still - through everything from airport security to geopolitics – and above all, America’s place in the world. The attack also prompted a rise in Islamophobia. Denis Staunton, Irish Times correspondent and author of the daily Global Briefing newsletter, explores how the world changed after 9/11 and what might have happened if the US had responded to the attacks in a different way. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

No one doubts that it is the Irish Open at Trump International Golf Links & Hotel at Doonbeg that is bringing US president Donald Trump back to Ireland. It has attracted some of golf’s biggest stars to Trump’s golf course in Co Clare and the sold-out event promises spectacular golf – with the chance that the president will present the trophy to the winner on Sunday. But before that on his overnight stay in Ireland he has some house calls to make in Dublin, all conveniently located in Phoenix Park. On Saturday he will visit his ambassador Edward Walsh; drop in on President Catherine Connolly in Aras an Uachtarain and meet Taoiseach Micheál Martin in Farmleigh the official State guest house. All the while the press pack will be hoping for impromptu comments. Irish Times journalists political correspondent Jack Horgan Jones and sportswriter Gavin Cooney tell us what to expect. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s not just the win, but the landslide scale of the win that has shocked Germany – and sent ripples throughout Europe. The Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has been growing in popularity but no one anticipated the election result in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt where the far-right party won 44 per cent of the vote on a record turnout of 76 per cent. The party’s manifesto promises several anti-immigration measures including mass deportations and separate schools for refugees; its education plan emphasises a new curriculum based on traditional German values, while it proudly proclaims itself pro-Russian. German chancellor Friedrich Merz took office a year ago promising to “halve” AfD support. Instead he has watched that fate befall his own party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). So how compromised is he by this result? The AfD vote signals a clear direction of travel in German politics but as Irish Times Berlin correspondent Derek Scally reports, it is also a country that understands its…

Minister for Defence Helen McEntee said that a “significant security operation” has been been put in place for Ireland’s presidency of the Council of the European Union. She didn’t elaborate on exaclty who would be providing that security but since long before the presidency began in July, military analsyts were able to easily predict security wouldn’t come soley from the State’s underfunded Defence Forces. The Government would need help - but from where? The meetings last week in Druid’s Glen in Wicklow of all the EU’s defence ministers showed the extent of that help as Irish Times investigative journalist Conor Gallagher has been reporting. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As autumn arrives and the supersized El Niño develops, global temperatures will rise, rainfall patterns will radically change and the number of extreme weather events will increase. But what does that mean for Ireland? After the hottest summer on record, predictions of an unusually mild and wet autumn might sound benign, but persistent rain prompts fears of a repeat of last winter’s flooding in the east and southeast. Ireland wasn’t alone in feeling the heat from unusual summer heat patterns driven by climate change. As an island that imports 80 per cent of its food, there are warnings of higher food prices. And what did the UN’s warning last week about Earth surpassing 1.5 degrees mean? Caroline O’Doherty The Irish Times, climate and science correspondent, explains. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Andrew McNair. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On Saturday, Katie Taylor will fight for the last time as a professional boxer. If she wins against France’s Flora Pili, she will bow out as undisputed light-welterweight champion, a title to add to all the others she has accumulated during a stellar career that changed women’s boxing forever. At a press conference this week she imagined what it will be like: “Walking down in front of 80,000 people, hearing the Olé, Olé, Olés one last time, seeing the Tricolours around the place.” It’s emotional stuff from a woman who is famously reserved, and who, says Irish Times sportswriter Malachy Clerkin, keeps her talking for the ring. Now 40 she has been boxing for 30 years, as a child fighting to even join a club, as an amateur, an Olympian and for the past 10 years, a professional. The 80,000-seater Croke Park match sold out in 30 minutes and as he details Taylor’s astonishing success, Clerkin explains why he first thought she’d struggle to sell tickets. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey. Hosted…

The long-predicted crack cocaine epidemic is here and has been compared to the heroin epidemic that ravaged communities and destroyed lives in Dublin in the 1980s. It’s cheap at as little as €10 for a “rock”, though for users smoking that will last just minutes and they’ll spend the rest of their day focused on getting the drug, while eating and self-care become secondary concerns. It makes users agitated, paranoid and aggressive – with predictable results. Unlike powder cocaine, Ireland’s crack cocaine problem is not distributed evenly across society. Why and how has the crisis developed? And why is crack addiction such a difficult drug to treat? And why are homeless women turning to crack cocaine in such numbers? Eddie Mullins, who spent his career working in the prison service becoming the governor of Mountjoy jail, now heads up Merchants Quay Ireland, the Dublin-based charity offering services to homeless people and drug users. He describes the impact of the surging crack cocaine crisis on users and the…

