Documentary on Newstalk

First on Scene, Last to Heal: Emergency Workers and Fatal Collisions goes behind the scenes with the men and women of An Garda Síochána, the National Ambulance Service and the fire service as they share stories about fatal collisions on Ireland's roads, and how that impacts their way of thinking. Produced and presented by Alex Rowley, a young journalism student from Wicklow and IMRO-nominated broadcaster, it's inspired by the contrasting ways different members of the emergency services deal with their trauma. Some choose to open up to friends, while for others, it's as if nothing bothers them.Due to a spike in road deaths in recent years, the topic has been high up in the news agenda, and rightly so, but every bank holiday we hear appeals from high-ranking Gardaí, Government Ministers and the RSA. Rarely, do we hear from those who actually deal with these collisions and see the devastation firsthand.In the documentary, Paramedics Clodagh Murphy and Paul Malone, based in Waterford, tell us about the trends they see in responding to collisions and why they're always keeping their own family members in the back of their mind. The documentary also goes on patrol with Gardaí Leanne McCarthy and Ken Driscoll of the Roads Policing Unit in Abbeyfeale, Co. Limerick. Ken bravely opens up about how it feels to break the news of a death to a family, comparing it to handing someone an “explosive device”.We also speak with Sub-Officer Stephen Connolly from Monasterevin Fire Brigade in Co. Kildare, who speaks of the challenges faced by on-call emergency workers, who service their local community first and foremost. All emergency workers in the documentary have pleaded with people to put down their mobile phones, put on their seatbelts, follow speed limits, and not take drugs or alcohol when using the roads this Bank Holiday Weekend.Analysis from Clinical Psychologist, Dr. Malie Coyne, contextualises the issue, and further hammers home the importance of looking out for our frontline workers.

Producer James Wilson looks at the darkest chapter in European history - the murder of six million Jews by Nazi Germany. But what impact did this genocide have on Ireland?In the Swastika's Shadow: Ireland and the Holocaust explores how the Irish State dealt with Hitler, the Jewish community's fight for survival and the heroism of the Irish people who resisted the Nazis. Containing interviews with three Holocaust survivors, film director Lenny Abrahamson and former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, In the Swastika's Shadow casts new light on this harrowing chapter in Irish history.Music provided by celloist Patrick Dexter and the Amsterdam Sinfonietta orchestra. This documentary contains conversations that some listeners may find upsetting.

‘Roving Out' is a radio documentary that celebrates the burgeoning musical culture of Ireland, by focusing on musical artists Mohammad Syfkhan, Varo, Qbanaa and Wise Wolf, who have all made Ireland their home. Named after the traditional song, ‘As I Roved Out', it explores how these musicians decided to leave their own countries, some due to war and persecution, others for adventure to seek a new life on this island.All of the artists have managed to find a foothold in the Irish musical community, where they have met like-minded people and managed to combine their own culture with Irish musical forms. The artists all represent different countries including Syria, Italy, France, Cuba and Palestine and the scope of their music takes in many genres from traditional and folk to R n' B, pop and hip hop.Mohammad Syfkhan - a Kurdish/Syrian Singer and Bouzouki player has released his debut album ‘I am Kurdish' on the Leitrim based record label Nyahh records. He has played many gigs around Ireland including a sold-out album launch at the Bello Bar in Dublin. He will be appearing on festival bills throughout the Summer.Varo are singers and fiddle players Lucie Azconaga and Consuelo Nerea Breschi, who met in Dublin in 2015. They have recorded a soon to be released collaboration album featuring Ian Lynch (Lankum), John Francis Flynn, Anna Mieke, Slow Moving Clouds, Inni-K amongst others.Having spent her first year exploring a range of styles and genres, Cuban Irish artist Qbanaa returns in 2025 with the sound that may well come to define her. Qbanaa's forthcoming EP Elisa (her nickname in Cuba) containing snippets of found sounds, street recordings and conversations made in Cuba, poetic bilingual lyricism and immersive soundscapes makes for a collection of beautifully understated original music.Talha AlAli, AKA Talha Wise Wolf, is a Palestinian psychotherapist, activist, hip-hop artist, and human rights defender. Since moving to Ireland in the 2010s, Talha has studied a Masters in Psychology and performed many gigs around the country.The programme investigates the lives of these musicians before they moved to Ireland, their reasons for moving here, and how they have brought their unique musical cultures to boost the thriving music scene here. It celebrates the diversity of Ireland and its music, while also examining difficult subjects such as the circumstances that have caused some of the artists to migrate here, racism they have experienced and difficulties in integrating to Irish society at first.For more, see Newstalk.com.

It's two years to the week since fighting broke out in Sudan, instigating what is now the world's worst humanitarian crisis. Reporter Sarah Madden visits Northern Bahr el Ghazal to see the fallout for herself, in 'Can You Hear Me? Dispatches From The World's Forgotten War'.

Telegram Tales from the Central Telegraph's Office, co-produced by Amandine Devine and Ellen McEvoy tells the story of the 24-hour thriving office that kept Ireland's communication on track during the 60s and 70s.Nowadays we are all familiar with instant communication - e-mail, text, and social media, but there was a time when you had to send a telegram if you wanted to contact a person that didn't have a telephone. The contributors Ann Duncan, Cormac O'Brien, Michael Confrey and Seán Creedon, document the history of the office, peppered with memories of their interactions with customers and colleagues. The backdrop is a growing Dublin City Centre and a period of huge change in Irish history from strikes to bombs, to marriages and christenings.Telegram Tales is a nostalgic look at what was the communication of the 60s and 70s, such a necessity that many people had a full career in telegrams, which is a communication which has virtually been wiped out today.

