The Women's Podcast

In 2016, Clodagh Hawe and her three sons, Liam (13), Niall (11) and Ryan (6) were murdered in their Co Cavan home, by their husband and father Alan Hawe, who took his own life shortly after. It was and still is Ireland’s largest murder-suicide and the brutal killings sent shockwaves throughout the country. In her book, Deadly Silence, Clodagh’s younger sister Jacqueline Connolly, gives her account of the circumstances leading up to the mass murder and how her brother-in-law, Hawe, coercively controlled and manipulated her unsuspecting sister. In this episode, Connolly talks to Róisín Ingle about the person Clodagh was, the relationship the pair had growing up and how their bond changed when Hawe entered their lives. She also talks about her family’s painful search for answers in the aftermath of the killings and the critical failures in the initial Garda investigation. But first, Irish Times Opinion editor Jennifer O’Connell is here to discuss some of the biggest stories of the week, including the conviction for sexual assault of actor Gérard Depardieu.

Two years ago this month, Tina Turner died at the age of 83 at her home in Switzerland. The global superstar and rock icon had a career spanning more than five decades. Although she retired from performing in her late 60s, one of her final projects was to collaborate on Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, which debuted in London’s West End in 2018. This month the show comes to Dublin’s Bord Gáis Energy Theatre for a two week run and in this episode Róisín Ingle speaks to some of the cast members, Jochebel Ohene MacCarthy who plays the role of Tina Turner and choreographer Simone Mistry Palmer. But first, Irish Times opinion editor Jennifer O’Connoll is here to discuss some of the biggest stories of the week, including the camogie skorts row, the latest from the papal conclave and Prince Harry’s recent security woes.

In March, a group of secondary school students from Co Offaly made history when they became the first ever all-female team to win the VEX IQ All-Ireland Robotics Competition. ‘The Steminists’ will now represent Ireland at the World Championships in Texas this month. The team consists of five students aged between 12 and 14 years old, from the Sacred Heart School in Tullamore. In today’s episode, two team members, Alice Duffy (12) and Rachel Ebenezer (13), along with their teachers Sindy Meleady and Aisling Burke join Róisín Ingle to discuss the upcoming competition and how they created their winning robot ‘Agatha Trunchball’. Later on we’ll be learning all about Luail, Ireland’s first all-island national dance company with creative director Liz Roche. But first, Irish Times podcast presenter Bernice Harrison is here to discuss some of the biggest stories of the week, including the Satchwell trial and why US immigration have detained Irish woman Cliona Ward.

According to the latest European State of the Climate Report, 2024 was the hottest year on record for Europe and the fourth warmest year ever recorded in Ireland. As part of the global fight against climate change, Ireland has committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 51% by 2030 — but are we really on track to meet that goal?In today’s episode, we hear from three climate activists: CEO of the climate change NGO Opportunity Green Aoife O’Leary, marine environmentalist Flossie Donnelly and Catherine Cleary, co-founder of Pocket Forests. They discuss the changes needed at the top, the reasons to remain hopeful about the climate and why individual efforts, even small ones, still matter.

Seven years after Amanda Knox was definitively acquitted of the 2007 murder of Meredith Kercher, she flew to Italy to meet the man who had led the prosecution’s case against her, Giuliano Mignini. The now 37-year-old mother of two wanted to ask her former prosecutor why he had identified her as the chief suspect, pursued a murder conviction against her, and whether he felt any remorse for putting the wrong person in prison.In her new memoir, Free: My Search for Meaning, Knox details this emotional meeting, the years leading up to it, and the shadow her wrongful conviction cast over her life. The book explores the power of acceptance and forgiveness, and how to cope with life’s most challenging moments.In this conversation with Róisín Ingle, Knox talks about the fear and confusion of being accused of such a serious crime, how she reclaimed her identity when she finally walked free, and why what happened to her made her the person she is today.

Bookshops and libraries are bursting with books on parenting and what to expect when you’re expecting, but there aren't nearly as many guidebooks out there on how to be a good grandparent. That’s why family psychologist Terri Apter has written her latest book all about the topic. Grandparenting: On Love and Relationships Across Generations offers readers an expert guide on modern grand parenting and how to overcome tricky family dynamics that might occur along the way. Apter talks to Róisín Ingle about how the first grandchild changed her family, the different types of grandmothers and how important a grandparent is in building a child’s identity. But first, Irish Times journalist Ella Sloane is here to discuss some of the biggest stories of the week including new research from the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre examining attitudes towards victims of sexual assault, why only half of fathers in Ireland are taking paternity leave and how pottery fever is catching in Dublin.

When Adolescense arrived on Netflix last month, it was streamed nearly 25 million times in just four days and sparked a global conversation on the dark side of social media and the lives of teenage boys. But what is it really like to be a teenage boy in 2025? How much attention do they really pay to masculinity influencers? What kind of pressures do they face? And what do they wish adults would understand about them? To discuss all this and more, Róisín Ingle is joined by three teenagers, Dylan O’Malley, Chester Ryan and Daniella Tetteh. We also hear from Jamie Carrick, a facilitator with The Soar Foundation, which delivers wellbeing workshops for teenagers in schools around Ireland. But first, Irish Times reporter Niamh Towey is here to discuss some of the biggest stories of the week, including the arrest of eight protestors from the Mothers Against Genocide group outside Leinster House, why the head of Primark resigned this week after making “an error of judgement” and why one reader of the Irish Times is suffering from wedding and baby shower fatigue.

This month on The Women’s Podcast Book Club, Bernice Harrison, Niamh Towey, Róisín Ingle, and Ann Ingle discuss Confessions, the debut novel from Catherine Airey.

On Friday March 28th, the Irish Cancer Society (ICS) will celebrate Daffodil Day. It’s the charity’s biggest fundraising event and aims to raise millions of euros to support cancer patients and progress cancer research. In this episode, Kathy Sheridan is joined by Daffodil Day Ambassador Tara Doonan, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2022 at 36 years-old. Tara lives in Cavan but travelled to the Mater Hospital in Dublin for her treatment. In today’s episode she talks about the shock of her diagnosis, the road to recovery and the financial impact of cancer, from travel and parking expenses, to the loss of income. Amy Nolan, Director of Clinical Affairs at ICS also joins the conversation to explain how the charity supports patients financially and what needs to change in order to limit costs for those undergoing treatment. But first Irish Times podcast presenter Bernice Harrison is here to discuss some of the biggest stories of the week including a frightening encounter at a Dublin hotel for influencer Chloe Koyce, the harassment of a University of Limerick student at her campus accommodation and the latest in the rumoured feud between Gwyneth Paltrow and Meghan Markle.