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Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning
Johnny Sexton. Part 2. House of Pain
What is the difference between winning and losing? In 2023, Ireland lost another World Cup quarter final to New Zealand, but was this different to their other failures? In the second part of the Johnny Sexton interview, he talks to Dion and Joe about how Ireland had only one goal in 2023 and what failure felt like. He speaks about other obsessives, the agonies he put his body through and why he responded so well to the black and white philosophy of Joe Schmidt. Sexton explains why loyalty would make him a bad pundit and how he thinks his mother will respond when she reads his book.
Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG Productions.
For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/
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161. Pardon Me, President Biden & what the election results tell us about Ireland
51:06||Ep. 161The General Election was a glorious example of democracy at work. Ireland showed that it is a place where ideas are debated, policies fiercely contested and, at the end of the counting of votes, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael remain in power (and the far right crash). On Free State today Joe and Dion look at what the election results tell us about Ireland. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are on the verge of returning to power but are they now just the Irish Political Party? While other parties want them to merge as their differences are negligible, Dion and Joe look at why that is not in their best interests. They also ask why Sinn Fein need to form an alliance of the left for the common good as outlined by Richard Boyd Barrett. Joe also considers the pardon of Hunter Biden and how he was fooled by the president.Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/160. “Great question Miriam. And thank you for asking it.” A Free State election eve special.
52:37||Ep. 160More than a million people tuned into RTE’s final election debate and if he could Simon Harris would have thanked every one of them. Instead he thanked Sarah McInerney and Miriam O’Callaghan for every question as he tried to recover the ground he has lost. Harris’s encounter with the woman in Kanturk Charlotte Fallon has defined the election campaign. But what has really led to Fine Gael’s slump? On Free State today, Joe and Dion look at what the establishment parties took for granted during the campaign and how it might still cost them. What has the media’s role been and is it time for RTÉ to explain the contact they had with Fine Gael about the Kanturk encounter? They also have a politician’s tip for how to make a mark at a funeral.Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/159. Conor McGregor for President 2025. Make Ireland Great Again.
46:52||Ep. 159Conor McGregor believes he lives in a world without rules, a world where he hears only the laughter of his entourage and answers to nobody. Like Andrew Tate, he is mainstreaming misogyny and violence to an audience of young men who idolise him. On Free State today, Joe and Dion look at the world McGregor lives in and how he came to believe the law doesn’t apply to him. McGregor has boasted about running for president. Will the verdict in the court case make any difference to his appeal? Or like Tate, will he continue to deny reality and depend on the support of those who idolise him. Joe talks about the statement he made to the guards about McGregor’s tweets on the day of the Dublin riots. Why he asks was nothing done? Last week, Conor McGregor had to answer to Nikita Hand. Hand had accused McGregor of raping her and a jury in Dublin’s High Court agreed. She got the verdict her bravery deserved. As a criminal barrister, Joe analyses the case and asks the question Nikita Hand’s family had asked too. Why did Nikita Hand have to crusade for justice? Why did the state fail her in the case of Conor McGregor?Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/158. Should RTÉ be independent? Or is free speech a thing of the past? Free State Weekend Election Special
46:25||Ep. 158How does RTÉ influence politics in Ireland? During an election campaign dominated by photoshoot which are just government press releases on camera, is power being questioned as it should? On Free State today, Dion and Joe ask what does press freedom mean in Ireland? They argue about Sinn Féin’s independent review into RTE’s coverage of Gaza. Joe also looks at the history of censorship by the establishment in Ireland, while Dion learns that the Dungiven WhatsApp group have been keeping an eye on him.Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/157. What Has Britain Ever Done For Us?
52:19||Ep. 157When Paul Mescal said meeting King Charles was ‘not on his list of priorities’, some were appalled. We should be thanking the British not booing them, one commentator said. On Free State today, Dion and Joe argue about what the British have ever done for us. Why is the history of Empire still concealed from so many? And do we all have a reckoning with history? History remains with us too. The British colonisation of Palestine isn’t in the past as the Israeli government have clearly learned from them in more ways than one. The Conservative leadership candidate Robert Jenrick said Britain’s former colonies owe a ‘debt of gratitude’ to the Empire. Joe explores the true cost for those who were colonised and all they have to be grateful for.Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/156. The Godfather, the Garda commissioner & the McGahon dynasty. Another Free State Election Special
48:40||Ep. 156What does the selection of John McGahon as a general election candidate tell us about Fine Gael and their attitude to power? On Free State today, Dion and Joe look at the controversy, what it tells us about Irish politics and how power has been acquired in Ireland through the generations. Will people continue to vote as their forebears vote or has that vanished in Ireland today? Joe also considers the new Derry manager and why the professional managerial cartel could spell doom for the GAA.Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/155. The Monk’s Manifesto, abolishing extradition and winning the egg and spoon race: A Free State Election Special
54:15||Ep. 155What are the election candidates’ favourite biscuit? Who is the best runner? Who can pour the best pint? Given the photo ops that have marked the election campaign so far these would seem to be the issues convulsing Ireland. On a Free State Saturday special, Dion and Joe ask if these stage managed stunts are what will decide the election. Or will the issues that matter to people like housing and the cost of living take over? Joe reveals the contents of The Monk’s election manifesto, including his plan to abolish extradition. When Eoghan Murphy tells us that when he was Fine Gael Housing minister he didn’t solve the housing crisis because Fine Gael did not want to, do we believe him? Will it make a difference to voters once they learn about a candidate’s love of custard creams?Dion and Joe also tell the truth about small talk while extending an invitation to the Taoiseach Simon Harris.Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/154. Hello Again Mary Lou. Part 2.
42:11||Ep. 154What is Mary Lou McDonald’s vision for a United Ireland? On the second part of a Free State Special, Mary Lou McDonald talks about the Ireland she believes in and the 32 county country she imagines.With half a million new voters added to the register this year, McDonald outlines how she wants to change Ireland. She explains what led Sinn Fein to alter their policy on immigration and why the far right protestors were not disenchanted Sinn Fein voters. Mary Lou also talks about her difficult relationship with her father and what she said to him before he died earlier this year.Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/153. Hello Mary Lou. A Free State Special with the leader of the opposition, Part 1 (no hamsters were harmed in the making of this podcast)
42:24||Ep. 153Mary Lou McDonald is promising change but will Sinn Fein be able to deliver? On the first Free State election special, Mary Lou McDonald joins Dion and Joe for a major podcast interview.She talks to Dion and Joe about the challenges facing her party and why she believes the media is hostile to Sinn Fein. Will Dion indulge in ‘IRAing’ or are these legitimate questions to be asked of the leader of Sinn Fein? When does IRAing come to an end and normal politics begins? When it does will Sinn Fein bring the same radical change as Bernie Sander and Jeremy Corbyn promised? Or will they be destroyed by the system before addressing Ireland’s fundamental problems. Will this be the first podcast where one of the interviewers storms out? And will any hamsters be harmed in the making of the podcast?Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/