Journalist Aisling Moloney brings us along on her move to Australia and tries to find out why thousands of young people from across Ireland are making the move Down Under.The 28-year-old from Dungarvan in Co Waterford emigrated to Sydney in 2024, after several years of living and working in Dublin as a journalist with RTÉ and as Political Correspondent with the Irish Daily Mail.At the beginning of her journey, she meets a busker at Byron Bay, born to Irish parents who left for Australia's sunny shores in the 1960s. Fintan, the musician grew up on a hippie commune. Aisling then speaks to young people on the Rainbow Walkway on Coogee Beach in Sydney about the draw of Australia and their experience of life in Sydney.After hearing about how living so far away from home can be hard for many, she speaks to Central Coast GAA Club and visits 'The Doss House' and 'Frank Macs' where Irish gather in search of that feeling of home.She then makes the trip to Perth to visit her sister Eimear, who has lived there for 13 years and is married with three children.In the second part of this documentary, Aisling hears about some of the more difficult aspects of Australia, which include the experience of regional work and the difficulty of finding work in general.She also hears some stories of reinvention, how some people make the move to earn big bucks, and how people deal with bereavement while living so far away from home.We also get a taste of that lifestyle that people love in Australia, and come along to two of Aisling's favourite activities since arriving in Sydney, swimming and beach yoga."Home or Away - Living the Irish Australian Dream with Aisling Moloney" is presented and produced by Aisling Moloney. Editor and Executive Producer is Aoife Kearns.

Groundbreakers Series Two: Three documentaries that chart the life and work of older women who did not just live through a changing Ireland but who were the changemakers.Three groundbreaking women have made positive changes in academia, engineering, the environment, and social justice. These women are known and highly regarded and loved within their area of expertise, but they are not known by the general public. We listen to their story, to celebrate them, to thank them for making Ireland a better place for us all.Their lives tell the story of Ireland's progression and change. One women's story that brings us on an audio journey through the changes, over the last decades, to the issues she dedicated her life to. In Groundbreaker: Anita Hayes we explore the issues of seed sovereignty and biodiversity, in Groundbreaker: Mary Crilly we examine sexual violence and exploitation in Ireland and in Groundbreaker: Jane Grimson, we look at women in engineering and genderism in the workforce.Warning: some readers/listeners may find this content upsettingMary Crilly is approaching her 40th year at the forefront of the Sexual Violence Centre Cork (SVCC). Her story traces the slowly changing attitude towards sexual violence against men and women in Ireland.When Mary started the centre, Ireland was a place where a man could legally rape his wife, where domestic violence was often treated as a time-wasting nuisance and where any form of sexual assault or rape, no matter the victim's age, status, or condition, was usually viewed as the woman's fault. Marital rape only became a crime here in 1990; until then a husband could not be found guilty of the rape of his wife.When they opened the centre, they were meet with hostility. Back then, what they were doing in the centre was not really accepted, they were told by many to pack up and stop what they were doing. But they held on and now 40 years on Mary would consider that they have made great progress in bringing sexual violence into the open, though she would reflect there is still a long way to go when it comes to victim blaming and protecting perpetrators. Crilly's end goal is to work towards a society that does not tolerate sexual violence in any capacity.Mary's mission is to keep the conversation going, because without this change will not happen.If you have been affected by this, you can contact the Rape Crisis Centre on freephone 24-Hour National Helpline at 1800 77 8888.

Groundbreakers Series Two: Three documentaries that chart the life and work of older women who did not just live through a changing Ireland but who were the changemakers.Three groundbreaking women have made positive changes in academia, engineering, the environment, and social justice. These women are known and highly regarded and loved within their area of expertise, but they are not known by the general public. We listen to their story, to celebrate them, to thank them for making Ireland a better place for us all.Jane was the first female graduate in engineering in Trinity College Dublin (TCD). Being the only woman in the class, she was never expected to last. This was the 1960s, at a time when female engineers were almost unheard of, not just in Ireland but worldwide. Even now Engineering and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) struggle with gender bias. But in the 1960s, as a young woman, Jane sat as the lone female in a class of engineering students. But it never deterred her.Jane went on to obtain a first-class honours degree and a Masters and PhD degrees in Computer Science in 1971 and 1981 respectively. She then went on to become Dean of Engineering and of Research. Throughout Professor Jane Grimson's extraordinary career as an engineer she has achieved much and received many accolades. However, perhaps one of Jane's most lasting legacies will be the hugely important role she has played as an advocate for women in engineering, science, and academia. She has mentored a generation of female engineers and is passionate about promoting the recruitment, retention, and advancement of women in STEM. As Provost and President of Trinity College Dublin Linda Doyle said ‘I would not be here without her”.Their lives tell the story of Ireland's progression and change. One women's story that brings us on an audio journey through the changes, over the last decades, to the issues she dedicated her life to. In Groundbreaker: Anita Hayes we explore the issues of seed sovereignty and biodiversity, in Groundbreaker: Mary Crilly we examine sexual violence and exploitation in Ireland and in Groundbreaker: Jane Grimson, we look at women in engineering and genderism in the workforce.