In the last week in June a boat set sail from The Gambia heading for the Canary Islands. On board were an estimated 200 people, made up mostly of men of all ages as well as about 20 women and five children. Within weeks, only 36 would be alive; the rest killed by starvation and thirst as the engine failed and the boat got lost on the Atlantic migration route, now regarded as the deadliest in the world. As the days went on, bodies were thrown overboard and tension rose between the remaining desperate travellers who had paid traffickers to take them from impoverishment in west Africa to what they hoped would be a better life in Europe. A fishing boat found the distressed vessel in July, alerted authorities and the survivors were given medical attention in Mauritania before being returned home. It is estimated that since 2022 more than 20,000 people have died on this route. Sally Hayden, Irish Times reporter who specialises in migration, travelled to The Gambia and spoke to two of the survivors Alhagie Ngie…

This episode was originally published in June 2026. When Carlos Barragán discovered his mother was the victim of romance fraud, he flew to Lagos to find the con man – and found the Yahoo Boys, young men whose job it is to rip off westerners. The name comes from the old email platform, first used by the Nigerian scammers decades ago. His mother, Silvia, had fallen in love online with flirtatious, sincere, handsome Brian; she bought rings, planned a future and was convinced that they would one day live together – when he was free to travel to Spain. Her sons though, suspected something sinister was afoot, especially when “Brian” started to make financial demands. Over the course of three years Carlos, a journalist, visited Nigeria multiple times to see the Yahoo Boys in action and to try to understand why this particularly cruel, exploitative form of online fraud has become such an earner for so many young men in Lagos. He also discovered a romance scam involving an Irish woman. His compelling book, The Yahoo…

Every year, more than 10 million motorists drive through Dublin’s Phoenix Park. Almost all are breaking the speed limit. All of the park’s attractions, including Dublin Zoo, the People’s Gardens, the Ashtown Castle Visitor Centre, Farmleigh House and almost 2,300 parking spaces, are accessed from Chesterfield Avenue, the main road that bisects the park. Yet there is no dedicated way for pedestrians to cross this 4km-long road. And even if there were, crossing might still be perilous, as more than 95 per cent of motorists exceed the speed limit. And despite the addition of cycle lanes on some of the park’s roads, poor design and maintenance render many unfit for purpose. It’s a problem that has been recognised for years, so why haven’t speeding motorists been stopped? And how Dublin’s biggest park become a commuter rat run? Olivia Kelly, Irish Times Dublin editor and daily park user, explains. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Andrew McNair. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

By the time the final episode of The Traitors Ireland was aired last September, the nation was gripped. The RTÉ version of the gameshow was a hit with nearly three quarters of a million people tuning in to see a trio of “Faithfuls”, Oyin, Vanessa and Kelly bag the prize. It’s been quite the year for Vanessa Ogbonna and Oyin Adeyemi. They came into the In the News studio to talk about their time in the castle under the watchful eye of Siobhán McSweeney; how they won and what the spent the prize on; how they dealt with social media trolls, and their fun new podcast, Oya C’mere. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Swiss media have compared what happened to Irish teenager Paula and her mother, Iwona, to the Pelicot case in France. Prosecutors allege that Patrick Frei, 57, drugged and raped both Paula, then aged 14, and her mother, Iwona while they were living with him in the Swiss town of Untersiggenthal. It is also alleged that he filmed the assaults. Paula and Iwona had moved from their home in Sligo in 2022 to live with Frei, a high-profile right-wing politician, a year after Iwona and Frei had begun a long-distance relationship. So how did the case come to light and when did the alleged abuse begin? How did police build their case? And why did Swiss authorities move to deport Paula and Iwona while the investigation was under way? Frei is due to stand trial in February 2027. His lawyer says he “disputes substantial parts of the allegations and, in particular, the legal characterisation of several of the charges”. Conor Gallagher of The Irish Times investigations team travelled to Switzerland to speak with Paula and…

For Washington insiders observing how the Trump administration conducts its business, Natalie Harp is an alarming figure. The 35-year-old White House aide appears never to leave the president’s side, whether he is meeting a world leader in the Oval Office or playing golf. Her influential role has been questioned, and ridiculed, for years. Harp’s nickname is “the human printer”; she is rarely seen without a sheaf of documents ready for her boss. When it emerged that those documents included highly personal letters she had written to him, laying bare her devotion, insider gossip turned into public soap opera. A political attack line delivered by Democratic senator Jon Ossoff put her in the public spotlight when he said of the president: “He doesn’t want to do the job. He wants to build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on their apparently defenceless flying palace, gifted by the Emir of Qatar.” Shawn McCreesh, a White House reporter for The New York Times, explains this latest, and perhaps most puzzling,…

Now in its fifth week, the trial of Lindsay Clancy in the US for the murder of her three children has been headline news, with blanket TV and press coverage and endless online discussion. What is known – and what she admits – is that on the evening of January 23rd, 2023 while her husband Patrick was out running errands, she killed their three children, Cora, 5, Dawson, 3 and Callan aged 8 months in their suburban home. When Patrick came home, and before he found the children, he found her on the ground outside their house. As Shanelle Kaul, a national correspondent for CBS News, tells In the News, his 911 call for help was one of the most harrowing evidence heard in court. Her defence is that she was suffering from post-partum psychosis; the prosecution maintains her actions were deliberate. As the jury prepare to begin deliberations this week, Kaul discusses the key evidence heard at the trial so far. Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more…

