Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning
Gold Hat Productions
Free State is a podcast for the curious that stimulates, provokes, challenges and entertains, while never taking itself too seriously. Free State covers topics from sport to politics, love to loss, the human condition and how to fix the world, with guests from across the planet including Nigerian princes, former Prime Ministers, ex convicts, footballers, boxers and extraordinary people from every walk of life. Free State is presented by Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning. Brolly is a barrister, an original thinker with a fascinating backstory, who donated a kidney to a stranger and then led a crusade to transform organ donation on the island of Ireland, and Fanning is an award-winning interviewer and author. They are not motivational gurus or life coaches. They will never try to sell you a penis scented candle. They are two people from very different worlds, with one core belief uniting them - this is not a high performance podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Nov 18, 2025 • 38min
Troy Parrott and the joy of living in the now
Troy Parrott has transformed the mood of the nation. On Free State today we ask why the player and the Ireland team have had the impact they had?What is it about a game like football, even at a time when it is scarred by money and greed, that brings people together in a profound way?Dion looks at Troy Parrott and wonders about Ireland’s need for a saviour. Parrott was tipped for greatness from a young age but has taken a different route. Yet, he has captured the heart of the country because of more than just his talent. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Nov 15, 2025 • 45min
How Ben Dunne bought and sold Ireland
‘Thanks a million, big fella.’ Charlie Haughey’s words to Ben Dunne summed up how Ireland worked for many.But who was Ben Dunne and what were the compulsions that drove him?On Free State today Matt Cooper talks about his gripping new book Dynasty about the Dunnes family.It looks at how Ben Dunne Senior built an empire and how Ben Jr never recovered from the kidnapping.He talks to us about the scene in Florida where, after taking a mountain of cocaine in a hotel with parrots roaming the lobby, Ben Dunne had a breakdown. He was hog tied and taken out of the hotel and it became an event which would eventually provide a glimpse into how Ireland works. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Nov 13, 2025 • 41min
The Legend of the Monday Club
What is the difference between nostalgia and lamenting the loss of something special?Have we become a society that places too much emphasis on propriety at the expense of the unpredictability that makes life worth living.As Joe and Dion reflect on Monday Clubs they’ve belonged from Mayo to Kilburn, they look at the lives of the great hellraisers.They lament too the decline of sports coverage on RTE. Joe shares a story about a day with Pat Gilroy when he knew the writing was on the wall at RTE. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Nov 11, 2025 • 40min
How Trump & Israel made the BBC great again
Donald Trump is threatening to sue the BBC for a billion dollars.On Free State today we ask what is driving this campaign against the BBC?Many studies have concluded that there is a pro Israeli bias at the BBC, but the report that led to the resignation of the director general alleged the opposite. Why has that led to such upheaval when so many say the opposite.Is this the real driver for this coup against members of the establishment and is there ever any point in giving in to the forces that include Trump, the Israeli government and, er, Kemi Badenoch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Nov 8, 2025 • 1h 7min
‘I know a lot of people think Nigel Farage is an extremist. I don’t’
Iain Dale knows he is walking on perilous terrain.Dale is one of Britain’s best known broadcasters and podcasters but his new book is about Ireland, specifically Irish Taoisigh.On Free State today Iain Dale has an animated conversation about what has gone wrong in England and the dangers of nationalism. Yet he argues that he doesn’t believe Nigel Farage is an extremist. Dale has recruited some of Ireland’s foremost writers to write about the holders of the Taoiseach’s office. But he talks about how his own fascination with Ireland began and why he believes it is part of history that Britain needs to reckon with. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
9 snips
Nov 6, 2025 • 34min
Zohran Mamdani, Mayor of New York. Why is corporate America so terrified of a 34 year old Muslim?
Zohran Mamdani's stunning rise to become New York's first Muslim mayor is a tale of resilience and vision. The hosts dive into Mamdani's progressive promises, like rent freezes and a $30 minimum wage, which resonated with voters. They discuss the smear campaigns he faced, branding him an antisemite, and how he effectively mobilized grassroots support. His direct communication style stands in stark contrast to traditional political doublespeak. The podcast highlights Mamdani's efforts to build a broad coalition while challenging corporate influence in a hopeful shift for progressive politics.
Nov 4, 2025 • 53min
Simon Harris, Elon Musk & the Stranger Danger Delusion
On Halloween night, a fire broke out an IPAS centre in Drogheda. Four children, including a 20-day-old baby, were among those rescued from the top floor of the building. The next morning the Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan condemned the attack and said that fireworks had been thrown into the building. There were no fireworks, CCTV footage showed a figure setting fire to the staircase. Police believe it was arson and the nature of the attack may justify attempted murder charges.On Free State today, we ask if this will be a turning point in the demonisation of asylum seekers or is Ireland heading down the same road as other countries?Dion and Joe disagree about the direction the country is going. They look at Simon Harris’s comments about immigration and ask what responsibility politicians have in a febrile atmosphere to lead rather than to stoke fears? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Nov 1, 2025 • 1h 2min
Learning to cross the road. A life ruined by Opus Dei
On the day of the All Ireland football final in 1978, Anne Marie Allen believed she was beginning the life she dreamed of.She was 15 years old and wanted to be a chef. When two visitors came to her house promising a catering course and a job, it seemed like too good to be true.It was. For the next seven years she entered into the secretive world of Opus Dei. On Free State today Anne Marie Allen tells her extraordinary story. She talks about how she entered into a world of servitude and domestic slavery.From the age of 16, she had to do mortifications which meant wearing a barbed wire chain around her leg for two hours every day. She explains how the mental anguish of what she endured stayed with her for a long time and she talks about the courage of her father in standing up to Opus Dei.But it is her own courage that is the most astonishing thing of all. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Oct 30, 2025 • 45min
DJ Carey - The rise and fall of hurling’s first superstar
DJ Carey’s sentencing hearing was postponed until Friday. In July, Carey had pleaded guilty to defrauding 13 people.On Free State today, Joe and Dion look at the rise and fall of hurling’s first superstar.They examine the drive and determination that took DJ to the top and the restlessness that was always part of his personality as well.Joe talks about his own dealing with DJ and wonders if there is room in the world today for compassion and mercy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Oct 28, 2025 • 42min
How racism became respectable.
When the shadow Home Secretary Robert Jenrick visited Handsworth in Birmingham he complained about ‘not seeing another white face’.Many were angered by his comments, but what do they tell us about how the mainstream has absorbed extremist postions?On Free State today we consider how racism has become respectable.What is happening in the U.K. and the US is taking hold here, with the demonisation of the other, a story as old as time, but given fresh energy through social media. Dion looks at the career of Robert Jenrick and what his own journey in politics tells us about the move to the right. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