Groundbreakers Series Two: Three documentaries that chart the life and work of older women who did not just live through a changing Ireland but who were the changemakers.Three groundbreaking women have made positive changes in academia, engineering, the environment, and social justice. These women are known and highly regarded and loved within their area of expertise, but they are not known by the general public. We listen to their story, to celebrate them, to thank them for making Ireland a better place for us all.Ground Breaker Anita Hayes centres on the life's work of Anita Hayes, who established Irish Seed Savers. She dedicated her life's work to safeguard our future food crops by preserving the rich genetic diversity of the past, by creating a community of Seed Savers all over Ireland.Anita founded the Irish Seed Savers in 1991 on a small farm in Co. Carlow. In 1996 the project moved to its present site in Scarriff and in 1997 a FAS community employment scheme secured a site and employment for many staff. It is now home to a seed bank containing more than 600 rare and endangered vegetable varieties, a native broadleaf woodland, and wildlife sanctuary. This provides a home for a thriving colony of heritage Irish black bees. Irish Seed Savers hold the national collection of Irish heritage apple trees in their orchards, numbering over 180+ varieties, as well as an orchard of over 33 self-rooting varieties of apple trees that require no grafting for propagation, the largest collection of this type of apple trees in the world. The genius of Irish Seed Savers is that the living ark of heritage crops is a much better way to preserve our horticultural heritage than in static seed banks, frozen in time and wrapped in cotton wool. The yearly renewed cultivation of these crops exposes them to the realities of climate change, to the evolution of circumstances in pest and diseases, and strengthens them to compete and thrive in the modern world and with them their heritage and stories.Their lives tell the story of Ireland's progression and change. One women's story that brings us on an audio journey through the changes, over the last decades, to the issues she dedicated her life to. In Groundbreaker: Anita Hayes we explore the issues of seed sovereignty and biodiversity, in Groundbreaker: Mary Crilly we examine sexual violence and exploitation in Ireland and in Groundbreaker: Jane Grimson, we look at women in engineering and genderism in the workforce.

'Milk to North Kerry is like Oil to the Arabs', produced and narrated by Mary Lavery Carrig, tells the story of the early days of Kerry Co-Op, a company established in North Kerry 50 years ago, laying roots for the multinational global giant we know today as Kerry PLC.Interviewees are Billy Keane, Eamon Barry, Hugh Friel, Denis Brosnan, Tom O'Connor, Pat Golden and Tom O'Sullivan. They all recall, first-hand, those exciting, formative and busy days, 50 years ago. This program offers fascinating insight into the dairy farming world of North Kerry 50 years ago and the series of events which occurred to bring about the formation of Kerry Co-Op, with seismic implications for the future. This is a story about community, perseverance, self-belief, empowerment, ambition and a drive to succeed, when dairy farmers and businessmen combined to realise a dream.Mary Lavery Carrig set out to find the human face of Kerry Co-Op 50 years ago and in this documentary, she brings that human face of Kerry Co-op to you, the listener.CREDITSMusic: Matt GriffinEditor: Cian McGrathStudio: Pat DoneganProducer: Mary Lavery CarrigNarrator: Mary Lavery CarrigThank you to Kerry Dairy Ireland for the use of the Jan 1974 Board of Directors photograph.'Milk to North Kerry is like Oil to the Arabs', was made possible due to the support received from Coimisiún na Meán, funded through the television licence fee.

A father and his 14-year-old daughter set out on a journey across Japan to discover why Irish traditional and Celtic music have become fused into Japanese culture. In recent years, Nihonjin (Japanese people) have picked up fiddles, whistles, bazoukis and uilleann pipes, and begun playing Irish traditional music. Now Japanese musicians are bringing their take on trad back to us in Ireland. Pavel and his daughter Edie attend the annual Féile Tokyo, which draws musicians and dancers from across Japan. They meet performers in Kyoto and explore the historical, cultural and artistic connections between Ireland and Japan.Shōgun Seisiún is edited, presented and produced by Pavel Barter and Edie Carey-Barter. Funded by Coimisiún na Meán with the Television Licence Fee.Featuring musical performances by:Lisako FukudaO'Jizo (Kozo Toyota, Koji Nagao, Hirofumi Nakamura)Ryo KanekoSuzaki KazuhikoAnona (tribute to Anúna)Peter Cole Irish pub session night in TokyoThe Field pub session night in KyotoSharleen McCaffreyBrendan DoyleGalway City Chamber Choir

Eirsat-1: Ireland's First Satellite is the remarkable story of a group of young Irish scientists and engineers who are determined to make Ireland a space-faring nation – by designing, building and sending Ireland's first satellite into space. Eirsat-1 is Ireland's very first spacecraft, a research satellite that passes over our heads six times a day as it orbits the earth. Produced and presented by John Higgins, this moving documentary tells its story - and the incredible challenges faced and overcome by the determined group of students and staff in University College Dublin who launched it into space. Eirsat-1: Ireland's first satellite is produced, presented and edited by John Higgins of As the Crow Flies Productions, with sound mixing by Neil Kavanagh of Coach House Media. With special thanks to the European Space Agency and the staff and students of UCD. Supported by Coimisiún na Meán.