This episode was originally published in March 2026. In his new documentary Amplified: The Exportation of the Culture Wars, director Mike Sheridan explores the profound influence of toxic discourse in the United States on the rest of the world – and in particular, Ireland. Through interviews and examples he shows how, with the amplification of social media, legitimate grievance can bloom into conspiracist, and how easily performance, paranoia, and power intertwine. As Irish Times reviewer Tara Brady notes, the film which “begins as a study of toxic discourse in the United States expands into a sobering excavation of recent unrest in Dublin. The riots of November 2023, along with the persistence of aggressive anti-immigrant demonstrations, are presented as symptoms of a transnational malaise”. Sheridan explains to In the News how he made the documentary, how imported misinformation can gain such a powerful hold, and why high-profile US commentators including Tucker Carlson and Nick Fuentes became so invested…

This episode was originally published in March 2026. If you got an invoice you’d been waiting for from your builder for work done, you’d get ready to pay it, wouldn’t you? And if, a couple minutes after that, you got another invoice from the builder saying that actually he’d made a mistake and he’d given you the wrong bank details, you’d think nothing of it and proceed to pay. Well that’s exactly what the reader who contacts our consumer affairs correspondent Conor Pope did. She sent the requested €30,000 to her builder and thought nothing more of it – until a week later when her builder contacted her politely wondering if where the payments was. She is tech savvy, has been made aware through her work about all kinds of fraud, and is cautious by nature yet she had been the victim of payment redirection fraud – also known as invoice fraud. Conor Pope came into the studio to explain how this scam worked and why this particular case should be a lesson to everyone who believes invoice scams are only targeted at…

Staff at Oberstown Children Detention Campus are set to strike again on Tuesday the 25th of August. It will be their fourth work stoppage this summer over plans to expand the capacity of the north Dublin facility for young offenders. Members of the Fórsa trade union have already taken to the picket line this week in a protest relating to staffing levels, saying they’re “running on fumes.” While acknowledging that management have made progress in hiring 11 new staff, they believe recent high profile events, such as wrong-way motorway driving, will further heap pressure to find beds for teenagers in trouble with the law. Workers are concerned that inadequate staff ratios will undermine their safety, particularly in light of a spate of serious assaults on the campus last summer. One social care worker told Irish Times work correspondent Emmet Malone these “young people often present with challenging and difficult behaviour; they’re only in Oberstown as a last resort and we regularly find ourselves in difficult,…

On Monday evening, thousands of people took to the streets of central London to attend a vigil in memory of Jason Arday. The former Cambridge professor was found dead in his home just days earlier - at the age of 41. In his final days Arday - who was Black and autistic - was at the centre of a global media storm. Initially over allegations of plagiarism in his previous academic work and claims relating to his personal life, it morphed into a controversy relating to racism, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion employment practices, and press harassment. As a result, he resigned from his role as professor of sociology at the prestigious university. In his resignation letter, he told colleagues he no longer wished to feel like he was living “under a constant spotlight, where every aspect of his life was subject to public examination and judgement”. But the media frenzy didn’t end there. Coverage about Cambridge's youngest ever Black professor continued. Now public figures and friends of Arday are demanding a public…

Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey have signed a mutual defence pact that "echoes Nato’s article 5 in saying they will treat an attack on one as an attack on all". But will they? What does the pact mean for US leadership in the region, for the Iran war and for global security? We ask Denis Staunton. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Five people are dead and four people - including a seven year old boy are seriously injured - after a stolen BMW was driven the wrong way on the M9 motorway in County Kildare. Five teenage boys in the stolen BMW were killed instantly in the head on collision, in the early hours of Sunday morning. Three sisters and a seven year old boy were in the other car. They are all in a serious condition in a number of hospitals across Dublin. Alma and Niamh Kinsella were in the front. Their little sister Ellie Hendricken and her nephew were in the back. In today's episode, crime and security reporter Hugh Dooley talks to Aideen Finnegan about the details of last weekend's fatal crash and why 'wrong way' motorway driving has become a worrying trend among thrill seeking teenagers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For more than a year, Fergie Chambers, an American multi-millionaire and self-described communist, has called Ireland home. The 41-year-old who is heir to one of the richest families in America had been living in South Dublin, until a trip to Ibiza with his family last month ended in his arrest. While on the Spanish Island, police arrested Chambers on foot of an extradition request by US authorities. He’s been in prison in Madrid ever since. If the extradition goes ahead, he faces charges of money laundering with the intent of supporting terror organisations; riot; and conspiracy to riot. Friends of Chambers say he’s being targeted because of his support for Palestinian activism. They point to donations to humanitarian organisations working in Gaza and his funding of legal fees for protesters associated with Palestine Action in the UK. But who is Fergie Chambers, what does he stand for and why has he become a target of the MAGA movement? And could his case further strain relations between the US, Spain and…