The Hard Shoulder

It has been a number of years since an Irish public figure took a British Honour title, like Sir Bob Geldof, but has Ireland fallen out of love with British titles? And should we consider implementing our own?To discuss, Kieran Cuddihy is joined by Gerard Craughwell, Independent Senator and John Gilligan, the Former Mayor of Limerick.

The Democratic National Convention gets underway today in Chicago. What can we expect?Joining Kieran from the DNC to discuss is Bob Mulholland, Delegate and Member of the Democratic National Committee for California.Image: Reuters

Is the requirement to fill out a personality test to secure a house viewing the latest bizarre element of renting in Ireland's housing crisis?To discuss, Kieran Cuddihy is joined by Meghan from Newstalk and Peter Dooley from the Dublin Renters Union.Later, Kieran is joined by Dr. Rory Hearne, Assistant Professor of Social Policy at Maynooth University to discuss how the market has gotten to this point, and what needs to be done to change things.

Now, the new gambling bill is set to be published this autumn and will hope to curtail advertising as well as protect children from gambling.Joining Kieran to help explain what the bill is and how it has gotten to this point having faced considerable lobbying is Minister of State Department of Justice with responsibility for International Law, Law Reform and Youth Justice and Fianna Fail TD for Wexford of Justice James Browne.

For this week’s Kids Health Check, Kieran is joined by Iseult White, Psychotherapist and Author to discuss whether or not you should use reward systems with your children.

With alcohol consumption in Ireland dropping by almost a third in the last two decades, a move towards sobriety is becoming a popular choice for many.But, with our deep-rooted drinking culture still so prevalent in the country - are there enough spaces for non-drinkers to socialise?Joining Kieran to discuss is Resilience Coach, Expert Psychotherapist and best-selling author Siobhan Murray.

Have superhero movies led to the death of cinema? Former Marvel actor and star of Succession Brian Cox seems to think so, despite the latest superhero movie, Deadpool & Wolverine becoming the second highest grossing movie of 2024.To discuss, Kieran is joined by Deirdre Molumby, Pop Culture and Entertainment Expert and Film Critic, Brian Lloyd.Image: Marvel

All eyes are on the Democratic National Convention as it starts in Chicago today, and who better to discuss presidential politics than Kieran’s next guest, American actor and ‘The West Wing’ legend, Richard Schiff!They discuss Biden’s decision to step out of the race, and how the election might shake out.Image: NBC

Electric Picnic has come and gone from another weekend, but one of the highlights for some would have been the Wolfe Tones playing the main stage yesterday.Was it okay for thousands of fans to chant “oh ah up the ra”? Or do we need to start having a mature conversation around rebel songs?To discuss, Kieran is joined by Ronan McGreevy, Irish Times journalist, author of 'Great Hatred: The Assassination of Field Marshall Sir Henry Wilson MP' and Ben Lowry, Editor of The Belfast Newsletter.

This week Kieran Cuddihy was joined by Presenter of Weekend Breakfast, Alison Curtis and Freelance Journalist Niamh O’Reilly to look back on the week that was, but with a few twists…