‘45 Years of Listening' tells the story of the Dublin Lesbian Line – an essential, landmark community-led resource – through a collection of personal reflections from one of the original founders, and current volunteers.Dublin Lesbian Line was founded in 1979 – a time in Ireland when homosexuality was invisible, unmentionable, and profoundly isolating – to provide a way for gay/queer/bi/questioning women to connect, meet, make friends, find a community, or even just to talk anonymously on the phone. In 1979, and in the years that followed, it took enormous courage to pick up that phone and dial. Homophobia, patriarchy/gender roles, and heterosexism were so normalized and taken for granted as ‘the way things should be' that some callers to Dublin Lesbian Line couldn't even get the words out once they had gotten through to the number. Others, like one-time caller and then volunteer, Marina, found it a lifeline — found not only support, but friends and community.Ireland has changed, but many LGBTQ+ people still experience discrimination and hostility. Now, in 2024, 45 years later (and despite its legacy name), Dublin Lesbian Line (DLL) serves the entire country – and all genders. As the current volunteers and organisers point out: “We're not just for Dublin, we're not just a phone line, and we're not just for lesbians.” DLL is a registered charity, and aside from offering a listening ear and advice, DLL acts as a reference point for other services (social, health, advisory), and the team at DLL also organises events and courses for the Lesbian community. In the words of volunteer Val, DLL strives to be an “open embrace”.This programme gives the listener an opportunity to learn about diversity of experience in Ireland and reflect on aspects of Irish society and social history, and explore the work of a grass-roots community-led charity/organisation.Information and support for the issues raised in this programme can be found at Switchboard, LGBTQIA support and resources, on 01 872 1055 or by visiting theswitchboard.ie. Please note: Anyone can call on any day, but Tuesday is a dedicated women's night, 6.30-9pm.'45 Years of Listening' was produced, recorded, and edited by Shaun O'Boyle and Maurice Kelliher, shaunandmaurice.com, and was supported by Coimisiún na Meán.Connect with Dublin Lesbian Line on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Dublin-Lesbian-Line/100064358546983

Vision: The Story of Sister Margaret Coyne tells the remarkable story of Irish nun Sister Margaret Coyne, who ran an eye clinic near the Ethiopian-Eritrean border for decades, saving the sight of countless thousands - often in the midst of war, conflict and famine.Produced and presented by her nephew John Higgins, her story is told in her own words and through the eyes of the Ethiopian and Irish people who know and worked with her - from her sister Sabina Higgins, to the Spanish doctors who stumbled across her clinic and started an international NGO to support her work, to Ethiopian people living in Ireland and those who live there now - as the Tigray region where she lived once again finds itself embroiled in a brutal civil war.Vision: The Story of Sister Margaret Coyne is edited, presented and produced by John Higgins of As the Crow Flies Productions, with sound mixing by Neil Kavanagh of Coach House Media. With special thanks to Proyecto Vision and The Daughters of Charity. Funded by Coimisiún na Mean with the television licence fee.Photo credit: John Higgins/Ivo Rovira

In 2020, a few weeks after Ireland entered one of the longest COVID lockdowns in the world, Patrick Dexter began uploading videos online of him playing the cello outside his cottage in County Mayo. In a matter of weeks, his life had changed forever.Producer Hugh Hick and Documentary on Newstalk bring you an intimately-told story of music and landscapes – and the part both play in our lives, sometimes without us realising it.Born and raised in Dublin, Patrick Dexter spent most of his twenties abroad, living for long stretches in Vietnam and the Netherlands. It was only after all this that Patrick and his partner Jan decided to try for a different type of existence. One as far away from the crowded city life they had always known as you could imagine. And so they moved to a tiny cottage outside Westport in Co. Mayo, determined to live an isolated and monkish lifestyle.Then, in 2020, that all changed.With COVID-19 spreading uncertainty into our lives and lockdowns confining us, Patrick began sharing videos of his own way of passing the days – sat outside in his garden, playing cello, the stunning landscape of the locality his background. What started as something to send to his friends quickly caught fire through Twitter and Instagram and within months was being viewed regularly by hundreds of thousands of people worldwide.This documentary tells Patrick's story through his own words as well as those of his family and friends, including producer Hugh Hick, who has known Patrick since they were teenagers.But it's not just Patrick's story – it's the story of a unique place in Ireland that continues to capture the hearts and minds of so many. And it's the story of all of us, and why, at that most uniquely dark and incomprehensible of moments, something about a man playing cello to us through our screens compelled us and gave us something to latch onto.‘Strings' was made with the support of Comisúin na Meán with the television licence fee.

Here on Documentary and Drama on Newstalk, Ben Finnegan has travelled to the African country of Malawi to look at the effects of climate change, and how organisations like Trócaire are helping them in 'Low Emissions, High Price: Climate Change in Malawi'.

Citadel is a group of musicians formed at the Kinsale Road Accommodation centre in Cork city in 2018, who refuse to be put down by the system. They are from different countries, such as Burundi, South Africa, DR Congo, Angola and Tanzania.The musicians perform songs from home, accompanied by rhythms and tunes from around the world. Citadel have played many concerts around Ireland and help to build bridges with the Irish community through their music.Some of the musicians are refugees, others are newly arrived International Protection Applicants. They all speak different languages, but music is their universal language.‘Citadel: Building Bridges Through Music' is a documentary that explores the different stories of band members, how they came to be refugees in Ireland and the difficulties they face here. The founders of the band; Roos and Norbert speak about how they started the band and a not for profit organisation, International Community Dynamics.In June 2023, International Community Dynamics hosted ‘The Festival of Belonging' in the Triskel Arts Centre in Cork. With poetry, spoken word, a conversation cafe, an art exhibition by refugee and Traveller artists and a conference on belonging at UCC, it was a busy weekend. The highlight of the weekend was a performance by Citadel.The documentary follows the band in the buildup to their performance, taking in rehearsals and nerves before they take to the stage on the night.Citadel raises awareness and spreads joy, peace and understanding by sharing their music with each other and with the Irish community and this is reflected in the programme.Produced by Alan Meaney.Funded by Coimisiún na Mean with the television licence fee.

Documentary and Drama on Newstalk brings you the almost forgotten true tale of Laurence Carroll, a working-class Dubliner turned sailor, who embarked on a journey that traversed continents, identities, and cultures.  This documentary, titled Laurence Carroll's Mindful Anarchy: U Dhammaloka, The Irish Buddhist of Rangoon, tells the story of an Irishman, who, after ordaining as a Buddhist monk in the early 1900's, under his monastic name U Dhammaloka, ascended to celebrity status throughout Burma and Asia, for his denouncing of Colonial Christian Missionaries and campaigning for the rights of Buddhists, while skirting colonial sedition and treason laws.              Shedding light on the enigmatic life of a man who defied norms, embraced Buddhism, and faced down the British Empire, his remarkable odyssey is chronicled from his humble beginnings in Dublin to his tumultuous years as a sailor and hobo in the United States before his eventual arrival in Rangoon, Burma, circa 1880.  With 25 years of his life prior to his arrival in Burma shrouded in mystery, Carroll's transformation into U Dhammaloka marked a turning point in the anti-colonial resistance in Burma and the Southeast Asia region. At the heart of this true tale lies U Dhammaloka's surely inevitable trial for sedition in 1911. The trial is a pivotal moment in Colonial Burma's history which drew international attention. Resonating with the masses, his defiance of colonialism garnered support from thousands, including multiethnic minorities across Burma and Southeast Asia, while at the trial, he is supported by Gandhi's esteemed associate Dr Pranjivan Metha.  Through interviews with those at the forefront of resurrecting Carroll's odyssey; dramatic reenactments, and factual storytelling, this programme reasserts U Dhammaloka's rightful place within Irish history and reveals the true reasons why this remarkable tale became almost lost to the sands of time.  The documentary is produced, edited, and presented by multimedia journalist and documentary maker Noel Sweeney. Funded by Coimisiún na Mean with the television licence fee.

Making Ireland Home, Henry McKean celebrates becoming an Irish citizen after 30 years with new Irish citizens.

Documentary on Newstalk presents a new documentary by producers Alan Meaney and Amanda Gunning go behind the scenes at the Another Love Story music festival in Co. Meath.One of Ireland's premier small festivals, Another Love Story has been running since 2014. Set in the beautiful surrounds of Killyon Manor House Co. Meath over 3 days in August, the festival showcases both Irish and international acts. It is a custom-made festival with a focus on sustainability, smaller crowds, and an emphasis on a kinder, gentler festival setting. ‘Another Love Story' documentary delves into the running of ALS festival and the music and attractions available.Founding members Peter O' Brien, Emmet Condon, and Sam Bishop discuss some of the aspects of organising and hosting the festival. Live features from ALS 2023 include on-site chats with musicians, crew, and attendees, as well as musical performances showcasing the wide variety of genres and acts on offer to festival-goers. Crew and guests talk about distinctive features of ALS, including child and dog-friendly facilities, and sustainability efforts such as the Flushing Meadows compost toilets. The programme features performances and interviews with musicians Villagers' Conor O' Brien, Brigid Mae Power, JFDR's Jófríður Ákadóttir, DJ Hewan Mulugeta, and Negro Impacto's Chi Chi and StrangeLove. Other interviews include Psycare Ireland, Siobhan Kane of Young Hearts Run Free, and crew members Ali Morris, Octavian Fitzherbert, and Sarah Howlin. Another Love Story was produced by Alan Meaney and Amanda Gunning. Narration by Amanda Gunning. The programme was funded by the Coimisiún na Meán with the television licence fee.

This documentary was produced by Valerie McHugh, with interviewee Aisling Smith and voiceover artist Jessica Bourke. It highlights Aisling's story with OCD, and her journey to recovery. It also includes a voiceover dramatisation of other people's experiences with OCD who have asked to remain anonymous.

Documentary on Newstalk presents a new documentary by independent producer Bairbre Flood. "Jewish Ireland" is an exploration of Jewish Irish history and culture - from Deli 613, to the Irish Jewish Museum: historians, musicians and Jewish groups and individuals share different aspects of modern Jewish culture in Ireland. Edwin Alkin talks us through the various artefacts, photographs and exhibitions at the Irish Jewish Museum in Dublin, and explains some of the history of Jewish people in Ireland. Dr. Melanie Brown tells us what she learnt from her involvement with the Jewish Oral History Project and the Inter-Faith Council - and what it means to her to be Irish and Jewish. Rabbi Zalman Lent and Rifky Lent at Deli 613 - the first kosher deli in Dublin in fifty years - share Jewish food and explain why they set up and how they've been received by the community. And then we head to Cork to meet klezmer composer Ruti Lachs, of the Cork Jewish Community and we'll get her take on being one of the ‘new Irish' Jews who've made Ireland their home. ‘Jews have been here since the time of the Normans. Jews are not strangers here, but they remain to be othered in a lot of ways. And that, to me, is very interesting. Why, after a thousand years, why is there still this othering?' - Dr. Melanie Brown. Produced by Bairbre Flood and funded by Coimisiun na Mean under the Sound and Vision Scheme.

Climate change, civil war in the south, a breakaway region in the north, hunger, internal displacement: these are just some of the issues facing Somalia. Presenter Sean Moncrieff reports from the Horn of Africa in: Somalia: the complicated business of helping people.The Newstalk host spent a week with aid agency workers and UN officials who describe the often frustratingly slow process of trying to help a country off its knees: not just through the provision of aid, but trying to convince parents of the benefits of education, of changing attitudes towards contraception and female genital mutilation and of establishing a democracy in the face of resistance from the all-powerful clans.All this, along with the constant threat of suicide bomb attacks from the Islamist group Al-Shabaab. In Somalia, everything is complicated.

Documentary on Newstalk presents “The Iveagh Trust: How Ireland's Richest Man Housed Dublin's Poor”, in which producer Sarah Stacey explores the 133-year history of Ireland's oldest housing charity.The Iveagh Trust was founded in 1890 by Edward Cecil Guinness, head of his family's famous brewing empire, who at the time was the richest man in the country. His vision was to provide safe, clean and affordable housing to the working poor of Dublin. In the nineteenth century the city was home to some of the worst slums in Europe, with families crammed into overcrowded and unsanitary tenements. Disturbed by the conditions he saw in The Liberties, where his brewery was based, Guinness invested a considerable amount of his fortune into building housing and communities in the area.Sarah Stacey's family connection to the Iveagh Trust goes back four generations. With the help of social historians, staff members and residents, including her own relatives, she looks at how one man's generosity transformed the lives of thousands of Dublin families, and why the Iveagh Trust's ongoing work is just as important in today's housing crisis as it was over a century ago.Contributors include Tracey Bardon, engagement co-ordinator at 14 Henrietta Street (the Tenement Museum), historians Cathy Scuffil and Alan Byrne, Rory Guinness, chairman of the Iveagh Trust and great-great-grandson of Edward Cecil Guinness, former Iveagh Trust community officer Kelley Bermingham, and past and present residents Paul Tester, Pat Stacey and Tina Brennan.“The Iveagh Trust: How Ireland's Richest Man Housed Dublin's Poor” was produced and presented by Sarah Stacey, with additional production by Daniel Cahill and music composed by Emily Worrall. Special thanks to the Iveagh Trust and Dublin City Library and Archive. Funded by Coimisiún na Meán with the Television Licence Fee.

A new radio documentary, 35 Years of GCN, produced by Shaun & Maurice for Documentary and Drama on Newstalk, explores the story of Ireland's LGBTQ+ community through the pages of Ireland's longest-running free LGBTQ+ publication and press.The story of GCN (Gay Community News) is also the story of LGBTQ+ rights, history, and culture in Ireland. Since 1988, the magazine has reflected and documented the lives and lived experiences of LGBTQ+ people. The first issue of GCN was published from a small office at the top of the Hirschfield Centre in Dublin's Temple Bar, and since then it has been at the heart of the LGBTQ+ community.35 Years of GCN explores some of the LGBTQ+ stories captured by the magazine. The programme features an interview with Tonie Walsh who co-founded GCN with Catherine Glendon during the height of the AIDS epidemic. It features an interview with Senator David Norris about the foundation of GCN in the same year that he won his case against the Irish government at the European Court of Human Rights (which ruled the existence of laws in Ireland criminalising consensual gay sex to be illegal).The documentary also features interviews with former GCN editors Brian Finnegan and Lisa Connell, about the struggles and celebrations that have been documented by the nation's LGBTQ+ paper of record—including the introduction of civil partnership, the passing of both the marriage and abortion referendums, and the introduction of the gender recognition act.The programme was produced with funding from the Coimisiún na Meán Sound and Vision scheme.

Documentary on Newstalk presents ‘The White Line', a new documentary that reveals the shocking truth about how Irish Traveller children were treated in Irish schools and the unacknowledged apartheid that existed in the Irish education system for over 5 decades.Through personal testimony we hear how Traveller children were: kept separate from the settled children at all times; put in Traveller-only classrooms where they received little or no teaching; and were physically and mentally punished regularly simply because of who they were.All the voices, including that of the narrator, in this documentary belong to members of the Irish Traveller Community. The interviewees come from many parts of the country, from Tipperary, to Galway to Meath and Dublin and for most, this is the first time they have told their story publicly.‘The White Line' was produced by Independent radio Producer Susan Dennehy. The Narrator was Christine Collins. The Final Mix was by Moynihan Russell Studios.The programme was funded by Coimisiún na Meán with the Television License Fee.

Documentary On Newstalk presents a new documentary by producer Pavel Barter. Telling the forgotten story of how Irish immigrants built a Wild West mining town two miles high in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado in Cloud City. This portrait of Irish diaspora, in one of America's most ruthless settlements, explores the lives of two characters whose names live on in Leadville lore: Mart Duggan from Limerick, one of the most fearsome yet respected lawmakers in the American West; and Michael Mooney, a union leader from Dublin who fought for worker rights. This month (September, 2023) sees the opening of a memorial to the Leadville Irish, who until now had been forgotten in unmarked graves at the town's Evergreen Cemetery. Credits:Pavel Barter: presenter and producer. Michael Mellamphy (Red Dead Redemption 2) plays Mart Duggan and Michael Mooney. With thanks to David Wright (research) and Wil Masisak (VO recording). Funded by Coimisiún na Meán with the Television License Fee.

In “The First Hundred Years: Albert Dryer and the Irish National Association” producer J.J. O'Shea explores the aims and achievements of an important Irish Cultural organisation founded in 1915 in Sydney, Australia, and the life of the man who was the driving force behind the association. The story of the Irish in Australia remains a relatively unexamined aspect of the Irish emigration story and this programme shines a light on some surprising aspects of that story."The First Hundred Years" was Produced by J.J. O'Shea.Excerpts from the INA Centenary Oral History Project were used with the kind permission of the National Library of Australia.This programme was supported by a grant from Coimisiún na Meán as part of the Sound and Vision Scheme.

Producer Michael Cullen introduces us to some of Ireland's most successful quizzers. "Know It All" looks at the quizzing scene in Ireland, and talks to some of its most successful participants, including two winners of Mastermind, and a winner of the million on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire.

Producer Patricia Baker of Curious Broadcast takes a walk past the many famous and infamous statues and monuments in Dublin, in the radio documentary Dead White Men, and considers who and how we commemorate. By talking with academics and arts practitioners she asks questions about the monuments that we have chosen to destroy, those we have kept and those perhaps we should not. This is a walk through the monuments controversy past and present. Dead White Men is a Curious Broadcast Production, Funded by Coimisiún na Meán with the Television Licence Fee.

Unbeatable Together presented by Henry McKean is a documentary which celebrates the Special Olympics in Berlin, with all the success and tears of emotion as Special Olympics Ireland brought home 75 medals.

New radio documentary ‘Tainted Blood' lays bare the devastating impact of infected blood products on the Irish Haemophilia Community In 1982 the first case of HIV was recorded in Ireland. By 1985 all people with haemophilia were being tested for the disease. More than one third of them were found to be HIV positive having contracted the disease through infected blood products that were made up of pooled plasma from thousands of donors, much of which had been imported. Colm Walsh, who has haemophilia, features on the documentary. As a child Colm and his older brother Brendan were treated with the same blood products and, by some cruel twist of fate, Brendan contracted HIV and eventually died of AIDs. Colm did not, but sadly did contract Hepatitis C, another disease which ravaged the haemophilia community in the late 80s as a result of infected blood products. Colm shares his remarkable story on the documentary, he said, “Despite the fact this happened over 40 years ago some of us are still living with this grief. Not only the grief of losing our loved ones, but for how we were treated and for the lengths we had to go to for the injustice against our community to be acknowledged. This documentary is an important piece of work that shares the heartbreak and distress we went through. We have many reasons for hope today but we can never forget what happened because it can never be allowed to happen again.” Another key voice in the documentary is Brian O'Mahony, Chief Executive of the Irish Haemophilia Society, which became a significant support network, lobbying on behalf of people with haemophilia and their families (which eventually contributed to the collapse of the Irish government in 1989). They set up services to care for the dying, at a time when there was significant stigma associated with the diseases of HIV and AIDs. The documentary shares stories of the torment and shame experienced by those who contracted HIV and AIDs as well as their families, and how, in many cases, they never shared their diagnosis owing to this stigma. Brian said, “It was like going through a war, it was a cumulative trauma to the whole community. It brought our members very close together and despite the huge number of deaths our community is hugely resilient. This story is one that everyone in Ireland should know because we can never let anything like this ever happen again. That message has been a big part of our ethos since we first became aware of the plight of so many of our members. “We were a tiny, volunteer-run organisation before this crisis and now, following years of trauma and campaigning we can proudly say we have one of the best haemophilia treatment systems in the world. Out of the darkness has come some light. I would encourage anyone to take the time to listen to this documentary and understand what happened to our community because all those deaths cannot be in vain.” Kelly Crichton, documentary maker, said “I was incredibly moved when I first encountered these stories and knew there was a whole generation of Irish people out there who would know nothing or very little about this. I wanted to share this story because it's hard to fathom just how abandoned this community was and yet, in banding together they overcame so much. “The Irish Haemophilia Society went above and beyond in their support - risking prosecution by handing out condoms to members, which were illegal at the time. They set up palliative care and worked with undertaker services because of the stigma and protocols associated with death of those infected with HIV or AIDs. Families could then follow traditional funeral arrangements without the fear of their loved one being outed as a HIV and AIDs victim. It truly beggars belief what they had to go through without government support. “I'd like to thank everyone who I spoke to for the documentary. These are some of the bravest people I have ever met and it was a privilege to record their stories.” Other voices from the haemophilia community share the heartache, shame, stigma, fear and hurt they experienced. It is a story of fear, isolation, empathy, heart-breaking selflessness and triumph through adversity. "Tainted Blood" was funded by Coimisiún na Meán, with the television license fee.

Clonmany is a small village in rural Donegal. On the edge of the village is a long, narrow single-story building with a tin roof. This plain building is home to World Champions. This is the home of Clonmany Tug of War club, who train here in the autumn and winter nights, pulling together for another tilt at European and World glory. They build them big, and they dream big, in Clonmany. The World indoor championships are held every two years and will take place at the Aura Leisure Centre in Letterkenny in February 2020. The championships will attract up to 1,000 competitors and spectators from around the World to Letterkenny. But in the weeks leading up to the championships there is growing unease about a strange virus from the east, Covid. Would Big Danny's dream be scuppered? ‘Pulling Together' was produced and edited by Jim Doherty with the aid of funding from the BAI's Sound and Vision scheme.

Documentary On Newstalk presents "‘The Irish Divorce” an original radio series by Jonathan Farrelly. "The Irish Divorce - ‘When you and your spouse over time start leading completely separate lives and sleeping in different rooms, but don't divorce because you're Irish Catholics.” Told from the perspective of a Therapist and a couple that has gone through ‘an Irish Divorce' and came out the other side, this series looks to uncover and go deep within the psychology of ‘The Irish Divorce'. Our therapist, Debra Armstrong will take us on a journey from the outside in, while our couple, ‘Wil-ly and Breda'* will take us on their journey, from the inside out. *Please note, due to the sensitivity of the topic and our couples wish to rename anonymous, their names have been changed and their testimonies have been recorded by actors.

During a recent period of unrest in the troubled Palestinian territories producer Brian Kenny travelled to meet those Palestinian women who are suffering both under the Israeli occupation and in a deeply patriarchal society. In the Hebron hills, we hear from a community denied access to their lands, education, and in some cases electricity. We hear how one strong woman rose up against all the odds facing down the IDF and illegal settlers to build a school ensuring the education of future generations. In the Gaza strip, described by one resident as an open prison, the community workers tell us about the daily struggles facing its inhabitants but primarily how it is the women that suffer the most, be it through a lack of access to education and rule over their own lives, or living in daily fear of Israeli attacks. "Fighting on Two Fronts" showcases the struggles and triumphs of these women, highlighting their determination to fight for their rights and make a difference in their communities. From organizing protests at great personal risk to campaigning in their communities' Palestinian women are often at the forefront of a difficult struggle for justice. Fighting on two Fronts was produced and edited by Brian Kenny (www.kennysound.com) with the aid of funding from the BAI's Sound and Vision programme. Voice over and translation by Dina Al Jaro.

Across Ireland, people are doing exciting and important science, even though they didn't train as scientists. They are documenting sightings of birds and insects, of lizards and newts. They are playing games that improve our understanding of the human mind, mapping meteors across our solar system, and testing the water in our rivers and streams. They are even helping unearth our history at archaeological dig sites. In this programme, we explore the field of ‘citizen science', we find out about the projects people are contributing to, and we discover how it is improving our understanding of science. Citizen Science, was produced by Shaun & Maurice (aka science communicator Shaun O'Boyle and artist Maurice Kelliher) and was funded by a grant from the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland with the Television Licence Fee. ‘Citizen Science' features: ● Jonathan Mackey from DIAS Dunsink Observatory ● Susan Hegarty from the DCU Water Institute ● Claire Gillen from Neureka ● Kieran Flood from The Irish Wildlife Trust ● Tara Adcock from Birdwatch Ireland ● Graeme Warren and Conor McDermott from UCD School of Archaeology

Documentary On Newstalk presents "Undocumented", independent producer Bairbre Flood brings us the stories of those who have been living in Ireland, Undocumented, and the impact the groundbreaking regularisation scheme has had.  Last year saw the start of a groundbreaking regularisation scheme for thousands of people who've been living and working in Ireland for many years without papers. It came after ten years of campaigning by migrant communities working with the Migrant Rights Centre Ireland (MRCI) in the ‘Justice for Undocumented' campaign. Albert Bello, Irene Jagoba, Neil Bruton and Claudiane Lima share their experiences of working on the campaign and why it's so important to continue and broaden the scheme. Bello and Jagoba share how it has affected their lives and they explain why it's vital that this scheme continues for new arrivals. For them, and all the people who've been living in a state of limbo for so long, this has been a life-changing scheme. And for those who missed out and for those still arriving it offers a template for how we can continue to regularise migration in Ireland. As of now, nearly 8,000 applicants have received a stable and secure status, with roughly 3000 people still waiting for their result. But some people - like Claudiane Lima who has been living in Ireland for nine years, with her children - didn't qualify for the scheme. And there are people arriving all the time who could benefit from a continuation of a regularisation programme. ‘We know the life - it wasn't easy,' said Irene Jagoba. ‘We're hoping that the scheme will continue without a closing date. So that no one - no undocumented people - will live undocumented for a very long time, because it was a tough life.' For more information on this ongoing campaign please go to the Migrant Rights Centre Ireland - www.mrci.ie Produced by Bairbre Flood with the support of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) under the Sound and Vision Scheme.

The fascinating stories of five religious Irish women who worked in the missions abroad; why these women chose the life that they did and the challenges they faced not only on their missionary posting but also the difficulties encountered on return home to Ireland. CREDITS: ‘Mission Possible' was produced, recorded and edited by Grainne McPolin. Assistant Producer: Kelly Crichton Music: composed and arranged by JJO'Shea Music: ‘African Percussion' Pollypony Studio facilities Thanks to Kerry College, Monavalley Campus, Tralee, Co Kerry Special thanks go to: Missionary Sisters of St Columban Missionary Sisters of The Holy Rosary Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles Daughters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul Dr Carmen Mangion Historian Birkbeck University of London Dr Yvonne McKenna Sociologist and Author of ‘Made Holy: Irish Women Religious at Home and Abroad Sr Kathleen McGarvey OLA Mr David Rose Secretary General AMRI Sr Susanna Choi Congregational Leader Missionary Sisters of St Columban ‘Mission Possible' documentary is dedicated to the memory of Radio Presenter Sheila O'Regan RIP. ‘Mission Possible' was funded by a grant from the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland with the Television Licence Fee. https://www.newstalk.com/documentary-and-drama-on-newstalk/mission-possible-1454985

The Fixer, a Newstalk exclusive documentary about Sean Moncrieff's week in Ukraine. Presented by Sean Moncrieff, produced by Aisling Moore, with additional audio production by Lochlainn Harte.

To coincide with International Roma Day on April 8th 2023, Newstalk present a new radio documentary. Produced by independent radio producer Susan Dennehy, ‘A Roma Girl in Dublin' reveals the personal experiences of four women from the Roma community living in Ireland. The stories of four women feature in the documentary ; Gabi Muntean, Vanessa Paszkowska, Sylvia Covaci and Marioara Rostas. ‘A Roma Girl in Dublin' was produced and narrated by Susan Dennehy. Research by Sean Harper. Sound Mix by Moynihan Russell Studios. The programme was Funded by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland with the Television License Fee.

Documentary on Newstalk, presents a new documentary by producers Shaun O'Boyle and Maurice Kelliher. In 'Looking Up' we meet the astronomers working in an historic observatory in Castleknock Co Dublin. DIAS Dunsink Observatory is a beautiful building, located in Castleknock in Dublin, and filled with centuries of space-related history, telescopes, stories, artefacts, diaries, and equipment. We take a tour of the observatory with astronomers who work in this historic building. We explore the site's history, and we discover what kind of scientific research happens there today - from studying solar flares to space weather, nearby planets to distant galaxies. Looking Up is a Shaun and Maurice production, produced by Maurice Kelliher and Shaun O'Boyle, and was funded by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, as part of the sound and vision scheme.

Newstalk reporter Josh Crosbie travels to Somalia with Trócaire to see the impact the worst drought in over 40 years is having on the country. He met with those who are providing supports on the ground and also with the families who have been affected as part of Trócaire's Lent Appeal.